Andrzej Wajda

[Jun-Dai]

Filmography (borrowed unapologetically from the Wikipedia):

* The Bad Boy (Zły chłopiec, 1950)
* The Pottery at Ilza (Ceramika ilzecka, 1951)
* Towards the Sun (W stronę słońca) 1953
* A Generation (Pokolenie, 1954)
* Towards the Sun (Idę do słońca, documentary on Xawery Dunikowski, 1955)
* Kanal (1956)
* Ashes and Diamonds (Popiół i diament 1958)
* Lotna (1959)
* Innocent Sorcerers (Niewinni czarodzieje, 1960)
* Siberian Lady Macbeth (Powiatowa lady Makbet, 1961)
* Samson (1961)
* Love at Twenty (L'amour à vingt ans, 1962)
* Ashes (Popioły, 1965)
* Everything For Sale (Wszystko na sprzedaż, 1968)
* Roly Poly (Przekładaniec, 1968)
* Gates to Paradise (Bramy Raju, 1968)
* Hunting Flies (Polowanie na muchy, 1969)
* The Birch Wood (Brzezina, 1970)
* Landscape After the Battle (Krajobraz po bitwie, 1970)
* Pilate and Others (Pilatus und andere, 1971)
* The Wedding (Wesele, 1972)
* The Promised Land (Ziemia obiecana, 1974)
* The Shadow Line (Smuga cienia, 1976)
* Man of Marble (Człowiek z marmuru, 1976)
* Rough Treatment (Bez znieczulenia, 1978)
* The Maids of Wilko (Panny z Wilka, 1979)
* As years go by, as days go by ("Z biegiem lat, z biegiem dni", 1980 serial tv)
* The Orchestra Conductor (Dyrygent, 1980)
* Man of Iron (Człowiek z żelaza, 1981)
* Danton (1983)
* Love in Germany (Eine Liebe in Deutschland, 1983)
* A Chronicle of Amorous Incidents (Kronika wypadków miłosnych, 1985)
* The French as seen by... (Proust contre la déchéance, 1988)
* The Possessed (Les possédes, 1988)
* Korczak (1990)
* The Crowned-Eagle Ring (Pierścionek z orłem w koronie, 1992)
* Nastasja (1994)
* The Holy Week (Wielki Tydzień, 1995)
* Miss Nobody (Panna Nikt, 1996)
* Pan Tadeusz (1998)
* Bigda idzie - tv theatre "Bigda idzie!"; 1999)
* The Condemnation of Franciszek Klos (Wyrok na Franciszka KÅ‚osa, 2000)
* June night ("Noc czerwcowa" -tv theatre, 2001)
* Broken Silence (Przerwane milczenie, 2002)
* The Revenge (Zemsta, 2002)
* Czlowiek z nadziei (2005)
* Katyń (2007)
* Sweet Flag (Tatarak) (2008)

Links:
Official Website: http://www.wajda.pl" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrzej_Wajda" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Osaka Film Festival
Bibliography at UC Berkeley Library
The 'War Films' trilogy from Criterion
MichaelB's talk introducing Wajda's work
Enduring Witness Honors the Sacrifice of His Fellow Poles , a NY Times article on Wajda.

CCF Threads:
* Katyn (Andrzej Wajda, 2007)
* 282-285 Andrzej Wajda: Three War Films
* 464 Danton

[Jun-Dai]

So… I haven't seen any of Wajda's films, and given that they're about to run a series on him at Lincoln Center (I just moved to NY), I thought I'd ask for recommendations.

They're showing the 'War Films' trilogy followed by his new film on the 19th, and that seems like the safest bet (I always prefer watching 2–4 movies in one outing), but at the same time those are available from Criterion and I could be missing the chance to see some great films that won't be playing near me for another decade. Assuming that I only have one or two outings available (weekday late-afternoon-to-evening or weekend trip in from the suburbs), what would be the best ones to jump on?

[MichaelB]

Man of Marble (1976) is my personal favourite, not least for Krystyna Janda's towering performance (by far the strongest female lead in any Wajda film). The sequel, Man of Iron (1981), has worn less well, but you'll probably want to see it anyway.

As for the rest, Lotna (1959) is the living definition of an interesting failure, and worth seeing on those grounds alone (Wajda later confessed the material was too personal and he lacked the necessarily maturity). Everything For Sale (1968) can very loosely be described as Wajda's 8½, and probably his most personal film - fascinating not least because Wajda is so clearly unsure about exactly what he's doing. Almost anything from the 1970s (Wajda's strongest decade by far) is worth seeing, especially Landscape After Battle, The Wedding, Land of Promise, Without Anaesthetic and the above-mentioned.

You might also find the script of my recent Wajda lecture at BFI Southbank useful, as it was commissioned as an introductory trot through his entire output.

[Barmy]

The 50s stuff is very dated, in a bad way. It might have been groundbreaking at the time, but so what. Stodgy stuff. The 70s stuff is easily the best, particularly Landscape.

