Polish Illusions

The sleepy Polish seaside town of Darłowo wakes up for another day. And the newest inhabitant in town isn’t one to miss sunrise over the local beach: former U.S. Army pilot Mark Buller has settled here with his imposing collection of army vehicles. A young Polish friend named Mike helps him, serving as translator and driver in Mark’s search through the local bars for “the right one.” 82-year-old illusionist Jan Konstantynow has entirely different problems. The new director of the community center clearly lacks appreciation for his naïve magic tricks, and on top of that Jan’s brother, who lives in the USA, hasn’t contacted him in two years. In their lighthearted movie, Jacob Dammas and Helge Renner give us a peek into the lives of the main characters in the slowly modernizing Polish town. They make use of numerous magical moments of unintentional humor, while their seemingly serious commentary is, in truth, gently ironic. (Karlovy Vary International Film Festival)