The Scar

A cool, detached look at the social and environmental wounds left by a new factory on the countryside. The politics aren't too abstract here, the conflict is conveyed through ample visual storytelling - even my culturally ignorant ass could probably figure this one out without subtitles.

The scars in this film are everywhere--on the earth, in Bednarz' family, among the villagers, and between the government and the people. And these scars are left all in the name of progress. I especially love the way Kieslowski shoots the cutting down of the forest and the way the shots of the chemical plant contrast with it. And while I appreciate the complicated character of Bednarz, I'm not sure he has much to do--the situations don't increase our understanding of the character.

There are definitely some inventive touches that remind you this is the guy who'd go on to make Three Colors - the deep silhouette shots, the active presence of the filmmaker character, etc. But mostly pretty tedious.

in two week i can fnsh @ofice eyp after safran

Pretty inessential Kieslowski unless you're really into Polish politics and drab social realism. Of course i sort of already knew that going into it, and i suspect most Kieslowski fans will want to watch this eventually anyway for the same reason i did.

75.500

Less interesting than your typical Kieslowski, but not really such a bad film. The subject matter (the bureaucracy and issues associated with building and running a factory) is inherently drab, but he gets a surprising amount of mileage out of it. Bednarz is a character facing morally complex problems, and with some trimming this could be a pretty good episode of Decalogue. As a feature-length, it doesn't quite have the legs, but it's not unwatchable or anything.