[der_Artur]

Man of Marble (1976) is my personal favourite, not least for Krystyna Janda's towering performance (by far the strongest female lead in any Wajda film). The sequel,
Man of Iron (1981), has worn less well, but you'll probably want to see it anyway.

[Perkins Cobb]

Note that one oddity I was most curious about, Gates to Paradise, a UK/Yugoslavia co-production starring Lionel Stander (!), was originally scheduled in the FSLC series but has been cancelled.

[Tom Amolad]

You might also find the script of my recent Wajda lecture at BFI Southbank useful, as it was commissioned as an introductory trot through his entire output.

Thanks for posting that. I enjoyed your overiview. I'm curious, what clip did you show from Everything for Sale? Like you, I'm drawn to that film as a fascinating instance of a director working through something without knowing where he's going.

One thing I'm really looking forward to in the Lincoln Center retrospective is that, judging from the running time, it seems they've got the original cut of Promised Land, which I'm curious to compare to Wajda's more recent shorter cut, the only version I know. I've also been trying to catch Birch Wood and Without Anesthesia for years.

To answer Jun-Dai's question, I'd say definitely see the first three if you haven't seen them yet, but rather than Katyn (a major event, perhaps, but for me, lacking the ambiguity of Wajda's best work), try the 70s stuff. One that isn't available on DVD in Region 1 that you shouldn't miss is The Wedding. Ditto for the highlight of (what I've been able to see of) Wajda's later career, Korczak.

Anthology is tagging along with a series of Wajda's filmed theater productions for television. Is anyone familiar with any of these?

Tom

[MichaelB]

Note that one oddity I was most curious about, Gates to Paradise, a UK/Yugoslavia co-production starring Lionel Stander (!), was originally scheduled in the FSLC series but has been cancelled.

That's because a print couldn't be found for love nor money - I was briefly involved with the search myself a couple of weeks ago, but drew a complete blank.

(Wajda thinks the film is an unmitigated disaster, if that helps soften the blow.)

Thanks for posting that. I enjoyed your overiview. I'm curious, what clip did you show from Everything for Sale? Like you, I'm drawn to that film as a fascinating instance of a director working through something without knowing where he's going.

From memory, it was the one where the director and his colleagues are sitting in the screening room wondering what direction to take their film in. I can come up with a more specific reference later if that's too vague.

[Perkins Cobb]

(Wajda thinks the film is an unmitigated disaster, if that helps soften the blow.)

It doesn't, of course! (The former) Yugoslavia must be a black hole for film prints: the last time I noticed something cancelled after actually being printed in the program listings was a pair of obscure titles from BAM's Yugoslav Black Wave series last year.

Michael, have you looked at the other DVDs in the Polish Film School box yet? If I don't make it to a screening of Lotna, it will soften that blow if the transfer on the Polish DVD is better than the Facets.

[MichaelB]

Good (albeit brief) Wajda overview in the New York Times, by Terrence Rafferty.

[menthymenthy]

Kanal is my favourite, followed by Young Girls of Wilko. Those two are musts.

Man of Iron is great, and so is Man of Marble - MOI is my favourite of the two.
Ashes and Diamonds is a must also.

The thing with Promised Land, is that the new Director's Cut is too rushed, and that's because about an hour (or more) is edited. I've just ordered the Full Length Mini Series, but have yet to watch it.

Avoid Pan Taduesz, Zemsta, Dyrygent, and Everything for Sale. Landscape after Battle is probably his most dated film (ever) because of the dated filmmaking technique. Also, the story isn't that good.

I didn't like Katyn, but I'm guessing you'd want to see that.

[MichaelB]

Avoid Pan Taduesz, Zemsta, Dyrygent, and Everything for Sale.

Absolutely do not avoid Everything for Sale, one of his most intriguing films. Granted, you need a bit of background before viewing it, as there are lots of things only a late 1960s Polish audience would pick up on without help, but it's still one of the most fascinating films in his entire output.

I also enjoyed Pan Tadeusz and Zemsta much more than I was expecting to (particularly the former), though I agree that they're more anonymous than Wajda's usual work, and I certainly wouldn't recommend them to people cherry-picking his best stuff (not least because they're both out on DVD in the US).

But The Conductor is definitely one of his weaker films, with John Gielgud bizarrely miscast in the title role. Great actor he certainly was, but he's not the most obvious choice to play a Polish expat returning to his native country, and the toe-curlingly terrible dubbing every time he speaks Polish doesn't help. (And how the hell did a Polish expat who built his career in the US end up speaking like Gielgud anyway?)

I didn't like Katyn, but I'm guessing you'd want to see that.

Apparently it's finally getting a US theatrical release in February. "Good but not great" was my verdict.

[tavernier]

Katyn might be pulled from the retro lineup, depending on what the distributor decides.

[yoshimori]

I'm thinking about flying several thousand miles to see The Possessed again. Saw it once back in 1989 and have never even heard of another screening. The only DVD is a turkish dubbed affair. Go see it, since (for some reason) you'll probably never get another chance to do so. By far my favorite Wajda. Danton-vein.

[menthymenthy]

Avoid Pan Taduesz, Zemsta, Dyrygent, and Everything for Sale.

