54TH KFF - MUSIC DOCUMENTARIES REVIEWS

We invite you to read reviews of Polish music documentaries presented at 54th Kraków Film Festival. Authors: Dawid Myśliwiec, Magdalena Ciesielska, Michał Kucharczyk i Daniel Stopa.

 “For being Alive”, dir. Tomasz Nuzban

Although the glory years of polish punk had been gone long time ago, it is still a fascinating phenomenon. It appeals not only to journalists, musicians and sociologists but to film experts as well. Once, Henryk Gajewski in “The Passanger” documented the birth of this genre in Poland and recent and popular film “Beats of Freedom” has rediscovered punk spirit in Polish nation. This year’s “For Being Alive” is a beautiful return to past for residents of Wrocław - Lower Silesia capital.

Most of the Poles connotes the slogan “polish punk” with bands like Kryzys (or Brygada Kryzys- the band which was formed later), Armia or KSU but not many people are aware that Wrocław was one of the strongest center of punk rock in Poland. Tomasz Nuzban - graduate of Wrocław film school Mastershot devoted a few years to recreate the phenomenon of this environment: the birth of fashion for mohawks and punk style and above all to show the motivations and ideas that guided punk rock idols of that time.
By keeping chronology in telling about subsequent Wrocław bands, the director managed to create the portrayal of subculture that experienced a few generational changes. In the film we can listen to musicians from cult band Zwłoki and legendary artist Lech Janerka with his colleagues from the band Klaus Mittwoch complemented with “outside” voices of Robert Brylewski or Mirosław “Smalec” Malec. We learn stories about the most important concerts, relationships with skinheads, field parties and bands transformations. Nuzban draws the image of the very chromatic, moderate united environment which at the same time is extremely short-lived. As one of the main film characters confirms - the real strength of Wrocław punk rock lasted approximately two years. Short scene from 2014 symbolizes gradual decline of local environment and the whole mainstream in Poland: young girl standing alone in Świdnickie Crossing - place that used to be dominated by punk followers. Today her colourful mohawk is only an esthetic element with which hardly anyone identifies.

Tomasz Nuzban does not idealize his characters - the majority of them are simple people who swear and call a spade a spade. “For Being Alive” (the film title is related to the title of cult song of cult band “Sedes”) was created in order to perhaps - for the last time capture the complexity of polish punk environment. One thing is certain - there will be no documentary film like this one, as during the work on the film Cezary “Skuter” Kamienkow” one of the Godfathers of polish punk died. For him, participating in this project was probably the best way to appreciate his involvement in the development of one of the most important genres in polish alternative.

Dawid Myśliwiec

“A Dream of Warsaw” Krzysztof Magowski

We are used to watch well made music-biographical documentaries. They are not only positively reviewed, but they are also popular among the audience. Film “A Dream of Warsaw” directed by Krzysztof Magowski which is not only well made but also tells a story about a great figure for Polish culture, undoubtedly will meet similar reactions. It is a story about life and work of one of the most important and most popular artists of polish music scene - Czesław Niemen. Listened and admired to this day by the army of fans, this outstanding artist has become an icon of popular music and pop culture as well (which is shown in the first shot where we can see football stadium full of fans singing his song). This year - 10th anniversary of his death was the pretext to made this film and show unknown stories of artist’s life to the greater audience.

Czesław Niemen is well - known in Poland and is still present although maybe to a lesser degree in mass media. However, he has stayed enigmatic person. He never spoke about his private live and he was not fulsome in telling about his work. Not many people knew that he was struggling with severe illness since many years. The director is trying to answer to many pervaded questions, but not in a direct way. Using unknown archive materials and various people statements, he creates detailed portrait of the artist. He let us looking for some answers. The film shows the communist era in Poland also, as it left a great imprint on many artists’ work. Against such a backdrop of a grey and mendacious world, the main character seems to be a colorful bird, a symbol of widely understood avant-garde, who despite the authorities aversion became a star admired by billions.

Magowski’s film has a very diversified form. Apart from archive photos and interviews with family members, friends and journalists, there are also fiction fragments about main character’s youth and serve as a backdrop for his sister memories. The ubiquitous music plays an important role in the film too. Although, the main character is a great charismatic artist with rich personality who during his life experienced a lot of difficult, painful events the director does not put him on pedestal, the film does not astound with sentimental pathos and undue excitation. As a result the story takes on deeper dimension, becomes more expressive and real.

Magdalena Ciesielska

„The New Warsaw” reż. Bartosz Konopka

Nominated to Oscar and awarded at 49th Krakow Film Festival for „Rabbit a’la Berlin” Bartosz Konopka made a multidimensional film. “The New Warsaw” aims to document the work of Stanisława Celińska, Bartek Wąsik and Royal String Quarter on the album of the same title, at the same time it is a story about the actress who is known, among others, for Andrzej Wajda films, and also about the untypical because “sang” Warsaw.

