Obywatel Piszczyk (1988) User Reviews

In a hole and still digging

[allenrogerj · 7/10 · 11 January 2007]

This film is a sequel to Munk's Zezowate Szczescie and it's much the same, only more so. The film begins in a cinema, where the last scenes of Zezowate Szczescie are being shown. Among the audience is Piszczyk, the "hero" of that film, and another man who recognises him. The other man follows him out and accosts him. Piszczyk is bitter about the film- it wasn't really like that, the writer told lies about him and made him look a fool, he should never have talked to him- he tells his companion, who, although- or because- he was the policeman who years before interrogated Piszczyk and got a confession and conviction out of him is someone Piszczyk can talk to. Again- much as in Zezowate Szczescie- Piszczyk tells his story to the only man he can trust, a man who has punished him. Piszczyk is still the same character as before- an opportunist and fantasist redeemed only by incompetence- indeed- the one heroic moment, when he physically cannot give the names of other people in an imaginary conspiracy, even though threatened with death, is treated as farce. This time Piszczyk is mixed up with Stalinist communists and reformist communists and- surprisingly- he does become a better man. Indeed, his next prison sentence comes about because he tries- futilely, of course, this is Piszczyk- to protect his wife from a rioting police and again is interrogated and convicted by the same policeman and gaoled for something he has actually done. It does him no good, of course. His wife, the reformist daughter of a Stalinist, only fancied him as a symbolic former political prisoner and has found another man.

Sad black comedy about Stalinist regime in Poland.

[Dawid_Adamczyk · 7/10 · 4 December 2004]

This film is sad black comedy about complete life loser Jan Piszczyk, who despite his opportunist nature, always get into trouble and conflict with the government. He begins his story in prison where he was sentenced for being class enemy of the stalinist government in Poland. Through his life we can see the East European realities of '50s, from stalinist regime through melting of the Communist line after Stalin's death up to the late 50s. Naturally there are many funny gags but the general feeling is that this film is really sad, because Piszczyk, despite his best efforts, keeps getting into trouble, keeps getting into prison and is all the time exploited by others, while government is still the same. After all at the end of this movie we find out that life of Piszczyk is still a s**t hole and that his bad luck will keep on chasing him until he gets into another prison.