Cold War (2018 film)

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Cold War
Theatrical release poster
PolishZimna wojna
Directed byPaweł Pawlikowski
Written by
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyŁukasz Żal
Edited byJaroslaw Kaminski
Production
companies
Distributed by
Release dates
  • 10 May 2018 (2018-05-10) (Cannes)
  • 8 June 2018 (2018-06-08) (Poland)
  • 31 August 2018 (2018-08-31) (United Kingdom)
  • 24 October 2018 (2018-10-24) (France)
Running time
88 minutes
Countries
  • Poland
  • France
  • United Kingdom
Languages
  • Polish
  • French
Budget€4.3 million (~USD$4.8 million)[5]
Box office$25 million[6]
Cast and crew of Cold War during the film's premiere at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival

Cold War (

international co-production by producers in Poland, France and the United Kingdom. Set in Poland and France during the Cold War from the late 1940s until the 1960s, the story follows a musical director (Tomasz Kot) who discovers a young singer (Joanna Kulig), exploring their subsequent love story over the years. The film, which was loosely inspired by the lives of Pawlikowski's parents, also features Borys Szyc, Agata Kulesza, Cédric Kahn and Jeanne Balibar
in supporting roles.

Cold War premiered at the

Best Foreign Language Film, Best Director and Best Cinematography) and four at the 72nd BAFTA Film Awards, as well as six awards from seven nominations at the 31st European Film Awards, winning the main Best Film Award
.

Plot

In post-World War II Poland, director and composer Wiktor, manager Kaczmarek and choreographer Irena are holding auditions for a state-sponsored folk music ensemble. Wiktor's attention is immediately captured by Zula, an ambitious and captivating young woman who is faking a peasant identity and is on probation after attacking her abusive father. Wiktor and Zula quickly develop a strong, obsessive attraction and have sex after a performance. Wiktor and Irena are pressured by bureaucrats to include pro-Communist and pro-Stalinist propaganda in their performances—in exchange, the troupe would be allowed to tour the Eastern Bloc. Wiktor and Irena are opposed to this, but the career-driven, opportunistic Kaczmarek agrees, and a resentful Irena quits. Kaczmarek is also interested in Zula and pressures her into spying on Wiktor for him, but Zula does not reveal any incriminating information. When the ensemble visits East Berlin, Wiktor plans to flee to the West with Zula, and the two affirm their love and passion. Zula fails to come to the rendezvous with Wiktor and he crosses the border alone.

Years later, Zula meets Wiktor in Paris, where he is working at a jazz club. They both have other partners but their continued mutual attraction is clear. When Wiktor asks Zula why she failed to appear with him to cross the border, she says that she lacked confidence in herself. A year later, Wiktor attends one of the troupe's performances in Yugoslavia, where Zula spots him in the audience and becomes visibly shaken. Two years later, Wiktor is working as a film score composer in Paris, where Zula reunites with him. She has married another man to obtain a visa so that she could travel to Paris and be with Wiktor. Wiktor attempts to build a singing career for Zula. He embellishes her backstory to make her more interesting to film producer Michel, which annoys Zula. Zula becomes jealous of Wiktor's past lovers, and as work on her record strains their relationship, she begins to drink heavily and misbehave in public. Wiktor and Zula finish Zula's record, but a disappointed Zula remains frustrated and unhappy. She reveals that she had an affair with Michel and insults Wiktor, and he strikes her. She later disappears, and Wiktor confronts Michel, who states she has returned to Poland.

Against the advice of a Polish embassy official in Paris, Wiktor returns to Poland. Zula meets with him at a work camp, where he reveals that he has been sentenced to a "generous" 15 years of hard labor on charges of defecting and espionage; his hand is visibly disfigured. Zula promises to free him. Five years later, a freed Wiktor meets with Kaczmarek at a club where Zula, now a barely-functioning alcoholic, is performing. Zula arranged for an early release for Wiktor by agreeing to marry Kaczmarek, and now has a young son with him. Wiktor and Zula escape to a bathroom together, where a miserable and defeated Zula begs Wiktor to rescue her. The two take a bus to an abandoned church seen at the beginning of the film, where they exchange marriage vows and seemingly prepare to commit suicide together. After ingesting pills, the couple is seen sitting outside, observing the landscape. Zula suggests they view it "from the other side," and the two stand and depart from view, as wheat fields sway in the wind.

