''The Mother of Kings'' ( pl, Matka Królów) is a 1982 Polish

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

, directed by

Janusz Zaorski Janusz Zaorski (born 19 September 1947) is a Polish film director, scenarist and actor, representative of the cinema of moral anxiety ( pl, kino moralnego niepokoju), trend in Polish cinema. Zaorski has directed mainly psychological dramas, comedi ...

. It was immediately banned by the Polish Communist regime - having depicted that regime as baselessly hounding and persecuting a loyal and devoted party member. The film only received a proper release in 1987.http://csac.buffalo.edu/blindchance.pdf It was entered into the

38th Berlin International Film Festival The 38th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 12 to 23 February 1988. The festival opened with musical film ''Linie 1'' by Reinhard Hauff. The Golden Bear was awarded to the Chinese film '' Red Sorghum'' directed by Zhang Yimo ...

, where it won the

Silver Bear The Berlin International Film Festival (german: Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin), usually called the Berlinale (), is a major international film festival held annually in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festi ...

for an outstanding single achievement.

Plot

The early part of the film takes place in 1930's Poland. Lucja Krol, a working-class woman, loses her husband who was run over by a tram. Soon afterwards she gives birth to her fourth son, alone on the floor in her apartment. Lucja's neighbor Wiktor who is a Communist intellectual, tries to help the poverty-stricken Lucja and her children, but is arrested and imprisoned by Poland's pre-war right-wing regime. Then come the dark years of the German occupation. At the black market, Lucja narrowly avoids a Nazi roundup. Lucja sons turn to Communism and hold ardent meetings in their apartment, with their mother's blessing. Lucja goes on working hard, and without complaining. After the war, the Communists take power in Poland - but rather than being rewarded for his loyal service, the son Klemens is inexplicably arrested, and without any foundation the new regime accuses him of having been a collaborator. His brother Wiktor, who now holds a senior position in the Communist Party, tries to defend him - but then himself falls into disgrace. Klemens undergoes torture in order to extract a false "confession" but dies in prison, a Communist to the end. His mother Lucja is never told about what happened to him.

Cast

* Magda Teresa Wójcik as Lucja Król *

Zbigniew Zapasiewicz Zbigniew Jan Zapasiewicz (13 September 1934 – 14 July 2009) was one of the most prominent post-war Polish actors, as well as a theatre director and pedagogue. Biography Zbigniew Zapasiewicz was born on 13 September 1934 in Warsaw, Poland. Du ...

as Wiktor Lewen *

Franciszek Pieczka Franciszek Maksymilian Pieczka (18 January 1928 – 23 September 2022) was a Polish actor. A graduate of the National Higher School of Theatre in Warsaw (1954), he first made his debut in the theatre in Jelenia Góra. He won the award for Best ...

as Cyga *

Bogusław Linda Bogusław Linda (; born 27 June 1952) is a Polish actor known from films such as ''Psy'' and ''Tato''. He appeared in Andrzej Wajda's ''Man of Iron'' and ''Danton'' and in Krzysztof Kieślowski's ''Blind Chance'' and the seventh episode of Kieśl ...

as Klemens Król *

Adam Ferency Adam Ferency (born 5 October 1951) is a Polish actor. He has appeared in more than 70 films and television shows since 1976. He starred in the 1990 film ''Burial of a Potato'', which was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1991 Cann ...

as Zenon Król * Michal Juszczakiewicz as Stas Król *

Krzysztof Zaleski Krzysztof Zaleski (September 3, 1948 – October 20, 2008) was a Polish theater director and cinema actor. Zaleski was born in Świętochłowice, Poland, on September 3, 1948. He graduated from Warsaw University's Department of Polish Studies in ...

as Roman Król *

Joanna Szczepkowska Joanna Szczepkowska (Polish pronunciation: ; born 1 May 1953) is a Polish film and theatre actress and writer. She appeared in more than thirty films since 1975. Life and career She made her debut on televion in 1975 by appearing in episode 1 of ...

as Marta Stecka / Stecka-Król *

Henryk Bista Henryk Bista (12 March 1934 – 8 October 1997) was a Polish actor. He appeared in over 110 films between 1961 and 1997. He starred in the 1977 film '' Death of a President'', which was entered into the 28th Berlin International Film Festiva ...

as Grzegorz Wiechra * Zbigniew Bielski as Kogut *

Tadeusz Huk ''Tadeusz'' is a Polish first name, derived from Thaddaeus. Tadeusz may refer to: * Tadeusz Bór-Komorowski (1895–1966), Polish military leader * Tadeusz Borowski (1922–1951), Polish writer and The Holocaust survivor * Tadeusz Boy-Żeleński ...

as Renard *

Jerzy Trela Jerzy Józef Trela (14 March 1942 – 15 May 2022) was a Polish actor. In 2003 he starred in the film ''An Ancient Tale: When the Sun Was a God'' under Jerzy Hoffman. He is also known for ''Three Colours: White, White'' (1994), ''Quo Vadis (2001 ...

as Hiszpan * Stanislaw Kwaskowski as Dentysta

References

External links

* 1987 films 1980s Polish-language films 1987 drama films Films directed by Janusz Zaorski Polish drama films {{Poland-film-stub