Royal String Quartet attempted to rearrange old and modern songs about the capital city. They weren’t afraid to reach for cult Polish popular songs - “Dream about Warsaw” by Czesław Niemen or song that each radio’s owner perfectly knows - “Warsaw” by T.Love. In brief - the band took songs important not only for Warsaw residents but pieces songs in Polish consciousness.

The shape of adaptation shows mostly the time in which it was created, the way how the artists who re -read the original version have changed their thinking and how the listeners react for these changes. Nostalgia speaks through Stanisława Celińska vocal interpretations. Instead of pugnacious and screamed out “Dream about Warsaw” we can listen to slow and contemplative performance. Low and balanced Celińska’s voice adds seriousness to this interpretation. Most of the songs are led by piano of Bartek Wąsik, who is a composer of the whole piece. Due to Strings, drama and anxiety can be experienced.

It is this drama and anxiety to be the leading motif of Muniek Staszczyk „Warsaw” interpretation. Celińska exploits from the lyrics, what is really inside. Behind the rock ballad bitter and original lyrics are hidden:

The drunk alcohol is beating in the arteries
The bus wades in the snow
Behind the glass I’m watching the capital of the concrete
Yet I’m on the other side

When I look into your eyes, as tired as mine are
Then I love this city, as tired as I am
Where Hitler and Stalin did what they did
Where spring breathes fumes

The film heroine mentions the author’s opinion, who is pleased that his lyrics finally sounded. Referring to Stanisława Celińska herself: the actress tells her story, strongly connected with Warsaw. She sings about the war, the destruction of Warsaw and about her own history. In fact, it is a story about her parents, she herself was born just after the war, in 1947. However, it is also her trauma. Bartosz Konopka adds to the story archival photos, depicting not only ruined capital city and post-war poverty, in which the actress had to live as a young girl. He reveals also the context of every song and pictures from films in which Celińska played as a young girl. The history of the city, the trauma connected with the lost place, the view of young residents living in a “new” Warsaw on this place, the private story about the adolescence of a woman who decided to be an actress in order to move on the stage to the world without ruins intertwine in the film.

The director of this film not only nicely copes with managing the time. The film space is also noteworthy. The majority of performances was basically shot without background, in the dimmed room behind the stage with only one lamp. There is a foil spread out above the performers, which diffuses the light, creating fascinating, visually bright ceiling. The performance does not leave anything to be desired. The smooth camera’s movements reflect the intimate and peaceful character of the arrangement. The editing reflects the rhythm of music. The outside stage design by Katarzyna Masztakow is especially interesting – in the yard, in the midst of white, washed clothes hanging on the ropes, the music seems to be even more “urban”.

There is one thing left: if you look on the film somehow “in defiance of” some doubts may occur. At the beginning, Stanisława Celińska tells how strongly she wanted to suppress the actress in her, how she wanted to remain the girl from Warsaw and tell the story about herself and experiences connected with war, about her family. However, watching her performances, some doubts could occur. The questions – what does it mean to be an actor and what does it mean to be myself appear. However, I recommend every viewer to consider these doubts on his or her own.

Michał Kucharczyk

“Let them love, let them dream” Monika Nawrot, Damian Górski

The strength of “Let them love, let them dream” documentary film lies in the fact that the authors of the film – Monika Nawrot and Damian Górski looked kindly at the characters, without prejudices but also without superfluous sentimentality. The pivot of action is “Tolerancja” group, comprised of mentally handicapped people, the participants of occupational therapy of Towarzystwo Przyjaciół Dzieci (Children’s Friends Society) in Świętochłowice and also music teachers. Music, art, common creation turn out to be a key to making contacts and removing prejudices. It is worth to mention that overcoming barriers takes place not only in the recording studio, where the members of therapy are only with wards, but also during concerts, when the members of band confront with the audience.

The music, fulfillment through creation perform another important role in the life of handicapped characters: it makes possible for them not to feel worse than others. The compliments and genuine acclaim from healthy people confirm that they are doing something good, that they are useful and that they can give something too.

The audience’s fondness for the characters is gained because of the another, important reason. Nawrot and Górski try to approach us to the life of therapy members through the careful recording of their everyday life. We watch them when they are happy, but we also learn about their dilemmas relating to the need of intimacy, love, responsibility for another person. The world of their personal problems and tragedies seems to be close to us. Thus, when finally we are looking at warm, optimistic portraits of the characters the question comes to mind – where are the differences? Do they exist at all?

Daniel Stopa