In order to mark the 20 year anniversary of the death of the director, the Cinema Zuid in Antwerp is holding a retrospective of his films, showing shorts and feature-length films.
In the framework of this retrospective, we are organising on Friday 22 April the symposium Triple life of Kieślowski in Cinema Zuid. This symposium is an initiative of the Flemish Service for Film Culture, the University of Antwerp and the online film magazine Photogénie. We have invited four renowned Kieślowski specialists: Joe Kickasola, Pascal Vandelanoitte, Mikołaj Jazdon and Kris Van Heuckelom.
PROGRAMME
| 4 March | 20:30 | Amator (Camera buff) – 117 min, 1979 |
| 9 March | 20:00 | 4 short films |
| 11 March | 20:30 | Przypadek (Blind Chance) – 122 min, 1981 |
| 18 March | 20:30 | Bez końca (No end) – 109 min, 1985 |
| 1 April | 20:30 | Krótki film o miłości (Brève histoire d’amour) – 87 min, 1988 |
| 3 April | 18:00 | Krótki film o zabijaniu (Tu ne tueras point) – 85 min, 1988 |
| 8 April | 20:30 | The Double Life of Véronique – 89 min, 1991 |
| 15 April | 20:30 | Three Colours: Blue – 100 min, 1993 |
| 22 April | 20:30 | Three Colours: White – 81 min, 1994 |
| 29 April | 20:30 | Three Colours: Red – 99 min, 1994 |
>>> To mark the 20th anniversary of the death of Krzysztof KIEŚLOWSKI, the KLARAFESTIVAL is screening the whole of Dekalog (The Decalogue) as well as holding a conference on the music in the director’s films and a concert conducted by his friend, the composer Zbigniew PREISNER, who wrote the music for Dekalog, the Trilogy and The Double Life of Véronique.
+++ More information on: www.polishculture.eu/dekalog_en
FILMS (all films will be screened with English subtitles)
AMATOR [Camera Buff] (PL, 1979, 117’)
Cast: Jerzy Stuhr, Małgorzata Ząbkowska, Ewa Pokas, Stefan Czyżewski
A factory worker buys an 8 mm camera for his personal use. He quickly develops a passion for his new pastime and starts to film his entourage. The images which he takes are a far cry from the official version, which gets him into trouble with the party and the authorities.
Amator marked one of the first key stages in Kieślowski’s career: he drew a line under his experience as a director of documentaries and, at the same time, began to garner international acclaim.
PRZYPADEK [Blind Chance] (PL, 1981-87, 122’)
Cast: Bogusław Linda, Tadeusz Łomnicki, Zbigniew Zapasiewicz, Bogusława Pawelec, Marzena Trybała A student is running to catch his train. Three possible scenarios unfold for him, each of which could change the course of his life. Scenario 1: he catches the train in time, meets a communist and becomes a member of the party. Scenario 2: whilst running for the train, he collides with a ticket inspector, is arrested, sentenced to community service and becomes an opponent of the regime. Scenario 3: he misses his train, meets a girl, goes back to university and leads a quiet life in which he keeps out of politics.
Made in 1981, this film only received permission to be shown in 1987.
BEZ KOŃCA [No end] (PL, 1985, 109’)
Cast: Grażyna Szapołowska, Maria Pakulnis, Aleksander Bardini, Artur Barciś
Poland, 1982, under martial law. After his death, Antoni, a young, committed lawyer, watches how life goes on without him. His wife Urszula realises how fond she was of him. With her assistance, an experienced but demoralised colleague reopens the file on Antoni’s last client, a militant from the union Solidarność, banned since December 1981. The lawyer advises the young man to abandon his ideals.
KRÓTKI FILM O MIŁOŚCI [A Short Film about Love] (PL, 1988, 87’)
Cast: Grażyna Szapołowska, Olaf Lubaszenko, Stefania Iwińska
Tomek, a shy, 19 year old postman, is madly in love with Magda, who is older than him, and he does everything he can to come into contact with her. His attempts to win her over are in vain and, despairing, he attempts suicide. Magda goes to look for him. When she finds him, she starts looking at life differently.
This film is the long version of the sixth part of the Dekalog series.
KRÓTKI FILM O ZABIJANIU [A Short Film about Killing] (PL, 1988, 85’)
Cast: Mirosław Baka, Krzysztof Globisz, Jan Tesarz
Jacek, a young unemployed man, a taxi driver whose pride and joy is his car and the ambitious Piotr, a young lawyer who has just passed his exams, are three men whom life has brought together: Jacek brutally murders the taxi driver and is defended by Piotr, who cannot avoid his client being handed the death penalty. The motiveless murder of the taxi driver and that of Jack ordered by the state both appear utterly devoid of meaning.
This film is the long version of the fifth part of the Dekalog series.
THE DOUBLE LIFE OF VERONIQUE (PL/FR/NO, 1991, 89’)
Cast: Irène Jacob, Władysław Kowalski, Sandrine Dumas, Guillaume De Tonquédec, Claude Duneton
Véronique and Weronika are two physically identical young girls who were born at exactly the same time, one in France and the other in Poland. They have identical feelings: they both like music, suspect their lover of cheating on them and have weak hearts. When Weronika collapses from a heart attack during a recital, Véronique immediately senses that an important change has occurred in her life…
THREE COLOURS – BLUE (PL/FR, 1993, 100’)
Cast: Juliette Binoche, Benoît Régent, Florence Pernel, Charlotte Véry, Hélène Vincent
In this, the first part of his trilogy devoted to the ideals of France, Kieślowski deals with liberty, seen from the vantage point of an individual destiny. When Julie loses her husband and daughter in a road accident, she decides to sell her house and cut the ties which bound her to her life in order to start a new, anonymous and independent existence. But her past and entourage keep catching up with her.
THREE COLOURS – WHITE (PL/FR, 1994, 81’)
Cast: Zbigniew Zamachowski, Julie Delpy, Janusz Gajos, Jerzy Stuhr, Juliette Binoche
The second part addresses equality. A Polish emigrant finds himself on the street (literally) following his divorce. With two francs in his pocket, he returns to Poland where the neoliberal system which is starting to prevail after the fall of communism helps him to become rich very quickly. He concocts a hare-brained scheme to win back his wife, without success. The transformation of the hero is the focal point of this reflection on ideals.
THREE COLOURS – RED (FR/CH/PL, 1994, 99’)
Cast: Irène Jacob, Jean-Louis Trintignant, Frédérique Feder, Jean-Pierre Lorit
The third part is also testament to the sublime way in which Kieślowski tells stories in which fate weaves strange connections between people. A young student in Geneva runs over a dog and takes the injured animal to its owner, a retired judge who spends his time spying on his neighbours. Something will develop between the girl and the old man, although one could not describe it as a relationship. For the bitter old man, this encounter proves to be something approaching a rebirth.
Short films (PL, 1973-1980, 79’)These four shorts date from the period when Krzysztof Kieślowski was making documentaries. His desire to describe what it was really like to live in Poland in the 1970’s meant that the director frequently clashed with the state, which didn’t like reality being depicted warts and all.
- Murarz [The Bricklayer] (PL, 1973, 20’)
- Życiorys [Curriculum vitae] (PL, 1975, 18’)
- Z puntu widzenia nocnego portiera [From a Night Porter’s Point of View] (PL, 1976, 21’)
- Gadające głowy [Talking heads] (PL, 1980, 20’)
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
>>> Cinema Zuid (Waalsekaai 47, 2000 Antwerpen)
>>> 4 March > 29 April
>>> €5 per screening
Links
cinema Zuid: http://www.cinemazuid.be/
