Wieża. Jasny dzień

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Wieża. Jasny dzień
Directed byJagoda Szelc
Written byJagoda Szelc
Produced byMarcin Malatyński
StarringAnna Krotoska
Małgorzata Szczerbowska
Anna Zubrzycka
Dorota Łukasiewicz-Kwietniewska
Rafał Kwietniewski
CinematographyPrzemysław Brynkiewicz
Edited byAnna Garncarczyk
Music byTeoniki Rożynek
Production
company
Indeks Studio
Distributed byAgainst Gravity
Release date
  • March 23, 2018 (2018-03-23) (Poland)
Running time
106 minutes
CountryPoland
LanguagePolish
Budget2.3 million PLN

Wieża. Jasny dzień (English: Tower. A Bright Day) is a Polish drama film from 2017, directed by Jagoda Szelc, based on her original screenplay.

The film revolves around the clash between the traditionalist Mula and her sister Kaja, who compete for the right to raise Nina, Kaja's biological daughter. Szelc received awards for her directorial debut and screenplay at the Gdynia Film Festival and was honored with the Polityka Passport. Reviewers of the film repeatedly emphasized its references to the tradition of Polish Romanticism and the work of European filmmakers such as Lars von Trier and Yorgos Lanthimos.

Plot[edit]

On the occasion of Nina's First Communion, her parents, Mula and Michał, invite their family to their home in the Kłodzko Valley. Soon, Mula's siblings join them – her sister Kaja and brother Andrzej with his wife Anna and children. It turns out that Kaja is Nina's biological mother, who disappeared for several years after giving birth to the child, and Nina was raised by Mula, who also takes care of their sick mother. Mula, who is busy with various responsibilities, harbors resentment towards her sister and fears that her presence might disrupt her relationship with Nina. Upon the arrival of the guests, a series of irrational events unfolds – the sisters' mother regains her health, and Nina refuses to participate in her communion.[1]

Cast[edit]

  • Anna Krotoska – Mula
  • Małgorzata Szczerbowska – Kaja, Mula's sister
  • Anna Zubrzycka – Ada, mother of Mula, Kaja and Andrzej
  • Dorota Łukasiewicz-Kwietniewska – Anna, Andrzej's wife
  • Rafał Kwietniewski – Andrzej, Mula's brother
  • Rafał Cieluch – Michał, Mula's husband
  • Laila Hennessy – Nina
  • Ida Kwietniewska – Dusia, Anna and Andrzej's daughter
  • Igor Kwietniewski – Igor, Anna and Andrzej's son
  • Artur Krajewski – priest
  • Bogusława Sztencel – Miss Wanda
  • Mohammed Almughanni – refugee
  • Jędrzej Wielecki – pilgrim
  • Miłosz Karbownik – pilgrim
  • Mikołaj Chroboczek – pilgrim
  • Maciej Miszczak – pilgrim
  • Monika Strzelczyk – woman
  • Hanna Misiak – woman
  • Joanna Nowicka-Zagrajek – woman
  • Joanna Łużny – woman
  • Arkadiusz Zagrajek – man
  • Alicja Pachowicz – fair-haired girl[2]

Production[edit]

The production of the film was managed by the Indeks Studio, established by the then rector of the Łódź Film School, Mariusz Grzegorzek. The creation of the studio aimed to assist future graduates of the school in making non-commercial, original debuts. One of the students of the Łódź Film School who benefited from this initiative was Jagoda Szelc.[3] When creating her feature debut, Szelc intended Wieża. Jasny dzień to be a protest song against the destructive ambitions of humanity:

On a micro scale, it tells the story of a family crisis, but on a macro scale, it's a story about the obsession with control: the daily pursuit, perceiving ambition as a positive value, and the belief that love can be owned. This set of features is something that stands in direct opposition to our nature; it's like a denial of the primal attitude of 'let it go'.[3]

For the film, Szelc planned to adopt a naturalistic style, so she decided to forgo professional actors: I wanted them to be people who were somewhat unknown but very credible.[4] Therefore, in the lead roles, non-professional actors Anna Krotoska and Małgorzata Szczerbowska were cast, attracted by Szelc's working method. Krotoska described her participation in the film as the most beautiful work I've done so far.[5]

The cinematography for Wieża. Jasny dzień was handled by Przemysław Brynkiewicz. The shooting period began on 23 May 2016, in the Kłodzko Valley.[2] The total budget of the film was around 2.3 million PLN, with almost 1.5 million PLN covered by the Polish Film Institute.[6] The film was completed in 2017 after editing by Anna Garncarczyk[2] and was then entered into festival circulation. It was first presented at the Gdynia Film Festival on 19 September 2017.[7] The theatrical premiere of Wieża. Jasny dzień took place on 23 March 2018.[2]

