Man of Marble
- Poland
- 1976
- 156'
- FPFF’s 50 for 51: Wajda’s Actresses
During the Stalinist regime in Poland, Agnieszka, young and uncompromising film director, decides to make a film about shock worker Mateusz Birkut. The idea for the film comes when she finds a marble statue left forgotten in a museum storage space, along with an archive footage showing an image of a hero torn from a wall. By uncovering the complicated twists and turns in the life of Mateusz Birkut, Agnieszka also discovers private secrets of people who got entangled and eventually destroyed by the Communist regime. It took twelve years before Andrzej Wajda was allowed to film the script, and the approaching film première in Warsaw (the press advertised it only as ‘booked screening’) was getting more and more public attention.
- Directed by: Andrzej Wajda
- Screenplay: Aleksander Ścibor-Rylski
- Photography: Edward Kłosiński
- Music: Andrzej Korzyński
- Cast: Krystyna Janda, Jerzy Radziwiłowicz, Tadeusz Łomnicki, Michał Tarkowski, Jacek Łomnicki
One of the most brilliant Polish film and theatre directors, one of the originators of Polish Film School. He is the author of such film gems as ‘Kanał / Sewer,’ ‘Popiół i diament / Ashes and Diamonds,’ ‘Człowiek z marmuru / Man of Marble,’ ‘Człowiek z żelaza / Man of Iron,’ or ‘Katyń.’ His films frequently dealt with historic events, memory, and moral dilemmas of individuals, combining artistic cinema with profound social and political commentaries. He received the Honorary Academy Award for Lifetime Achievement and the Palme d’Or Prize at the Cannes Film Festival. 2026 is celebrated as the Year of Andrzej Wajda to commemorate the hundredth birth anniversary of the film director and his outstanding contribution to the history of both Polish and international cinema.
