"The Promised Land" *** 1\2 (out of ****)Well as I promised in my review for "Katyn" (2009) here is another review for an Andrzej Wajda film.
I mentioned how after watching "Katyn" I had a sudden re-appreciation for the great Polish filmmaker. I forgot about him, I don't know many people who are familiar with his work, so I rarely get the opportunity to discuss him. But with the release of his latest film he was on my mind again.
After "Katyn" I thought about reviewing his debut feature length film, "A Generation" (1955), which was the beginning of his famous World War II trilogy. And I did rewatch the movie, but, eventually I decided to write about this Oscar nominated film "The Promised Land" (1975).
"A Generation", while a powerful film, I felt didn't really go into details about the plight of the workers. It talks about it in great detail but doesn't really show us the hardships which they endured. "The Promised Land" on the other hand goes to much greater pains to show us why the workers needed to unionize and revolt against the factory owners. For that reason I chose to write about "The Promised Land".
Three young men; Karol (Daniel Olbrychski), Moryc (Wojciech Pszoniak) and Maks (Andrzej Seweryn) have decided to open their own factory. Supposedly they say so because they want to improve the conditions in which workers endure. They understand how dangerous it is. Karol witnesses events first hand. But it is not so easy to start your own business.
First of all factory owners and merchants don't want any new competition, especially if it will take away their workers, whom they are use to mistreating. The merchants are mostly Jewish but there are some Germans. They have all formed a bond hoping to stop Karol and his friends before their factory opens by making sure they do not get bank loans.
On the surface this story seems well suited for Wajda, who has spent his career making movies about the workers and Poland's history. Many of his films offer anti-Communist messages, watch his Oscar nominated "Man of Iron" (1981) a sequel of sorts to "Man of Marble" (1977). Wajda has always shown sympathy to the workers. Even though he was against the Communist, his films still have a leftist slant. Communism wasn't the answer since there were still business owners who mistreated their employees.
In some ways that is what "The Promised Land" is about. Though it goes deeper than that into a story about how far so-called "good men" will go to justify their goals. Karol, who he follow the most throughout the story, wants his own factory and seems willing to sacrifice everything in order to get it. Watching the film I kept thinking of the Hungarian film, "Mephisto" (1982) directed by Istvan Szabo, also about a man who is willing to sell out in order to achieve his goals.
One interesting moment has Karol talking to his father (Tadeusz Bialoszczynski). His father wants him to marry Anka (Anna Nehrebecka) whom he has been engaged to for a while. Knowing about his son's business plans he wants him to remember about his family honor and tradition. Karol tells him he has no time for tradition. By abandoning tradition Karol says it makes him a better businessman because others will now fear him. Because he knows he gives the impression he is ruthless. And that is how Karol wants to be viewed.
This scene shows us Karol is in fact ruthless. And thus turns him into an unlikable character. There really isn't any character the viewer can warm up to. And I think the point Wajda is making is the power and influence of greed.
For me some of the most compelling moments in the film are the ones showing us the struggles of the working class against the wealthy. I'm usually a sucker for such stories. I find that my sympathies are in line with Wajda. I often admire films told from the workers viewpoint. Wajda shows us some very disturbing visuals. We see workers get their limbs torn off. One moment has a death scene so gruesome you might find it in a Dario Argento film. But what makes it all work is the fact we believe what we see on-screen as true. It's objective is not to disgust us but to inform us and provoke anger. Why were these people treated like this? Why did the factory owners feel this was humane?
I'm very surprised the film even got released and went as far as to win awards. As I said most of the merchants in the film are Jewish. Amazingly Jews didn't try to boycott the film and declare it anti-Semitic. In Wajda's defense I don't think he ever intended for the film to be anti-Semitic (Wajda is Jewish himself). It didn't matter what the merchants were. The story is not about Jews or an indictment against them. It is about workers against the wealthy and the thirst for power.
I guess if I had to come up with one complaint it might be Olbrychski's performance. Overall it is very good. But in one area it seems weak. I don't know how much his fault this was as much as the screenplay's. His character doesn't seem to be going through a struggle himself with his actions. We never see many moments of regret. Moments were he thinks about his actions and their consequences. I think if the film had shown us these moments and he still does what he does, it becomes even more powerful. When you have no moral center you are capable of anything and the worst acts don't faze you. But seeing a person struggle is more interesting.
Still "The Promised Land" has a true epic feel to it. It gives us great insight into Poland and is very typical of the great directors work and lifelong themes. Sadly the film lost the Oscar to Akira Kurosawa's "Dersu Uzala" (1975). As much as I love Kurosawa's work, that particular film was undeserving. I consider it a minor effort. This film should have won the "Best Foreign Language" Oscar for that year. It is because of films such as "The Promised Land" which have firmly secured Andrzej Wajda's place as Poland's greatest director.
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