La Communion

Le film suit le schéma narratif assez bien établi d'un nouveau venu intégrant une communauté fermée et divisée, qu'il finit par rassembler involontairement, mais qui ne peut échapper à son passé - et sa forme est relativement classique quant à la majeure partie du film. Ce qui n'est pas si habituel, c'est la performance incroyablement marquante et presque démoniaque de Bartosz Bielenia, qui réalise une performance exceptionnelle dans le rôle principal et porte tout le film sur ses épaules, ainsi que la perspective de son personnage qui voit le monde à travers Dieu tout en se découvrant lui-même. Le film est également remarquable pour son traitement complexe de la foi religieuse et pour sa caméra statique, qui surprend cependant par un mouvement soudain mais justifié à un moment clé de la fin. Ce remarquable drame se distingue également par son scénario élaboré et sert de preuve supplémentaire que même un film intime avec un petit budget et quelques décors seulement peut être filmé de manière à offrir une expérience forte et exceptionnellement impressionnante au spectateur. (30/09/2020)

Jan Komasa is definitely talented and I consider his film The Hater to be the best of modern Polish cinema. Corpus Christi has been sitting on my disc for about a year and I didn't want to get into it because of the subject matter. In the end, it's quite digestible, but certainly nothing that would make me fall to my knees. Bartosz Bielenia's acting is great and I enjoyed the scenes from the pimp, but the scenes from the church less so. The intense finale saves it quite a bit, and the character of Bonus is really monstrous, but I would have preferred if the main character had gone on more of a rampage with women, drugs, alcohol, which only outlined to a lesser degree, and I'm not going to spend stars just for the story. Story 4/5, Action 2/5, Humor 0/5, Violence 2/5, Fun 3/5 Music 3/5, Visuals 3/5, Atmosphere 3/5, Suspense 2/5, Emotion 3/5. 6/10. (26/08/2021)

A classic western scheme about a stranger in a forgotten town, but this time with a truly full-bodied script that puts one challenge after another in front of the hero, and we know that he's going to snap at any moment, so we'd rather enjoy every moment of his theatrics that we're afforded along with him. The improbable plot could otherwise quite easily have been brought to heel, notwithstanding the excellent cinematography and direction (the brutal Noer-esque ending proves what an eclectic director Komasa is), but for the fact that it has such an unqualified and interesting cast. The protagonist in particular, a surreal mutant hybrid of Pattinson, Kristen Stewart, and Cillian Murphy, has one of the most interesting faces I've seen in a long time, and he leaves a lot unspoken and mysterious right up to the end, even though we watch the entire film through his lens. He's going to be a great Bond villain. (23/12/2020)

Meh. A high-quality premise drowned in the traditionally flat style of the Polish art school. The best part are the opening and final scenes, they are staged in an original way and pulse with the life denied by the rest of the cold story. The ideas are nice and pretty strong at times, but it all looks as if only mindless individuals without any spark were moving in front of the camera. A very standard festival flick that unfortunately leans too much on the safe side and with a thematic simplicity that can never get close to Haneke’s The White Ribbon. 65% (28/12/2020)

I’m giving five stars to another Polish film with a religious theme. While Clergy was on a much more serious subject, this film complements it perfectly and exposes not just the priests but also their flock who follow Christian teachings to the letter when it comes to Old Testament punishments, but not exactly when it comes to the beam in their own eye and loving their neighbor. I'd say it was an educative film, except that those who know don’t need teaching and those for whom it was primarily intended are virtually unteachable. (03/05/2021)