|
Ashes and Diamonds
(1958)
|
| 0Share... |
Share this Rating
Title: Ashes and Diamonds (1958)
Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below.
Photos
Learn more
People who liked this also liked...
Kanal
(1957)
Drama
|
War
Director:
Andrzej Wajda
Stars:
Teresa Izewska,
Tadeusz Janczar,
Wienczyslaw Glinski
Apocalypse Now
(1979)
Drama
|
War
Director:
Francis Ford Coppola
Stars:
Marlon Brando,
Martin Sheen,
Robert Duvall
Ivan's Childhood
(1962)
Drama
|
War
Director:
Andrei Tarkovsky
Stars:
Nikolay Burlyaev,
Valentin Zubkov,
Evgeniy Zharikov
La Grande Illusion
(1937)
Drama
|
War
Director:
Jean Renoir
Stars:
Jean Gabin,
Dita Parlo,
Pierre Fresnay
Full Metal Jacket
(1987)
Drama
|
War
Director:
Stanley Kubrick
Stars:
Matthew Modine,
Adam Baldwin,
Vincent D'Onofrio
The Deer Hunter
(1978)
Drama
|
War
Director:
Michael Cimino
Stars:
Robert De Niro,
John Cazale,
John Savage
A Generation
(1955)
Drama
|
War
Director:
Andrzej Wajda
Stars:
Tadeusz Lomnicki,
Urszula Modrzynska,
Tadeusz Janczar
Rome, Open City
(1945)
Drama
|
War
Director:
Roberto Rossellini
Stars:
Aldo Fabrizi,
Anna Magnani,
Marcello Pagliero
The Shop on Main Street
(1965)
Drama
|
War
Directors:
Ján Kadár,
Elmar Klos
Stars:
Ida Kaminska,
Jozef Kroner,
Hana Slivková
Europa
(1991)
Drama
|
War
Director:
Lars von Trier
Stars:
Jean-Marc Barr,
Barbara Sukowa,
Udo Kier
Fires on the Plain
(1959)
Drama
|
War
Director:
Kon Ichikawa
Stars:
Eiji Funakoshi,
Osamu Takizawa,
Mantarô Ushio
The Ascent
(1977)
Drama
|
War
Director:
Larisa Shepitko
Stars:
Boris Plotnikov,
Vladimir Gostyukhin,
Sergey Yakovlev
Edit
Cast
| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
 |
Zbigniew Cybulski | ... |
Maciek Chelmicki
|
|
|
Ewa Krzyzewska | ... |
Krystyna
|
|
|
Waclaw Zastrzezynski | ... |
Szczuka
|
|
|
Adam Pawlikowski | ... |
Andrzej
|
|
|
Bogumil Kobiela | ... |
Drewnowski
|
|
|
Jan Ciecierski | ... |
Portier
|
|
|
Stanislaw Milski | ... |
Pieniazek
|
|
|
Artur Mlodnicki | ... |
Kotowicz
|
|
|
Halina Kwiatkowska | ... |
Staniewiczowa
|
|
|
Ignacy Machowski | ... |
Waga
|
|
|
Zbigniew Skowronski | ... |
Slomka
|
|
|
Barbara Krafftówna | ... |
Stefka
(as Barbara Kraftówna)
|
|
|
Aleksander Sewruk | ... |
Swiecki
|
|
|
Zofia Czerwinska | ... |
Barmaid Lili
|
|
|
Wiktor Grotowicz | ... |
Franek Pawlicki
(as W. Grotowicz)
|
Edit
Plot Summary
|
Add Synopsis
Storyline
Maciek, a young Resistance fighter, is ordered to kill Szczuka, a Communist district leader, on the last day of World War II. Though killing has been easy for him in the past, Szczuka was a fellow soldier, and Maciek must decide whether to follow his orders. Written by Kevin Dorner <mrkevvy@pathcom.com>
Parents Guide:
Add content advisory for parents »
Edit
See full technical specs »
Details
Country:
PolandLanguage:
PolishRelease Date:
29 May 1961 (USA) See more »Also Known As:
Ashes and Diamonds See more »Company Credits
Show detailed
company contact information
on
IMDbPro »
Technical Specs
Runtime:
| (original: 108')Sound Mix:
MonoColor:
Black and WhiteAspect Ratio:
1.66 : 1
Edit
Maciek Chelmicki: ...Or will the ashes hold the glory of a starlike diamond... /The Morning Star of everlasting triumph.
See more »
(Red Poppies) (uncredited)
Music by Alfred Schütz and lyrics by Feliks Konarski
Performed by Grazyna Staniszewska
See more »
Did You Know?
Trivia
Director Andrzej Wajda realized that his leading man Zbigniew Cybulski would be constrained by period costume so he allowed him to wear clothes that felt more natural to him. See more »Goofs
Glasses of vodka are set alight which burn for an unnaturally long length of time and with a bigger flame than expected, suggesting a purer fuel was used in the film, such as petrol. Moreover, when the final flame dies (c.41 minutes) no liquid remains in the glass. Only the alcohol content is flammable in any glass of spirit and a residue of water would be left behind with even the very strongest of Polish vodkas. See more »Quotes
Krystyna: So often, are you as a blazing torch with flames/ of burning rags falling about you flaming, /you know not if flames bring freedom or death. /Consuming all that you must cherish /if ashes only will be left, and want Chaos and tempest...Maciek Chelmicki: ...Or will the ashes hold the glory of a starlike diamond... /The Morning Star of everlasting triumph.
See more »
Soundtracks
"Czerwone maki"(Red Poppies) (uncredited)
Music by Alfred Schütz and lyrics by Feliks Konarski
Performed by Grazyna Staniszewska
See more »
At its most basic, Andrzej Wajda's "Popiol i diament" (called "Ashes and Diamonds" in English) may seem to be a look at where Poland would be going after WWII ended. The plot involves young Maciek Chelmicki (Zbigniew Cybulski), who has helped expel the Nazis from Poland. With the Soviet Union now taking over the country, he is ordered to shift his allegiance to them. Through Maciek's acquaintances with communist leader Szczuka and barmaid Krzystyna (Ewa Krzyzewska), a potentially explosive situation arises.
If you know nothing about how the movie got made, this seems to be the whole purpose. But there are other points. In a mini-documentary about the movie, Andrzej Wajda and his collaborators explain how the novel on which the movie is based had Szczuka as the main character. Wajda not only moved the focus to Maciek - and gave him sort of a James Dean look
- but also stressed the scene where Maciek talks with the man who
fought in the Spanish Civil War. Apparently, fighting like the man did is a Polish tradition. Therefore, the film likely appeals to the Poles in almost every way; the perfect Polish movie, if you will.Although I've never seen any of Andrzej Wajda's other movies - hell, I'd never heard of him until the Academy Awards gave him an honorary Oscar - I staunchly recommend this one. One can clearly see how he used the movie to subtly challenge the Soviet domination of his country (of course, they couldn't openly say anything against the USSR). Poland's pro-Soviet government had approved the movie, but didn't want to let it outside Poland. Wajda got some people to smuggle it out of the country, and it reached much of the world. Probably the most amazing scene is the end. I won't spoil the end, but I'll note that blood on a white sheet looks a bit like Poland's flag (a nationalistic statement).
All in all, a great movie. Andrzej Wajda has every reason to be proud of it.