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KINOTEKA Polish Film Festival
Say cześć to the best in Polish cinema.
KINOTEKA presents an exclusive selection of 20th-century Polish classics. The strand showcases well-established classics such as The Maids of Wilko (1979) and How to Be Loved (1963) alongside the likes of Sexmission (1984) and Pigs (1992), cult films in Poland that have only had a limited overseas release. The importance of Poland’s women directors is also foregrounded, with Agnieszka Holland’s lesser-known sophomore feature Fever (1981) and the outstanding but underappreciated Barbara Sass’s debut Without Love (1980).
Selected features
Without Love Without Love
Drama 1980 100 mins Director: Barbara Sass-Zdort
Ruthless young journalist, Ewa, is forced to reflect on her behaviour when a young woman’s life is put at risk in this tough and uncompromising slice of social realism.
Fever Fever
Drama 1981 112 mins Director: Agnieszka Holland
A series of interwoven stories focusing on the Polish resistance to Russian forces at the time of the 1905 Revolution.
Sexmission Sexmission
Science Fiction 1984 116 mins Director: Juliusz Machulski
Two men wake up from hibernation in 2044, decades later than expected, to find themselves emerging in an underground post-nuclear world of women.
On the Silver Globe On the Silver Globe
Science Fiction 1988 165 mins Director: Andrzej Zulawski
Andrzej Żuławski's uncompromising sci-fi observes a new society growing on an alien planet and explores the dangers of polarised politics.
Identification Marks: None Identification Marks: None
Fantasy 1964 72 mins Director: Jerzy Skolimowski
As he prepares to join the army, having given up his studies and left his girlfriend, Polish student Andrzej spends his last day re-examining his life.
The Beads of One Rosary The Beads of One Rosary
Drama 1979 107 mins Director: Kazimierz Kutz
Retired miner Karol Habryka fights to retain his family home, shunning the concrete tenements that are rising up outside his door.
The Young Ladies of Wilko The Young Ladies of Wilko
Drama 1979 112 mins Director: Andrzej Wajda
Exquisite period tale of a young man who re-visits the idyllic rural estate where he used to summer before the war, only to discover just how much things have changed.
Pigs (aka Dogs) Pigs (aka Dogs)
Crime 1992 106 mins Director: Wladyslaw Pasikowski
Ex secret police officer, Franz Maurer, is ‘downgraded’ to an ordinary policeman and life on the streets proves brutal as he adjusts to his new status in this gritty urban thriller.
How to Be Loved How to Be Loved
Drama 1962 98 mins Director: Wojciech Jerzy Has
An actress struggles to reconcile the choices of her past in this distinct depiction of the German Occupation from a female perspective.
The War of the Worlds: Next Century The War of the Worlds: Next Century
Science Fiction 1981 94 mins Director: Piotr Szulkin
Polish authorities exploit an alien invasion to increase their power, manipulate the media and provide populist entertainment in this philosophical sci-fi that draws on the themes of H G Wells’ novel.