Strawberry Wine - Wino Truskawkowe (2007)

Dariusz Jablonksi’s first feature film, Strawberry Wine, tells the story of Andrzej, a big city policeman who transfers to the southeastern countryside of Poland under the mounting pressures of his job, divorce and recently deceased daughter. Tranquility quickly evaporates after Andrzej meets Lubica, the town flirt, and conflicts erupt as the seasons change. Andrzej finds himself investigating murders and looking for answers the local priest cannot offer.

Jablonski carries several motifs throughout the film, most notably the secular vs. religious, which nicely parallels Poland’s history of strong Catholicism despite being under Communist rule.

When Andrzej fails to discover the murderer, Jablonski tackily calls up on the service of the nether-world to aid the Polish sleuth. Andrezj is no Hamlet, and at this moment Strawberry Wine turns into a serialized supernatural police drama.

The scenes in Strawberry Wine are quite dark and makes me wonder if it was shot only using available light. While this technique seemed quite appropriate during the winter sequences, it looked inadequate and gives the film a sense of disparity and hopelessness even during the summer and spring. Perhaps this is Jablonski’s intent, as the amount of symbolism and abundance of themes gave me much to look forward to, but ultimately, like the townsfolk,left me disappointed, helpless and without redemption.

STRAWBERRY WINE – WINO TRUSKAKOWE

WITH: Jiri Machacek (Andrzej), Zuzana Fialova (Lubica Zalatywój), Marian Dziędziel (Adam Kościejny), Mieczysław Grąbka (sierżant), Jerzy Radziwiłowicz (proboszcz), Lech Łotocki (Mietek Lewandowski), Maciej Stuhr (Janek), Marek Litewka (Władysław Zalatywój), Maria Ciunelis (barmanka Irenka), Cezary Kosiński (Edek), Magdalena Pstrzoch-Mamot (kobieta), Jagoda Szaluś (dziewczynka), Elżbieta Kilarska (babka), Robert Więckiewicz (Semen Wasylczuk), Ina Gogalova (żona Kościejnego), Wojciech Skibiński (kościelny), Katarzyna Wrzosek (blondyna)

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