Reception[edit]

Cinematic attendance[edit]

Domestic cinemas reported low audience attendance at screenings of the film. According to estimates by the Polish Film Institute, it was seen by just over 23,000 viewers.[8]

Jagoda Szelc, director of the film (2018)

Critical reception in Poland[edit]

The film was generally well received by critics. Jakub Popielecki from the Filmweb portal argued that Szelc embarks on a tale about the human condition. The horror here is primarily the horror of existence, the tragedy of an uncomfortable sprawl in which humanity finds itself.[9] Popielecki drew comparisons between Wieża. Jasny dzień and Lars von Trier's Antichrist as well as the cinema of Mariusz Grzegorzka.[9] Łukasz Maciejewski claimed that Szelc's film would appeal to Maria Janion thanks to its constant references to Polish Romanticism,[10] although he also noticed allusions to films by Yorgos Lanthimos and the ancient Greek myth of Medea.[10] Grzegorz Fortuna Jr. in Kino magazine elaborated on a romantic interpretation, stating that Jagoda Szelc reaches into the vast closet of Slavic folklore and brings back the forgotten figure of the 'szeptucha', who is not a negative and hostile character, but an ambivalent and fleeting one.[11] Fortuna also argued that in Wieża. Jasny dzień the apocalypse is not associated [...] with a revolt of machines, nuclear explosions, and ubiquitous radioactive dust, but with a return to shamanism; to something primitive, mysterious, pushed out of collective consciousness.[11]

Piotr Mirski in his review for Dwutygodnik considered Jagoda Szelc's film to be the antithesis of Krzysztof Skonieczny's Hardkor Disko: While 'Hardkor Disko' is merely a collage of bombastic slogans, clichés, and flashy gimmicks, 'Wieża. Jasny dzień' can serve as a model of young, radical artistic cinema.[12] Jarosław Kowal from the Film.org.pl portal appreciated the maturity of Szelc's debut and argued that Wieża. Jasny dzień is a film on the border of many genres: Szelc transcends genres, on the border between the real world and metaphysics, but instead of fueling conflict, she simply observes their existence, and certainly does not anoint one as better than the other.[13]

Łukasz Adamski from wPolityce.pl pointed out the problematic message of Wieża. Jasny dzień: Not only stylistically is this cinema intended for a narrow audience, but its message is also very disturbing.[14] In his opinion, the film suggests that contemporary, secularized Poles, faced with the absence of God, are left with dense forests and paying homage to another deity.[14] According to Adrian Luzar from the Interia portal, Jagoda Szelc's film is characterized by a disordered, somewhat crippled style, colliding overly zealous, documentary realism with scenes reminiscent of Xavier Dolan's films.[15]

Critical reception abroad[edit]

Wieża. Jasny dzień also caught the attention of foreign critics. Sarah Ward from the British magazine Screen selected Jagoda Szelc's film as one of the ten female-directed works to watch in 2018.[16] However, Neil Young from Hollywood Reporter gave a negative assessment of Wieża. Jasny dzień, stating that although there are glimmers of talent on various fronts in the film, ultimately it is a hollow rehash of well-worn stylistic tropes.[17] Ben Sachs from Chicago Reader compared Szelc's debut to other female-directed works such as Lucrecia Martel's La Ciénaga (2001) and Alice Rohrwacher's The Wonders (2014), but noted that with Jagoda Szelc, there is a lack of humor and compassion that characterizes other films. Szelc's perspective is so pessimistic and dark that one often feels like it's a horror film, and the overwhelmingly eerie music and sound effects reinforce this association.[18]

Awards[edit]

