Country: Poland | Type: Feature Film | Year: 1977 | Duration: 96 min | The film is presented in Polish with Ukrainian subtitles

About the film

A student essay competition is held at a university summer camp, pitting two professors with radically different approaches to learning and life against each other. The young idealist Jarosław tries to act honestly and supports the students, regardless of their views. His opponent is senior professor Jakub, a jaded cynic and master of manipulation. Tensions between them grow when the main criteria for evaluating the competition become political expediency rather than content and science. When the absurdity reaches its limit, even the students can no longer stay away.

Reasons to watch

Krzysztof Zanussi's satirical drama about cynicism, compromises, and the struggle for principles in the education system of socialist Poland. The film accurately and sharply shows how the system encourages conformity and punishes sincerity, and "camouflage" becomes the main condition for survival.

About the director

Krzysztof Zanussi is a Polish director, screenwriter and producer, one of the most famous Polish filmmakers. The 1970s were the golden age of his work. The films Behind the Wall (1971), Illumination (1973) and Camouflage (1976) became iconic for the Cinema of Moral Anxiety movement. In the 1980s, the director created mainly historical dramas. The greatest success of this period was Year of the Quiet Sun (1984), which won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival. Zanussi is also the head of the Tor film studio and the author of numerous television essays and educational programs.

festivals

• Polish Film Festival, 1977

• International Film Festival Rotterdam, 1978

• New York Film Critics Circle Award, 1981