It looks like my queue is currently short on war movies, especially ones depicting American soldiers. Had I realized in time, I might have pushed this World War II drama, the third in a trilogy by director Andrzej Wajda, back to Memorial Day weekend. Or if I did have an appropriate viewing lined up for then, I'd have pushed this several weeks out for the sake of spacing. Oh well.
In 1945, Maciek (Zbigniew Cybulski), Andrzej (Adam Pawlikowski), and Drewnowski (Bogumił Kobiela) have served in the recently disbanded Home Army of Poland and are now anti-communist agents. Their first attempt on the life of Polish Workers Party secretary Konrad Szczuka (Wacław Zastrzeżyński) results in the death of two misidentified men. For most of the rest of the film, they seem to be dragging their heels about a second attempt. They hardly believe in their cause anymore, and Maciek at least may have something more to live for after meeting barmaid Krystyna (Ewa Krzyżewska).
I was not surprised to learn that this adaptation takes liberties with the literary source material, starting with the focal character. It took me a while to understand that that was Maciek, and then it felt somehow inorganic. Originally, it was Comrade Konrad, but Wajda wanted to connect with then-modern youth. Indeed, he allowed Cybulski to wear blatantly anachronistic clothes for that purpose. (Maciek explains that he wears shades all the time because he spent a long time underground.)
That's not the only way AaD toys with our credulity. At one point, a white(?) horse comes out of nowhere just to hang around for a few seconds. Some viewers find it jarring, and some defend it as Wajda's signature symbolism. I've indicated before that an artistic signature is no excuse in my book.
Between style, popularity, and short lifespan, Cybulski became known as the James Dean of Poland, not least for this role. Personally, I didn't feel the same way about Maciek as most of the audience did. Half the time, he struck me as a mild jerk. I could understand where he came from, yet I couldn't bring myself to feel sorry for him, let alone admire him. Not that anyone else on screen was much better.
For all my near-apathy toward the characters, I find it interesting how a pro-communist story became effectively anti-communist. Even more interesting is how it managed to slip past the government censors, first into the Polish mainstream and then abroad. Someone did lose a job over that, but I'm kinda glad for his sacrifice.
The main element I appreciate is the cinematography, especially in the second half. Wajda's love of Citizen Kane is evident, tho I hadn't picked up on the influence of The Asphalt Jungle as well. It helped get me through the otherwise unengaging parts of the 103 minutes.
As for how AaD affected later pictures, well, both Francis Ford Coppola and Martin Scorsese love it. Perhaps if you're more of a fan of theirs than I am and don't mind foreign oldies, this one's for you.
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