Year Festival/organizer Award Recipient Result
2017 Gdynia Film Festival Award for directorial debut or second film Jagoda Szelc Winner[19]
Screenplay award Jagoda Szelc Winner[19]
Onet's "Discovery of the Festival" award Jagoda Szelc Winner[19]
Tadeusz Szymków Film Acting Festival Golden Puppy for supporting female actor Małgorzata Szczerbowska Winner[20]
2018 Polityka magazine Polityka's Passport Jagoda Szelc Winner[21]
International Festival of Independent Cinema Off Camera Kraków Film Award in the Main Competition "Making Way" Winner[22]
Polish Film Festival FilmPoland in Berlin Jury Award Winner[23]
Koszalin Film Debut Festival The Young and Film Screenplay award Jagoda Szelc Winner[2]
Mammoth Lakes Film Festival Main Award Winner[2]
Festival KinoPolska in Paris Special Mention Winner[2]
2019 Polish Film Academy Eagle for discovery of the year Jagoda Szelc Nomination[2]
Łódź Film School Andrzej Munk Award Jagoda Szelc Winner[2]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Birkholc, Robert. "Wieża. Jasny dzień (2017)". Edukacja Filmowa (in Polish). Retrieved 2024-05-04.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Wieża. Jasny dzień in the FilmPolski.pl database
  3. ^ a b Demski, Mateusz; Dróżdż, Dawid (2018-03-27). ""Nie mam zamiaru już niczego udawać". wywiad z Jagodą Szelc". Ekrany (in Polish). Retrieved 2024-05-04.
  4. ^ Szaszewska, Joanna (2018-03-18). "Jagoda Szelc: "Wieża. Jasny dzień" to moja krytyka religijności. Chrześcijaństwo nie wyrabia się na zakręcie". gazetapl (in Polish). Retrieved 2024-05-04.
  5. ^ Szaszewska, Joanna (2018-03-20). "Anna Krotoska o Wieży. Jasny dzień: Powiedziałam "tak" nie czytając scenariusza. Później się przestraszyłam". gazetapl (in Polish). Retrieved 2024-05-04.
  6. ^ "Lista filmów ukończonych i dofinansowanych przez PISF wraz z wykazem kwot dofinansowania" (PDF). Polski Instytut Sztuki Filmowej (in Polish). 2017. Retrieved 2022-02-27.
  7. ^ "Wieża. Jasny dzień – premierowo – w Gdyni! – Newsy | Szkoła Filmowa w Łodzi". www.filmschool.lodz.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 2024-05-04.
  8. ^ Le Viet-Błaszczyk, Milena (2020). "Use of Social Media in Polish Film Industry Marketing". In Jaki, Andrzej; Ziębicki, Bernard (eds.). Knowledge – Economy – Society. External and Internal Determinants of Modern Business Management (PDF). Toruń: Dom Organizatora. p. 202.
  9. ^ a b Popielecki, Jakub (2017). "Co to będzie, co to będzie - Recenzja filmu Wieża. Jasny dzień". Filmweb (in Polish). Retrieved 2024-05-04.
  10. ^ a b Maciejewski, Łukasz (2018-03-20). ""Wieża. Jasny dzień": Medea zombie". Onet Kultura (in Polish). Retrieved 2024-05-04.
  11. ^ a b Fortuna, Grzegorz (2018). "Wieża. Jasny dzień". Kino (in Polish): 73–74. Archived from the original on 2022-02-28.
  12. ^ Mirski, Piotr (2018). "Pogański świt". www.dwutygodnik.com (in Polish). Retrieved 2024-05-04.
  13. ^ Kowal, Jarosław (2018-03-23). "WIEŻA. JASNY DZIEŃ. Debiut ponad gatunkami". film.org.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 2024-05-04.
  14. ^ a b Adamski, Łukasz (2018-03-22). ""Wieża. Jasny dzień". Wiedźma kontra umierająca religia. RECENZJA". wpolityce.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 2024-05-04.
  15. ^ Luzar, Adrian (2017-09-19). ""Wieża. Jasny dzień" [recenzja]: Ciemno, prawie noc". film.interia.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 2024-05-04.
  16. ^ Ward, Sarah (2018-06-05). "Sydney Film Festival picks 10 female directors to watch in 2018". Screen International. Archived from the original on 2022-02-28. Retrieved 2022-02-28.
  17. ^ Young, Neil (2018-02-19). "'Tower. A Bright Day' ('Wieza. Jasny dzien'): Film Review | Berlin 2018". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2024-05-04.
  18. ^ Sachs, Ben (2019-03-07). "Tower. A Bright Day". Chicago Reader. Retrieved 2024-05-04.
  19. ^ a b c "Festiwal w Gdyni. Złote Lwy dla 'Cichej nocy', 'Wieża. Jasny dzień' najlepszym debiutem. To był festiwal młodych, świetnych twórców". wyborcza.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 2024-05-04.
  20. ^ "6. FAF 2017". 13.FAF (in Polish). Retrieved 2024-05-04.
  21. ^ Wieliczko, Małgorzata (2024-05-04). "Wrocławska reżyserka Jagoda Szelc z Paszportem Polityki 2017". Wroclaw.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 2024-05-04.
  22. ^ Suława, Aleksandra (2018-05-05). ""Wieża. Jasny dzień" Jagody Szelc zwycięzcą 11. edycji festiwalu Netia Off Camera". Głos Szczeciński (in Polish). Retrieved 2018-05-18.
  23. ^ "Berlinale 2018: "Wieża. Jasny dzień" zachwyca zagranicznych krytyków". Onet Kultura (in Polish). 2018-02-17. Retrieved 2024-05-04.

External links[edit]

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