Cast

Reception

Box office

Cold War grossed $4.6 million in the United States and Canada, and $20.5 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $25 million.[6]

In the film's opening weekend in the United States it made $54,353 from three theaters, an average of $18,118 per venue.[8] In its sixth weekend of release, following its three Oscar nominations, the film made $571,650 from 111 theaters.[9]

Critical response

On

approval rating of 92% based on 255 reviews, and an average rating of 8.3/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "With a brilliantly stark visual aesthetic to match its lean narrative, Cold War doesn't waste a moment of its brief running time — and doesn't skimp on its bittersweet emotional impact."[10] Metacritic gives the film a weighted average score of 90 out of 100, based on 45 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[11]

Giuseppe Sedia of the Krakow Post wrote, "...less hieratic than Ida, Cold War has a lot to offer to the audience. Maybe Pawlikowski would have not won Best Director Award at Cannes if it wasn't for the sumptuous acting displayed in this cruel, jazz-drenched and Mizoguchi-esque tale of two lovers".[12] Writing in The Guardian, Peter Bradshaw wrote that this is a "musically glorious and visually ravishing film" that "is about the dark heart of Poland itself".[13]

Adaptations

In September 2023, it was announced that Cold War was to be adapted into a musical at the Almeida Theatre in London. The new adaptation by writer Conor McPherson and the Almeida’s artistic director Rupert Goold will feature music by Elvis Costello as well as traditional Polish folk songs and choral works.[14]

Accolades

Award Category Recipient(s) Result Ref.
Academy Awards Best Director Paweł Pawlikowski Nominated [15]
Best Foreign Language Film
Nominated
Best Cinematography Łukasz Żal Nominated
Alliance of Women Film Journalists Best Non-English Film Cold War Nominated [16]
American Society of Cinematographers Outstanding Cinematography Łukasz Żal Won [17]
Belgian Film Critics Association Grand Prix Cold War Won [18]
BAFTA Awards Best Direction Paweł Pawlikowski Nominated [19]
[20]
Best Original Screenplay Janusz Głowacki and Paweł Pawlikowski Nominated
Best Film Not in the English Language Cold War Nominated
Best Cinematography Łukasz Żal Nominated
British Independent Film Awards
Best International Independent Film
Paweł Pawlikowski, Janusz Głowacki,
Ewa Puszczynska and Tanya Seghatchian
Nominated [21]
Cannes Film Festival
Best Director
Paweł Pawlikowski Won [22]
Palme d'Or Nominated
Chicago Film Critics Association Best Foreign Language Film Cold War Nominated [23]
Best Cinematography Łukasz Żal Nominated
Critics' Choice Movie Awards Best Foreign Language Film Cold War Nominated [24]
Dallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association Best Foreign Language Film Cold War Runner-up [25]
European Film Awards Best Film Cold War Won [26]
Best Director Paweł Pawlikowski Won
Best Screenwriter Paweł Pawlikowski Won
Best Actress Joanna Kulig Won
Best Actor Tomasz Kot Nominated
Best Editor Jarosław Kamiński Won
People's Choice Award
Cold War Won [27]
[28]
Film Fest Gent Grand Prix Cold War Won [29]
Florida Film Critics Circle Best Cinematography Lukasz Zal Won [30]
Gaudí Awards Best European Film Cold War Won [31]
Goya Awards Best European Film Cold War Won [32]
Guldbagge Awards Best Foreign Film Paweł Pawlikowski Nominated [33]
Houston Film Critics Society Best Foreign Language Film Cold War Nominated [34]
Location Managers Guild Awards Outstanding Locations in Period Film Bartosz Bednarz, Michal Sliwkiewicz Nominated [35]
National Board of Review
Best Foreign Language Film
Cold War Won [36]
New York Film Critics Circle Best Foreign Language Film Cold War Won [37]
New York Film Critics Online Best Foreign Language Film Cold War Won [38]
Polish Film Awards
Best Film Cold War Won [39]
Best Director Paweł Pawlikowski Won
Best Actor Tomasz Kot Nominated
Best Actress Joanna Kulig Won
Best Supporting Actor Borys Szyc Nominated
Best Supporting Actress Agata Kulesza Nominated
Best Screenplay Paweł Pawlikowski and Janusz Głowacki Won
Best Cinematography Łukasz Żal Won
Best Production Design Katarzyna Sobańska and Marcel Sławiński Nominated
Best Costume Design Aleksandra Staszko Nominated
Best Editing Jarosław Kamiński Won
Best Sound Maciej Pawłowski and Mirosław Makowski Won
San Diego Film Critics Society Best Foreign Language Film Cold War Nominated [40]
San Francisco Film Critics Circle
Best Foreign Language Film
Cold War Nominated [41]
Best Cinematography Łukasz Żal Nominated
Satellite Awards Best Foreign Language Film Cold War Nominated [42]
Best Cinematography Łukasz Żal Nominated
Toronto Film Critics Association Best Foreign Language Film Cold War Runner-up [43]
Washington D.C. Film Critics Association Best Foreign Language Film Cold War Nominated [44]

See also

Notes

  1. Canal+ Poland, Kino Świat, The Lódz Film Fund, Mazovia and Warsaw Film Fund, The Silesian Film Fund, The Podkarpackie Film Fund, Arte France, Aide aux cinémas du monde and the Cinestaan Film Company are all credited as production companies.[1][2][3][4]

References

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External links