Eminent Domain (1990)

Director:

John Irvin

Writers:

Richard Greggson (writer)
Andrzej Krakowski (story)

Release Date:

12 April 1991 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

A high-ranking Polish politburo member is banished from the party, and must find out why. Set in 1979 Poland before the Solidarity events. |

Plot Keywords:

Poland | 1970s | Warsaw | Cold War | Bugging

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Donald Sutherland	...	Josef Borski
Anne Archer	...	Mira Borski
Paul Freeman	...	Ben
Anthony Bate	...	Kowal
Jodhi May	...	Ewa
Pip Torrens	...	Anton
Françoise Michaud	...	Nicole
Yves Beneyton	...	Roger
Denis Fouqueray	...	Dr. Marwicz (as Denys Fouqueray)
Bernard Hepton	...	Slovak
Jan Peszek
Tadeusz Bradecki
Marcin Tronski
Joanna Jedryka
Krystyna Froelich

Also Known As:

La guerre des nerfs (Canada: French title) (France)

Runtime:

106 min

Country:

France | Israel | Canada

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:12 | USA:PG-13

Filming Locations:

Gdansk, Poland

Company:

Arama Entertainment

Trivia:

According to the closing credits, the events depicted in this film were based on actual occurrences, with only the names of the major participants being changed. It was filmed on location in Gdansk and Warsaw.

A suspense movie which keeps us guessing till the very end.

"Eminent Domain" is quite a good movie. It keeps its viewers intrigued all throughout the movie. Its main character, Jozef Burski, is number six in the Politburo of the Communist Government of Poland in 1979. He is a person highly respected due to his honesty and sense of duty. He enjoys being in power but he uses his position for the good of others. His position also helps him to keep his wife and young daughter, who has learning problems, in comfortable circumstances. Suddenly his world is turned upside down when he finds he is excluded from his office in the Politburo and that his friends are avoiding contact with him. His mentor, the Chairman of the Politburo, whom he has served loyally, also wants nothing to do with him. Burski's daughter is taken out of her overseas school and brought back by the secret police to his home in Poland and his house is bugged. No explanation is given for this dramatic change of circumstances. Burski then decides to find out what is behind all of this and tragedy soon stalks his every move. Donald Sutherland plays the role of Burski well, giving him the confused persona that Burski certainly would have had during his experiences. The fact that this is based on a true story makes this story even more fascinating. "Eminent Domain" being a combined Canadian, Israeli and French production does not have the polished look of Hollywood movies but it nevertheless manages to capture its viewer's interest by focussing in on Burski's inner turmoil and on the effect his unexplained loss of position has on his family. This is a movie to look out for on the shelves of the local video store.