Day of the Wacko (2002)

24 hours in the bitter life of a frustrated divorced teacher who stays in the vicious circle of his numerous obsessions.

Director:

Marek Koterski

Writer:

Marek Koterski

Stars:

Marek Kondrat, Janina Traczykówna, Andrzej Grabowski

5 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Marek Kondrat	...	Adas
Janina Traczykówna	...	Matka
Andrzej Grabowski	...	Sasiad
Michal Koterski	...	Syn Sylwus
Joanna Sienkiewicz	...	Byla zona
Monika Donner-Trelinska	...	Ela
Aleksander Bednarz	...	Sasiad z dolu
Zbigniew Buczkowski	...	Dozorca koszacy trawnik
Dorota Chotecka	...	Wlascicielka psa w pociagu
Maria Ciunelis	...	Wariatka w pociagu
Krystyna Czubówna	...	Spikerka
Bozena Dykiel	...	Wlascicielka psa
Piotr Fronczewski	...	Lekarz w TV
Anna Gornostaj	...	Klientka w kiosku
Joanna Jedrejek	...	Dziewczyna reklamujaca 'wyciag z fiuta'

Storyline

It is a bitter story about a middle-aged man who hates his life, other people and ultimately himself. Adam Miauczynski, the character known from director Marek Koterski's previous films, is a 49 year-old teacher who reads poetry during school lessons and later goes home swearing and calling his neighbours' names. The worst pain for him is the next 5 minutes of living. He doesn't accept himself and even everyday contacts with others cause his aggression. Though constantly dreaming of a romantic love, he is not bold enough to make his dreams come true.

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Plot Keywords:

cult film | dream sequence | erotic fantasy | written by director | deadpan comedy | 

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Taglines:

To be, kurwa, or not to be ("To be, for fuck sake, or not to be")

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Poland]

Country:

Poland

Language:

Polish

Release Date:

7 June 2002 (Poland)

Also Known As:

A bolond egy napja

Filming Locations:

Debki, Pomorskie, Poland

Company Credits

Production Co:

Studio Filmowe Zebra, Vision Film Production, Non Stop Film Service

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Just like in two previous films about Adam Miauczynski, director Marek Koterski considered casting Cezary Pazura in the lead role. However, he changed his mind because of the fact that Pazura was then associated too much with popular sitcoms, and although the film had many comic scenes, it was not a typical comedy anymore.

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Goofs

When we see the dog shitting under Adam's balcony, it firstly does it on thick, green grass but in the later scene when the dog is with a woman, it stands on bare ground without any grass.

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Quotes

Adam Miauczynski: I'm afraid of the night. Maybe not, but I can't go to bed. Even tired and sleepy, i feel anxious. Why must this day end? Will nothing else happen? Before I go to bed, when evening approaches, I will pray to God in Heaven for the worst for my neighbor! I ask God to give him hell. Who am I? I'm a small pole, angry, envious and evil. What's my sign? Big bloody eyes. I pray to God, Mary and Josef to destroy that motherfucker, my neighbor and countryman, my fucking enemy. Make them burgle his garage...

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Connections

References Pigs (1992)

User Reviews

Painfully true

I'm not Polish, but I had the pleasure of visiting most of the country on multiple occasions, I studied there, I dated there. To all the critics who despise the use of profanity, the vulgar approaches of the protagonist, or the economical background, I invite them to take a closer look around Poland. If the described situations are unrealistic, then this is only half true. There are much worse and true facts that are either not mentioned or unexplored in this movie, like the feeling of unsafety, the neediness for capitalism and the exploitation hereof, and the careless and emotionless attitude of the young (men).

Apart from that, this movie nails it. I saw it during a screening in my classes on Polish culture (braught by Polish teachers). I laughed out loud after the first words were uttered when the main character woke up. How sad, but how true his words were. Of course this is satire. What happens here to one person could at most be the combination of a hundred people involved. Still, the pain is real. It's not an easy life out there if you're a local. Everyday is a struggle, the English language is an unrealistic necessity, money is a key word.

Keep an open mind when you watch this one. Seek out the good parts (I enjoyed all the dog references, since I'm not a big dog fan), and know that politically, economically, and privately, this does represent a part of Poland. I love that country though, with all its flaws. It's just not always easy.

The movie gets a 10 from me. I haven't seen anything like it, and I've seen most.