Drewniany różaniec

The four sequences in the film cover four days in a life of young Warsaw lad in September 1938, 1939, 1943 and 1944. In the first sequence Jurek decides not to study in the Sorbonne but enlists in a Polish military school instead. In the second sequence the war starts and Warsaw is occupied. In the third sequence he works in the underground resistance. The final sequence takes place during the Warsaw uprising.

A deeply touching psychological drama adapted from the novel 'Kamienne niebo' showing the Warsaw Uprising through the prism of civilians’ tragedy. A classic feature trick of locking characters up in a confined space allowed the film creators to focus on the psychological portraits of their characters and the experience of an individual facing a hopeless situation. Warsaw, the last days of the Warsaw Uprising. A few inhabitants are imprisoned under the rubble of a tenement house in the Old Town. To start with the characters are not very worried by the incident. They are convinced they will be freed soon, however no help is in sight. They run out of food and their attempts to get out of the trap prove unsuccessful. Every captive reacts differently to the extreme and life-threatening situation. A Warsaw wheeler-dealer Maniuś tries to take some action, an old professor loses his eyesight and the seemingly rational janitor goes crazy… The last oil-lamp goes out.

Poland's submission for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1973

Three separate short stories about young athletes who lose their chances of success. Young swimmer - because of unhappy love. Boxer because of a fight with hooligans, for which the judges will disqualify him. But the cyclist must decide for himself what is more important for him: victory or friendship.

1945. Home Army soldier who hides in the village must decide if he wants to engage into dangerous situation to help group of Jewish runaways.

The story is set in 1939. A military officer is stripped of his rank for his apparent collaboration with a counter-espionage agent while on a mission in Paris. Then he is enlisted in his own country's counterespionage unit, due to his knowledge of languages. He is assigned to Gdansk where he is trying to uncover mysterious "Wotan" in the German Secret Service. He eventually tracks down and kills the agent, but by doing so wipes out the possibility to clearing himself of the charges. Just as the death sentence is to be carried out on him the war breaks out and he escapes out of the bombed prison to join partisans.

In the rugged mountain gorges and ravines of southeastern Poland, a new boss and his wife become a catalyst for violence.

The four sequences in the film cover four days in a life of young Warsaw lad in September 1938, 1939, 1943 and 1944. In the first sequence Jurek decides not to study in the Sorbonne but enlists in a Polish military school instead. In the second sequence the war starts and Warsaw is occupied. In the third sequence he works in the underground resistance. The final sequence takes place during the Warsaw uprising.

A deeply touching psychological drama adapted from the novel 'Kamienne niebo' showing the Warsaw Uprising through the prism of civilians’ tragedy. A classic feature trick of locking characters up in a confined space allowed the film creators to focus on the psychological portraits of their characters and the experience of an individual facing a hopeless situation. Warsaw, the last days of the Warsaw Uprising. A few inhabitants are imprisoned under the rubble of a tenement house in the Old Town. To start with the characters are not very worried by the incident. They are convinced they will be freed soon, however no help is in sight. They run out of food and their attempts to get out of the trap prove unsuccessful. Every captive reacts differently to the extreme and life-threatening situation. A Warsaw wheeler-dealer Maniuś tries to take some action, an old professor loses his eyesight and the seemingly rational janitor goes crazy… The last oil-lamp goes out.

Poland's submission for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1973

Three separate short stories about young athletes who lose their chances of success. Young swimmer - because of unhappy love. Boxer because of a fight with hooligans, for which the judges will disqualify him. But the cyclist must decide for himself what is more important for him: victory or friendship.