Eroica (1958 film)
Eroica | |
---|---|
Directed by | Andrzej Munk |
Written by | Jerzy Stefan Stawiński |
Starring | Edward Dziewoński Tadeusz Łomnicki Leon Niemczyk |
Cinematography | Jerzy Wójcik |
Music by | Jan Krenz |
Distributed by | KADR |
Release date | 1958 |
Running time | 87 minutes |
Country | Poland |
Language | Polish |
Eroica (released in some territories as Heroism) is a 1958 Polish film by Andrzej Munk, and his second feature film after Man on the Tracks (1956). Eroica is composed of two separate stories, presenting satirical critiques of two aspects of the Polish character: acquisitive opportunism, and a romantic fascination for heroic martyrs.[1]
The film’s title is an ironic reference to
Eroica premiered on Polish Television in 1972 and depicts wartime couriers crossing the Tatra Mountains.[3][4]
Eroica won the
Synopsis
Scherzo Alla Pollacca
The first part is a bitter, tragicomic story of Dzidziuś ("Babyface"), a street-wise bon-vivant, drunkard, and coward who unwillingly joins the Home Army during the Warsaw Uprising. Dzidziuś' wife, Zosia, is having an affair with a Hungarian officer and Dzidziuś reluctantly becomes the messenger between the Home Army and the Hungarian unit, which is considering changing sides.[5]
Ostinato Lugubre
The second part is set in a
Cast
- Edward Dziewoński as Dzidziuś
- Tadeusz Łomnicki as Lt. Zawistowski
- Barbara Połomska as Zosia
- Ignacy Machowski as the Home Army Major
- Leon Niemczyk as the Hungarian officer
- Kazimierz Opaliński as the Home Army commander of Mokotów
- Kazimierz Rudzki as Lt. Turek
- Henryk Bąk as Lt. Krygier
- Roman Kłosowski as Szpakowski
- Bogumił Kobiela as Lt. Dąbecki
- Stanisław Bareja as a Home Army soldier
- Witold Pyrkosz as Kardas
- Wojciech Siemion as Lt. Marianek
Critical Assessment
Historian Dorota Niemitz offers this on the cinematography of Eroica:
Some of the director’s experiments with camera work and the “theatrical” use of space in certain scenes (an individual in a large space versus groups stuck in a small one), are less successful and fail to create a cohesive unity. So Eroica becomes a bit tiresome, and leaves the viewer with the feeling of an unfinished piece that does not entirely live up to its ambitious aspirations.[7]
See also
- Cinema of Poland
- List of Polish language films
Footnotes
- ^ Niemitz, 2014: “In Eroica, Munk criticizes both the opportunism and the national romantic tradition that demanded heroic sacrifice, showing how crippling these attitudes, two sides of the same coin, were to Poles throughout history…”
- ^ Niemitz, 2014: “Ending both portions of the film with the irony of success turning into failure, coupled with a reference to Beethoven’s Third (“Eroica” or Heroic) Symphony, shows Munk to be a master of tragicomedy.”
- ISBN 9781571812766.
- ^ BFI.org
- ^ Niemitz, 2014: “...Babyface…”
- ^ Niemitz, 2014: “The pride and honor of the movie’s heroes are contrasted with the submissiveness of the majority of the prisoners, who, protected by the Geneva Convention, manage to “normalize” life in the camp through food-eating contests and festivals.”
- ^ Niemitz, 2014
Sources
- Niemitz, Dorota. 2014. The legacy of postwar Polish filmmaker Andrzej Munk. World Socialist Web Site. 13 October 2014. https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2014/10/13/munk-o13.html Retrieved 8 July 2022.
External links
- Eroica at IMDb