''Rose'' ( pl, Róża) is a 2011 Polish film directed by

Wojciech Smarzowski Wojciech Smarzowski (born 18 January 1963 in Korczyna near Krosno) is a Polish screenwriter and director. He studied filmmaking at the Jagiellonian University and the National Film School in Łódź (1990). His 2004 film, '' The Wedding'' (not t ...

. It depicts the love story of a Masurian woman and an officer of the Armia Krajowa in postwar

Masuria Masuria (, german: Masuren, Masurian: ''Mazurÿ'') is a ethnographic and geographic region in northern and northeastern Poland, known for its 2,000 lakes. Masuria occupies much of the Masurian Lake District. Administratively, it is part of the ...

Plot

In summer 1945 Tadeusz, an officer of the Armia Krajowa and veteran of the

Warsaw uprising The Warsaw Uprising ( pl, powstanie warszawskie; german: Warschauer Aufstand) was a major World War II operation by the Polish underground resistance to liberate Warsaw from German occupation. It occurred in the summer of 1944, and it was led ...

, whose wife was raped and murdered by the Germans, moves to Masuria, a region in former German

East Prussia East Prussia ; german: Ostpreißen, label= Low Prussian; pl, Prusy Wschodnie; lt, Rytų Prūsija was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1773 to 1829 and again from 1878 (with the Kingdom itself being part of the German Empire from 1 ...

, which became part of Poland as a result of the

Potsdam Agreement The Potsdam Agreement (german: Potsdamer Abkommen) was the agreement between three of the Allies of World War II: the United Kingdom, the United States, and the Soviet Union on 1 August 1945. A product of the Potsdam Conference, it concerned t ...

after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. He visits Róża, a widow of a German Wehrmacht soldier whose death Tadeusz had witnessed, to hand over her husband’s possessions. Róża invites Tadeusz to stay at her farm to protect her against marauders and the brutal rapes she had previously experienced during the Soviet East Prussian Offensive and in the lawless atmosphere of postwar Masuria. From this partnership of purpose, slowly respect and love arises - a "frowned-upon relationship" attracting the "unwelcome attention of the new Polish nationalists as well as the notorious Soviet NKVD". While Róża is regarded a German by the new Polish authorities, thus facing her

expulsion Expulsion or expelled may refer to: General * Deportation * Ejection (sports) * Eviction * Exile * Expeller pressing * Expulsion (education) * Expulsion from the United States Congress * Extradition * Forced migration * Ostracism * Persona n ...

, Tadeusz wants her to declare her Polish nationality as many Masurians did in a "humiliating nationality verification procedure" As director Wojciech Smarzowski calls it, the Masurians "fell victim to two instances of renationalisation and were later destroyed".

Cast

Agata Kulesza Agata Kulesza-Figurska (; born 27 September 1971) is a Polish film, television and stage actress, and a member of the Polish Film Academy.

as Róża Kwiatkowska *

Marcin Dorociński Marcin Grzegorz Dorociński (born 22 June 1973) is a Polish film, television and stage actor. Early life Dorociński was born in Milanówek near Warsaw and grew up in a small village Kłudzienko. His father is a blacksmith and his mother is a ...

as Tadeusz *

Edward Linde-Lubaszenko Edward Linde-Lubaszenko (born 23 August 1939) is a Polish actor. Biography His father, Julian Linde, was a German of Swedish descent, who escaped from Białystok in 1939. Edward's mother, who was an ethnic Pole, refused to follow him to Germ ...

as pastor *

Szymon Bobrowski Szymon Bobrowski (born 16 January 1972 in Konin, Poland) is a Polish actor. Acted in tens of cinema and TV films, as well as theatre plays. Filmography *Magda M. *Hania * S@motność w sieci *Na dobre i na złe * Operacja "Koza" * Serce na dło ...

as Kazik *

Jacek Braciak Jacek Braciak (born 12 May 1968) is a Polish film and theater actor. He has appeared in more than 60 films since 1991. He received the Polish Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for '' Edi'' and ''Rose''. Selected filmography * '' Edi'' (200 ...

