MIASTO 44

The Warsaw Uprising of August 1944, one of the most tragic chapters of modern Polish history, remains a highly contentious issue to the present day. In light of the facts that, firstly at the time the Wehrmacht had been in retreat on practically all fronts for approximately eighteen months and also that Soviet and Polish troops had by then advanced to the western bank of the River Vistula, it appeared to be nothing more than a question of resolve before the Poles finally shook off the then almost five-year German occupation. All the more so since the occupation regime became increasingly violent and ruthless vis-à-vis the civilian population as the military defeats increased in number, and the inhabitants of Warsaw were potentially threatened by the same fate met by the survivors of the Warsaw Ghetto, which had been destroyed a year earlier. The majority of the uprising's young participants don't appear to have known that they were in fact pawns in the political tug-of-war over the future of Poland. Considering the numerous films, books and documentaries on the issue, the most notable of which being Andrzej Wajda's KANAŁ (1957), it was an almost impossible task to address the uprising from an original angle, and yet this is exactly what Jan Komasa appears to have achieved: A film which, even with the benefit of hindsight, never attempts to be smarter than its protagonists. First and foremost however MIASTO 44 speaks to the modern viewer not only of the savage instincts unleashed by war, but also comes close to making these physically perceptible thanks to its special effects.