''Moonlighting'' is a 1982 British drama film written and directed by

Jerzy Skolimowski Jerzy Skolimowski (, born 5 May 1938) is a Polish film director, screenwriter, dramatist and actor. A graduate of the prestigious National Film School in Łódź, Skolimowski has directed more than twenty films since his 1960 début ''Oko wyk ...

. It is set in the early 1980s at the time of the Solidarity protests in Poland. It stars

Jeremy Irons Jeremy John Irons (; born 19 September 1948) is an English actor and activist. After receiving classical training at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, Irons began his acting career on stage in 1969 and has appeared in many West End theatre ...

as Nowak, a Polish builder leading a team working illegally in London.

Plot

Arriving in London from Warsaw in December 1981 is master electrician Nowak, who understands the language but not the inhabitants, with three workmen who know no English. Their task is to gut and renovate a house, for which they have brought what tools they can carry, while Nowak has cash to buy materials. Since the whole operation is illegal, Nowak keeps them working indoors while he goes out to get food and supplies. As his money runs out, he takes to stealing so that the four can survive. In the meantime, Poland is undergoing the traumas of demonstrations and strikes followed by the declaration of martial law, banning of Solidarity and mass arrests. All this Nowak conceals from the men, in order to finish the job. With no money left, they have a six-hour walk to the airport and a flight home to an uncertain future.

Cast

Reception

It was entered into the

1982 Cannes Film Festival The 35th Cannes Film Festival was held from 14 to 26 May 1982. The Palme d'Or was jointly awarded to '' Missing'' by Costa Gavras and ''Yol'' by Şerif Gören and Yılmaz Güney. The festival opened with the 1916 film ''Intolerance'', directed b ...

, where it won the award for Best Screenplay.

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...

gave it four stars out of four and included it in his list of Best Movies of 1982. Gene Siskel called it his favorite movie of 1982.

Vincent Canby Vincent Canby (July 27, 1924 – October 15, 2000) was an American film and theatre critic who served as the chief film critic for ''The New York Times'' from 1969 until the early 1990s, then its chief theatre critic from 1994 until his death in ...

, in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', called ''Moonlighting'' "immensely rewarding". He added: "It may be a coincidence - maybe not - that two of the best films ever made about exile have been made by Polish directors", the other being Polanski's ''

The Tenant ''The Tenant'' (French: ''Le locataire'') is a 1976 psychological horror film set in France but filmed in English and directed by Roman Polanski, starring Polanski, Isabelle Adjani, Melvyn Douglas, and Shelley Winters. It is based upon the 196 ...

'' (1976). Dave Kehr of ''

The Chicago Reader The ''Chicago Reader'', or ''Reader'' (stylized as ЯEADER), is an American alternative weekly newspaper in Chicago, Illinois, noted for its literary style of journalism and coverage of the arts, particularly film and theater. It was founded by ...

'' called it "a profound, gripping comedy of terror and isolation, oppression and entrapment" with

delivering "a performance worthy of

Chaplin Chaplin may refer to: People * Charlie Chaplin (1889–1977), English comedy film actor and director * Chaplin (name), other people named Chaplin Films * '' Unknown Chaplin'' (1983) * ''Chaplin'' (film) (1992) * ''Chaplin'' (2011 film), Ben ...

." He would later hail it as a "masterpiece."

Allmovie AllMovie (previously All Movie Guide) is an online database with information about films, television programs, and screen actors. , AllMovie.com and the AllMovie consumer brand are owned by RhythmOne. History AllMovie was founded by popular-cult ...

gave ''Moonlighting'' four out of five stars and Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a 100% rating based on 9 reviews.

References

External links

* * * * {{Jerzy Skolimowski 1982 drama films 1982 films British drama films Polish-language films Films directed by Jerzy Skolimowski Films scored by Stanley Myers Films with screenplays by Jerzy Skolimowski Films about immigration Films set in London 1980s English-language films 1980s British films