as Władek *

Malwina Buss Malvina is a feminine given name derived from the Scottish Gaelic ''Mala-mhìn'', meaning "smooth brow". It was popularized by the 18th century Scottish poet James Macpherson. Other names popularised by Macpherson became popular in Scandinavia ...

as Jadwiga Kwiatkowska *

Kinga Preis Kinga Anna Preis (born 31 August 1971, in Wrocław) is a Polish film and theatre actress. Life and career She graduated from Ludwik Solski Academy for the Dramatic Arts in 1996. In 2006, she received the Zbigniew Cybulski Award for best young ac ...

as Amelia *

Marian Dziędziel Marian Dziędziel (born 5 August 1947) is a Polish actor. He received three Polish Academy Award for Best Actor nominations and won once for his role in '' The Wedding'' (2004). In his career spanning half a century, Dziędziel has appeared in mo ...

as Mateusz *

Eryk Lubos Eryk is a Polish given name (derived from Erik). Notable people with the name include: * Eryk Anders (born 1987), American mixed martial artist * Eryk Hansel (born 1941), Polish footballer * Eryk Kurnatowski (1883-1975), Polish nobleman a ...

as Wasyl *

Lech Dyblik Lech may refer to: People * Lech (name), a name of Polish origin * Lech, the legendary founder of Poland * Lech (Bohemian prince) Products and organizations * Lech (beer), Polish beer produced by Kompania Piwowarska, in Poznań * Lech Poznań, ...

as Woźniak *

Robert Wabich The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...

as Hawryluk *

Grzegorz Wojdon Grzegorz (german: Falkenstein) is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Chełmża, within Toruń County, Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, in north-central Poland. It lies approximately north-east of Chełmża and north of Toruń ...

as Madecki * Mateusz Trembaczowski as Georg

Reception

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' has called the movie "almost unbearably brutal yet hauntingly romantic" and commended "Genre-savvy helmer Smarzowski's gritty mise-en-scene augments the force of the narrative, putting into visual terms its themes of ill-fated love and a nation doomed by nationalism. What in other hands might have played as costume melodrama focused on the victimized title character here takes the perspective of the loner hero, as Smarzowski gives the pic the hallmarks of a latter-day Western." Giuseppe Sedia in a review for the

Krakow Post The ''Krakow Post'' is an English-language newspaper based in Kraków, Poland. Owned by Lifeboat Limited since 2008, the monthly newspaper covers local and national news, politics, culture, business, sports, and human interest stories. History ...

wrote: "From a moral point of view Róża is a Western crammed with violence but filmed without complacency. Smarzowski referred to himself as the “third Cohen brother” and there may be a kernel of truth in this, at least in his commitment to injecting a dose of realism into movie genres that have never been fully developed in Polish cinema"." ''Róża'' distribution in

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eigh ...

has been banned by authorities in 2015 for depicting rapes and other atrocities committed by

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian language, Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist R ...

soldiers in East Prussia.

Awards

*Grand Prix,

Warsaw Film Festival Warsaw Film Festival ( pl, Warszawski Festiwal Filmowy, abbreviated as WFF) is an annual film festival held every October in Warsaw, Poland which previews new films of all genres, including documentaries from all around the world. The festival ha ...

2011 *

Polish Film Awards Polish Film Award, or Eagle ( pl, Polska Nagroda Filmowa, „Orzeł”) is a film awards ceremony given annually since 1999, with the first event held on 21 June, by the National Chamber of Audiovisual Producers (KIPA). Since 2003 they are given ...

: Best Film, Best Directing, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Script, Best Sound and the Audience Award *Critics' Award National Film Festival in Gdynia 2011 *Special Jury Prize of the 23rd Polish Film Festival in America for Artistic Excellence and Importance

References

External links

*
Wojciech Smarzowski - Rose
at culture.pl {{DEFAULTSORT:Roza 2011 films 2011 war drama films 2010s Polish-language films Polish war drama films Polish World War II films Films about Polish resistance during World War II