IMDb > Kanal (1957)

Overview

User Rating:
7.8/10   1,943 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?

Down 2% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.

Director:

Andrzej Wajda

Writers:

Jerzy Stefan Stawinski (screenplay)
Jerzy Stefan Stawinski (story)

Contact:

View company contact information for Kanal on IMDbPro.

Release Date:

20 April 1957 (Poland) more

Genre:

Drama | War more

Plot:

A symbolic depiction of hell on Earth, set in the last days of the Warsaw uprising in 1944. Lieutenant... more | add synopsis

Awards:

Nominated for BAFTA Film Award. Another 1 win & 1 nomination more

NewsDesk:
(2 articles)

War Costs: Andrzej Wajda’s “Katyn”
 (From indieWIRE. 18 February 2009, 4:01 AM, PST)

On DVD: Aki Kaurismäki's Proletariat Trilogy, "Shadow"
 (From IFC. 23 September 2008, 11:36 AM, PDT)

User Comments:

A Great Film more (14 total)


Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)
Teresa Izewska ... Stokrotka
Tadeusz Janczar ... Ens. Jacek 'Korab'
Wienczyslaw Glinski ... Lt. 'Zadra'
Tadeusz Gwiazdowski ... Sgt. 'Kula'
Stanislaw Mikulski ... Smukly
Emil Karewicz ... Lt. 'Madry'
Vladek Sheybal ... Michal 'Ogromny', the composer (as Wladyslaw Sheybal)
Teresa Berezowska ... Halinka
Zofia Lindorf ... Old woman looking for her daughter
Janina Jablonowska ... Woman
Maria Kretz ... Wounded Woman
Jan Englert ... Zefir
Kazimierz Dejunowicz ... Capt. 'Zabawa'
Zdzislaw Lesniak ... Maly
Maciej Maciejewski ... Lt. 'Gustaw'
more
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Additional Details

Also Known As:

Canal (International: English title) (informal literal title)
Kanał (Poland)
Kanal (USA)
They Loved Life
more

Runtime:

91 min

Country:

Poland

Language:

Polish | German

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1 more

Sound Mix:

Mono


Fun Stuff

Trivia:

Director Andrzej Wajda was himself a fighter in the Polish resistance movement against the Nazis in World War II and several scenes in the film were based on his experiences. more

Quotes:

Narrator: These are the tragic heroes: watch them closely in the remaining hours of their lives. more

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Adagio sostenuto (2008) more


FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
11 out of 12 people found the following comment useful.
A Great Film, 29 November 2001
10/10
Author: info-399

A great film, at first viewing people may not understand some of the cultural references. The tall blonde brave sewer-runner is not a model of Aryan Uber Womanhood but that of a strong polish woman.According to the official line of Nazi Propaganda the metaphor for the Aryan woman was of a breeder , home maker not a woman that would take a pro-active role in dragging aman half way across the canals of Warsaw. I saw the movie as less of a metaphor for hell as that of an actual hell,the hell of siege such as stalingrad. Stalingrad was not a metaphor for hell it was hell on earth. As was Warsaw in the last days of organized rebellion.As much as Das Boot style brought across a sliver of the real life incident , Kanal's style brings across the desperation of the struggle in Warsaw. The optomistic saddness can be written off as slavic melancholy, or better described as the hope and sorrow of a nation that has many times been routed from the map of europe only to resurface strong and proud.Everything was taken from them and hope itself is in question as the final reel fades to black.

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Kanal (1957)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
A Story That Screams To Be Heard. WillyHill
composer bumpernumberone
Avoid the Polart DVD gregfoley
Footage under credits rmoba13
again in Cannes 2007 Pure-Form
A sad story of sacrafice... monster-b
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