Love Stories
Encyclopedia
Love Stories is a 1997 Polish
film about four men with unresolved romances. Jerzy Stuhr
plays all four characters and wrote and directed the film.
The film is dedicated to Krzysztof Kieślowski
, who gave Stuhr important roles in his films.
The professor collects the written exams of his students, and is surprised that one, Ewa Bielska, has written on hers, "I love you." He resists her advances but eventually gives in. For a crucial oral exam with the dean, Ewa asks for the professor's help, because she doesn't know anything at all. When the time comes, Ewa decides to resign, and the dean jokes with the professor that this is Poland, not America, and he wouldn't have been kicked out for having an affair with a student.
The priest is at the confessional when a young girl shows up claiming to be his daughter. Her story checks out: he knows her mother from Radom
, 11 years ago. The mother died six years ago, the girl says. The girl returns to the orphanage she escaped from. Soon the parish learns but wants the priest to stay on. At the end, he decides to quit the church to be a father to his daughter.
The army officer, Colonel Matałowski of the Polish Land Forces
, goes home to a house where almost everything is under lock and key, even the fridge and he is estranged from his wife. An old love shows up, Tamara. They have drinks and talk about their love letters. His superiors disapprove of the affair because she's Russian. Matałowski sees her one last time, driving her to the train station.
The prisoner, Zdisław Filip, is convicted of trafficking Pakistani heroin and sentenced to five years in jail and a fine of 5,000 zloty. As the police haul him away, he tells his wife Kryska to go to hell. Four years later, during a conjugal visit, Zdisław gives her directions to the buried cash by tapping on her back. Kryska finds the money, but instead of using it to pay Zdisław's fine, she tries to leave the country. Zdisław is upset but claims to have expected her to do that. Since he can't pay the fine, he has to spend another two years in jail.
All four characters wind up at one point seeing a man in an archives. The teacher and the colonel both go down an elevator and are left alone in a long corridor.
, the Jury Prize and the Silver at the Festróia - Tróia International Film Festival, and the Grand Jury Award at the Newport Beach Film Festival
.
Jerzy Stuhr also picked up four of the five prizes he was nominated for at the Venice Film Festival
.
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
film about four men with unresolved romances. Jerzy Stuhr
Jerzy Stuhr
Jerzy Stuhr is one of the most popular, influential and versatile Polish actors. He also works as a screenwriter, film director and drama professor...
plays all four characters and wrote and directed the film.
The film is dedicated to Krzysztof Kieślowski
Krzysztof Kieslowski
Krzysztof Kieślowski was an Academy Award nominated influential Polish film director and screenwriter, known internationally for The Double Life of Veronique and his film cycles The Decalogue and Three Colors.-Early life:...
, who gave Stuhr important roles in his films.
Plot summary
The four characters played by Jerzy Stuhr all arrive at the same place at different times in different vehicles: a college professor in his own car, a priest in a taxicab, an army officer in a government vehicle and a prisoner in a police van accompanied by two police officers. As the opening credits roll, the four characters walk about the same building.The professor collects the written exams of his students, and is surprised that one, Ewa Bielska, has written on hers, "I love you." He resists her advances but eventually gives in. For a crucial oral exam with the dean, Ewa asks for the professor's help, because she doesn't know anything at all. When the time comes, Ewa decides to resign, and the dean jokes with the professor that this is Poland, not America, and he wouldn't have been kicked out for having an affair with a student.
The priest is at the confessional when a young girl shows up claiming to be his daughter. Her story checks out: he knows her mother from Radom
Radom
Radom is a city in central Poland with 223,397 inhabitants . It is located on the Mleczna River in the Masovian Voivodeship , having previously been the capital of Radom Voivodeship ; 100 km south of Poland's capital, Warsaw.It is home to the biennial Radom Air Show, the largest and...
, 11 years ago. The mother died six years ago, the girl says. The girl returns to the orphanage she escaped from. Soon the parish learns but wants the priest to stay on. At the end, he decides to quit the church to be a father to his daughter.
The army officer, Colonel Matałowski of the Polish Land Forces
Polish Land Forces
The Polish Land Forces are a branch of Poland's Armed Forces. They currently contain some 65,000 active personnel and form many components of EU and NATO deployments around the world.-History:...
, goes home to a house where almost everything is under lock and key, even the fridge and he is estranged from his wife. An old love shows up, Tamara. They have drinks and talk about their love letters. His superiors disapprove of the affair because she's Russian. Matałowski sees her one last time, driving her to the train station.
The prisoner, Zdisław Filip, is convicted of trafficking Pakistani heroin and sentenced to five years in jail and a fine of 5,000 zloty. As the police haul him away, he tells his wife Kryska to go to hell. Four years later, during a conjugal visit, Zdisław gives her directions to the buried cash by tapping on her back. Kryska finds the money, but instead of using it to pay Zdisław's fine, she tries to leave the country. Zdisław is upset but claims to have expected her to do that. Since he can't pay the fine, he has to spend another two years in jail.
All four characters wind up at one point seeing a man in an archives. The teacher and the colonel both go down an elevator and are left alone in a long corridor.
Awards
Love Stories won the Golden Lion award at the Polish Film FestivalPolish Film Festival
The Polish Film Festival is an annual film festival first held in Gdańsk, now held in Gdynia, Poland....
, the Jury Prize and the Silver at the Festróia - Tróia International Film Festival, and the Grand Jury Award at the Newport Beach Film Festival
Newport Beach Film Festival
The Newport Beach Film Festival is a film festival in the United States held in Newport Beach, California, that showcases more than 350 films to more than 30,000 attendees annually....
.
Jerzy Stuhr also picked up four of the five prizes he was nominated for at the Venice Film Festival
Venice Film Festival
The Venice International Film Festival is the oldest international film festival in the world. Founded by Count Giuseppe Volpi in 1932 as the "Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica", the festival has since taken place every year in late August or early September on the island of the...
.