Absolutely do not avoid Everything for Sale, one of his most intriguing films. Granted, you need a bit of background before viewing it, as there are lots of things only a late 1960s Polish audience would pick up on without help, but it's still one of the most fascinating films in his entire output.

I think that may be the case. It was only my third Wajda (I watched it after Kanal + Ashes and Diamonds) and I think it was only my fourth Polish film I had seen up to that point (Three Colours: White was my first). I knew nothing about Polish cinema. When I watched it, I didn't like it. But this was a few years back, and since then I've probably watched about 50 more Polish films, so I'm gonna give it another go in the next few days, since I know so much more about it now.

The one Wajda film I REALLY want to see is The Birch Wood. I've heard it's up there with his best, but I can't find it anywhere. Shame, because the short story was also written by the writer who wrote the stories for Wilko and Mother Joan of the Angels (two great films).

Michael, I'm guessing you've seen it, is it worth searching?

[Tom Amolad]

The one Wajda film I REALLY want to see is The Birch Wood. I've heard it's up there with his best, but I can't find it anywhere. Shame, because the short story was also written by the writer who wrote the stories for Wilko and Mother Joan of the Angels (two great films).

There's an American VHS available at Amazon.com. I can't vouch for its quality. (I just got back from seeing it at Lincoln Center, and I can't say I liked it as much as other Wajda from the period, but it's peculiar enough that I don't feel comfortable elaborating after only one screening. The Wedding, on the other hand, which I also saw this evening, was even more stunning than I remembered.)

I'm curious - where did you find the miniseries version of Promised Land?

Tom

[Barmy]

I actually think Birch Wood is perhaps his best film, but I'm not really a big Wajda fan. It's one of the few Wajda films where the people are not just symbols of something.

[menthymenthy]

I'm curious - where did you find the miniseries version of Promised Land?

Tom, there's an English subtitled release in Poland.

I bought it from merlin...

Unfort I had a few problems with it. The picture and sound quality is very good, and the subtitles have no problems at all. BUT the mini series itself is flawed. During the German language bits, instead of Polish subtitles, there's this annoying Lektor through it (which is this Polish guy talking over the German). And even though I was watching it with subtitles, It was quite irritating.

And the Mini Series version is def. better than the director's cut. I think the best version will be the original Theatrical Cut, but it's the hardest to find.

[Tom Amolad]

I'm curious - where did you find the miniseries version of Promised Land?

Tom, there's an English subtitled release in Poland.

I bought it from merlin...

Thanks - I'll check it out. Do you happen to know if any of the other Wajda releases they carry have English subtitles? I'm particularly curious about Ashes, The Wedding, and Korczak. I have the Polart VHS of The Wedding, but it doesn't come close to capturing the hallucinatory look of that film, and I'd love to find a more watchable transfer.

Tom

[menthymenthy]

Ashes - No English Subtitles
Korczak - No English Subtitles
The Wedding - English subtitles available, also other language subs too.

Don't think anymore Wajda's contain English Subtitles (That aren't released in the US).

[Tom Amolad]

Thanks!

[menthymenthy]

I've now seen both The Birch Wood and Innocent Sorcerers. The Birch Wood was a disappointment, and even though it's still a pretty good film, it doesn't exactly gel.

Innocent Sorcerers on the otherhand was really fantastic, and is totally Skolimowski's show. The dialogue and soundtrack are quite amazing. It's a lot of fun, and up there with my favourites.

[royalton]

I watched Man Of Marble tonight - rented it from Netflix - but felt there was something missing from it. It turns out it was not 165 mins or even 160, the running time I've often seen it listed with, but rather around 150-155. Anybody have any idea what might have been cut?

[MichaelB]

I watched Man Of Marble tonight - rented it from Netflix - but felt there was something missing from it. It turns out it was not 165 mins or even 160, the running time I've often seen it listed with, but rather around 150-155. Anybody have any idea what might have been cut?

The most likely explanation (not least because this holds true for most American DVDs of Polish films that I've seen) is that you were watching something sourced from a PAL transfer - whereby a film intended to be projected at 24 frames per second is telecined at 25fps.

This means that a 165-minute film would only run for 158 mins, and a 160-minute film would run for 153 mins, though nothing has actually been cut in terms of footage being physically removed.

[MichaelB]

Don't think anymore Wajda's contain English Subtitles (That aren't released in the US).

These Wajda films are available on DVD somewhere (if not the US, then Poland) with English subtitles:

A Generation (1954)
Kanal (1957)
Ashes and Diamonds (1958)
Lotna (1959)
Innocent Sorcerers (1960)
Samson (1961)
Siberian Lady Macbeth (1962)
Everything For Sale (1968)
Landscape After Battle (1970)
The Wedding (1972)
Land of Promise (1975)
Man of Marble (1976)
The Young Ladies of Wilko (1979)
The Conductor (1980)
Man of Iron (1981)
Danton (1983)
Pan Tadeusz (1999)
The Revenge (2002)
Katyn (2007)

I have them all, so let me know if you'd like details on specific titles.