Pokolenie (1955)

Director:

Andrzej Wajda

Writers:

Bohdan Czeszko (novel)
Bohdan Czeszko (screenplay)

Release Date:

26 January 1955 (Poland)

Genre:

Drama | War

Plot:

Story of youths during the German occupation of Poland in the World War II who come to adulthood through love and adversity.

Plot Keywords:

Youth | Nazi Occupation | Uprising | Suicide | Nazi Occupied Poland

Cast

Tadeusz Lomnicki	...	Stach Mazur
Urszula Modrzynska	...	Dorota
Tadeusz Janczar	...	Jasio Krone
Janusz Paluszkiewicz	...	Sekula
Ryszard Kotys	...	Jacek (as Ryszard Kotas)
Roman Polanski	...	Mundek
Ludwik Benoit	...	Grzesio
Zofia Czerwinska	...	Lola
Zbigniew Cybulski	...	Kostek
Tadeusz Fijewski	...	German Guard
Zygmunt Hobot	...	Abram
Cezary Julski	...	Coachman
Bronislaw Kassowski	...	Speculator
August Kowalczyk	...	Priest
Jerzy Krasowski	...	Wladek

Also Known As:

A Generation

Runtime:

83 min | Argentina:96 min

Country:

Poland

Language:

Polish

Color:

Black and White

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Argentina:16 | Finland:K-16

Filming Locations:

Warsaw, Poland

Company:

Zespól Filmowy "Kadr"

Trivia:

Acclaimed British director Lindsay Anderson considered it his favorite film.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Sygnowane Andrzej Wajda (1989)

excellent but not quite as good as KANAL

This was director Andrzej Wajda's first full-length film--and because of that, this stands as an amazing achievement. On the Criterion disk is an interview with Wajda and he credits much of the film's success to the cameraman and I agree wholeheartedly that this is one of the best looking black and white films I have ever seen.

The film concerns a young man during the Nazi occupation of Poland. In the beginning, he's a bit of a jerk but eventually gets a job and shows great responsibility. Later, he is welcomed into the partisans and it is an interesting look into this seldom talked about period of history.

The film gets a score of 8. It would have had a higher score had the film been more honest--as it portrays the Communists as being THE resistance and those partisans wanting a return to the democratic system as being greedy bourgeoisie. However, on the Criterion DVD, Wajda talks about how this was one of the required changes the Soviet-dominated Polish government mandated before they'd allow his film to be shown. So, considering the sensibilities of the time, it's not surprising that a little misrepresentation occurs. Still, it's a near-great film and a wonderful addition to KANAL. Wajda's 3rd film, ASHES AND DIAMONDS, unfortunately is a big disappointment to me and is considered the third in this trilogy about life in Poland during WWII.

There is one MINOR mistake in the film. At one point, the hero is hit in the head and is bleeding. Later in the same scene, there is no head wound!