A stuttering boy, dice, and a madman who thinks he can fly — Polish cinema at its weirdest.
A young boy, Jedrek, arrives in the big city. He doesn't know anyone here. He finds a job as a poster maker. He is taken care of by the Old Man, who is possessed by the idea of being able to detach a person from the earth by means of psychic energy. He teaches the boy the "blind man's game," which involves throwing dice with his eyes closed. Jedrek is slowly drawn into Old's world. He agrees to take part in the experiment - he is to be lifted by the energy of the people gathered. The experiment is interrupted by a landslide of the wall, but Jedrek stops stuttering and gains self-confidence. The boy falls in love with Eve and takes care of Stary. The latter offers him to jump from a great height and gently bring him down using psychic energy. When Jedrek refuses, the Old One decides to make the risky jump himself. Jedrek fails to stop him. With the word "Dad," he bids farewell to the Old One, lying on the pavement.
Acting
Marek Walczewski's unhinged, tender Old Man.
Direction
Wieczorkowski-Rettinger's cramped, dreamlike Warsaw.
Director
Dominik Wieczorkowski-Rettinger
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Made during late Communist Poland, the film's cramped urban spaces and desperate belief in transcendence mirror a society suffocating under surveillance.
Director Wieczorkowski-Rettinger disappeared from cinema after this; the film itself vanished for decades, surviving only through bootlegs.
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