No longer our Homeland

"I don't want to hear of these murders anymore" says a villager, in a sentiment mirrored by his neighbours. During the Second World War Ukrainian nationalists attempt to ethnically cleanse Poland's former eastern territories of ethnic Poles, in reaction to which Polish partisans retaliate with attacks on Ukrainian civilians. With the cessation of hostilities Polish citizens based in then-Soviet territories were forced to move west. These individuals included the director's father, who was expelled from his native village of Hanaczów and subsequently settled in Radzimów (known in German as Bellmannsdorf) in Lower Silesia.

The film narrates how nationalist hatred can destroy life in a village whose inhabitants had hitherto lived in harmony for centuries, as well as the fact that it can take generations before those affected are ready to think of reconciliation, issues that also feature in Wojciech Smarzowski's feature film WOŁYŃ/VOLHYNIA in this year's NATIONAL HITS section. WMH