During a botched robbery, Markheim murders an elderly antique dealer. Consumed by guilt and confusion, he begins to lose his grip on reality until a spectral dog leads him to a mysterious figure who knows all his secrets. Based on the short story by Robert Louis Stevenson.
Acting
Jerzy Kamas unravels magnificently in tight close-ups.
Cinematography
Shadow-drenched antique shop becomes its own character.
Direction
Majewski stretches 25 minutes into eternal psychological dread.
Director
Janusz Majewski
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Stevenson's 1884 story was a critique of Victorian moral hypocrisy; Majewski's 1972 adaptation lands eerily in Communist Poland's surveillance state.
Director Janusz Majewski was primarily known for comedies—this was his one terrifying flex before returning to lighter fare.
PL
