PORNOGRAFIA European Showcase

“Pornography” means different things to different people . To Frederic and Witold, two middle-aged men living in Nazi-occupied Poland in 1943, it is entirely a mental exercise, the savoring of imaginary erotic scenarios created through their love of mind games.

Frederic directs film and theater productions; Witold is a writer. The two take their love of mind games with them when they visit a country estate owned by a friend. The estate plays host to a revolving cast of German partisans, resistance fighters and young lovers. Just for fun, Frederic and Witold decide to break up the engagement of the owner’ s daughter by pushing another young man into the picture. And then murder brings the war home to the peaceful estate.

The books of Polish writer Witold Gombrowicz were banned in his homeland during the 1960s. Director Jan Jakub Kolski translates his subversive words and ideas to the screen in elegant fashion with devastating impact.