30 Door Key (1991)

Director:

Jerzy Skolimowski

Writers:

Witold Gombrowicz (novel)
Joseph Kay (writer)

Release Date:

21 February 1992 (Poland)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

A young writer in 1939 Warsaw faces the conflict of acting his age or relapsing into childhood during the brink of World War II. |

Plot Keywords:

Adult As Child | Digit In Title | Poland | Surrealism | Teacher

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Fabienne Babe	...	Sophie
Pawel Bawolec	...	Fizz
Jerzy Binczycki	...	Prof. Filidor
Henryk Bista
Iain Glen	...	Joey
Crispin Glover	...	Mintus
Judith Godrèche	...	Zoo
Krzysztof Janczar	...	Leo
Kalina Jedrusik	...	Proffesor's wife
Tadeusz Lomnicki	...	Uncle
Jan Peszek	...	Mr. Young
Malgorzata Potocka
Beata Pozniak	...	Flora Gente
Marek Probosz	...	Syphonus
Dorota Stalinska	...	Mrs. Young
Robert Stephens	...	Prof. Pimco
Magdalena Wójcik	...	Servant
Zbigniew Zamachowski	...	Tom
Artur Zmijewski	...	Kopyrda

Also Known As:

Ferdydurke (Poland) (alternative title)

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

Poland | UK | France

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Mono

Filming Locations:

Warsaw, Poland

Company:

Cinéa

"Yummy Yummy Yama" ...sorry, how can i phrase this? I can't. Good try, though

I recently obtained a rather low-quality version of this film under its alternate title, "30 door key". At first, I was not quite sure what to expect- seeing Crispin Glovers name on the opening credits and all, but I knew whatever it was going to be, at least it would be memorable. And it truly was, in the best most surreal of ways (I am a huge fan of all or most things in that dying surrealists view). This film focuses in the 1940's around a man, who is our main character, who has long since reached his adulthood, yet in the first five minutes of the film is visited by an old teacher of his, evoking long since buried feelings of misworth in his intimidating surity and presence. His old teacher as arrogant as he had chosen not to remember up until this point, repremands the main character into attending a re-education school of sorts, to learn to write and be mature- that everything he had worked towards was suddenly dismissed as a pipedream illusiory success (don't ask me, you have to dismiss belief for the primary of this film). He goes to a school filled with grown adult school children, where there are the bullys and the bullied, the ego competition just as in reality, only now over the most obscure lesser thought of practices. Crispin Glover plays an at first arrogant, but eventually likable anti-establishment man-boy who befriends the main character and acts as a catalyst to what the main charcter looks towards to get more in touch with the spirit of living, which was a more free reflection on his former self. Its all very difficult to explain in the strictest sense, but the movie goes on- and I will not spoil it for anyone- too many different points and twists to name here, but this was a very fun film to watch. All the performances are excellent, and I could not reccomend this film more. It sounds so forced typing it out, but I thought I should at least try, as my subjects title states. final word, all in all: I leave you with a great big huge "woo" to let it all settle in good with you.