"Dekalog" Dekalog, szesc (1990)

User Rating:

8.6/10   

Director:

Krzysztof Kieslowski

Writers:

Krzysztof Piesiewicz (written by) &
Krzysztof Kieslowski (written by)

TV Series:

"Dekalog" (1989)

Original Air Date:

8 June 1990 (Season 1, Episode 6)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

"Thou shalt not commit adultery" - a shorter, scaled-down version of 'A Short Film About Love' , with a less complex plot and a different ending...

Plot Keywords:

Polish

Cast

Grazyna Szapolowska	...	Magda
Olaf Lubaszenko	...	Tomek
Stefania Iwinska	...	Godmother
Artur Barcis	...	Young Man
Stanislaw Gawlik	...	Postman
Piotr Machalica	...	Roman
Rafal Imbro	...	Bearded Man
Jan Piechocinski	...	Blond Man
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Malgorzata Rozniatowska	...	Angry Postmaster

Also Known As:

"Dekalog": Decalogue Six: Thou Shalt Not Commit Adultery (#1.6) (International: English title)
"Dekalog": Dekalog, sześć (#1.6) (Poland)

Runtime:

58 min | USA:60 min | Argentina:60 min

Country:

Poland

Language:

Polish

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Argentina:16

Filming Locations:

Warsaw, Poland

Company:

Polish TV

Movie Connections:

Edited from Krótki film o milosci (1988)

So much to do in so little time

Once again Kieslowski manages to produce a compelling and thought provoking film. This time seemingly constructing his plot from the best parts of "Rear Window" and "Lolita". Kieslowski presents his characters simply as they are, free of prologues, backgrounds, flashbacks or exposition and does not "ask" us to identify with the obsessive voyeur or the subject of his gaze but "presents" them to us as subjects to observe. Inevitably Kieslowski's choices pay off as we begin to empathize with these characters not necessarily because he wants us to but because they're needs and desires are too similar to ours for us to simply look at them in disgust. Episode 6 presents us with two characters who begin on opposite sides of the emotional spectrum and end up reversed just as their voyeuristic tendencies do. There is never any chastising from one character to another which some have called unrealistic or contrived. For me however this rings truer than the most moralizing of speeches because both characters know they're in no position to judge the other. They're both aware of their faults and willingly pay for them (witness Magda's indifference to her own suffering and Tomek's voluntary repentance courtesy of Magda's lover (ala "Raging Bull"). To those who would call such a tale unrealistic I say go watch "Pretty Woman" again.