I stumbled across this Polish film recently quite by chance – it is Tomasz Lewkowicz’s directorial debut, “Hustawka” [Eng. Title: The Swing]. The film is supposed to be about a man’s dilemma in choosing the person he wants to live with – his attractive and dutiful wife, or the equally attractive but not-so-dutiful mistress.
One can see Lewkowicz was trying to say something serious through the film, and there was nothing wrong in the effort either. But he has a long way to go before tackling this kind of material anywhere near to the standard set by films like Cosa Voglio di Più. I hate to be critical of someone just making his debut, but it has to be said that the screenplay is rather weak and the characterisation lacks necessary depth. He has however put together a pretty looking film – with some good editing, fine cinematography by Mariusz Palej, and not too bad a soundtrack either. The lead actors give a decent account of themselves, notably Karolina Gorczyca who appears to be a talented actress – I hope she gets to do more challenging roles in future if she hasn’t already.
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