ANDRZEJ WAJDA

Bil’s rating (out of 5):  BBBB. 

Original title:  Popol I Diament

Poland, 1958.  Zespól Filmowy “Kadr”.  Screenplay by Andrzej Wajda, Jerzy Andrzejewski, based on the novel by Jerzy Andrzejewski.  Cinematography by Jerzy Wojcik.  Music by Filip Nowak.  Production Design by Roman Mann.  Costume Design by Katarzyna Chodorowicz.  Film Editing by Halina Nawrocka.  

Andrzej Wajda made this slick-looking drama about a disillusioned Resistance fighter at the end of the second World War who assassinates the wrong man and makes himself a target for it. Featuring wonderful dialogue and tense situations to heighten the delicious suspense, Wajda still had many years of classics ahead of him (especially Man Of Iron), but this low-key film serves him well as a showcase for greater things to come. The film also stands as a tribute to lead actor Zbigniew Cybulski, who sadly died in a train accident eight years after the film came out.

The Criterion Collection:  #285