The Festival’s flagship section, gutsy cinema that breaks new ground
POLAND | 90 minutes | 2015
Janusz (Janusz Gajos), a forensic pathologist in Poland, is accustomed to the gruesome sights he often sees at crime scenes. He isn’t easily shocked, but he’s still disturbed by the increasingly dangerous behaviour of his daughter, Olga (Justyna Suwala), who suffers from anorexia and bulimia and cannot come to terms with her mother’s death. To help her, and maybe save her, Janusz sends her to a specialized clinic where Anna (Maja Ostaszewska), a troubled woman who has lived alone with her dog since the death of her child, leads alternative therapy work shops and claims to be able to communicate with the dead. Body,spirit;spirit,body:aroundthese complementary axes, Polish director Malgorzata Szumowska (Elles, In the Name of) gives depth to a narrative infused with idiosyncratic humour and melancholy. Winner of the Golden Bear for best director at the most recent Berlin Festival, Body is blessed with great formal elegance. It is a frank, non-judgmental meditation from multiple points of view about mourning, solitude and all the methods we invent to escape them.
Malgorzata Szumowska belongs to the most prominent Polish filmmakers and covers a broad spectrum working as screenwriter and producer as well as documentary and feature film director. She has been honoured with several international awards, including the Teddy Award for In The Name Of at the Berlin Film Festival and the Silver Leopard Award at the Locarno Film festival for 33 Scenes From Life. Malgorzata Szumowska was twice nominated for the European Film Awards for Happy Man and Stranger. She is a winner of many prestigious prizes in Poland. Her movie Elles, featuring Juliette Binoche and Anai?s Demoustier, was sold to over 40 countries. In 2015 comes out her new movie Body.
Documentary1997 - Day in the Life of Tomek Karat1999 - Seven Lessons of Love2000 - A Wedding in the House of Loneliness 2001 - Documentary...2005 - My Father, Maciek2006 - Nothing To Be Scared OfFeature film2000 - Happy Man2004 - Stranger2008 - 33 Scenes From Life 2011 - Elles2013 - In the Name of... 2015 - Bodyshort film1995 - Scene 101996 - Before I Disappear1997 - Silence short documentary2000 - Ascension2004 - Visions Of Europe (part: Crossroad) 2005 - Solidarity, Solidarity.... (part: Father)
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