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Mariusz Szczygieł, reporter and author of the book "Gottland", recommends the films from the VoD.MDAG.pl catalogue which made the biggest impression on him. In this diverse collection, besides the platform's greatest hits, you will also find films about racial segregation, interpersonal relations, literature and the dark sides of social media and globalization.
What films should you look out for according to Mariusz Szczygieł and why?
THE CLEANERS, dir. Hans Block, Moritz Riesewieck
A film on driving people crazy and to the verge of depression, somewhere in Asia. Who’s doing that? Well, all of us, Facebook users.
ONCE UPON A TIME IN POLAND, dir. Vít Klusák, Filip Remunda
Polish religious zeal in a nushell. A portrait drawn by someone from the outside is priceless, it’s a pity our Czech neighbours only got to see our caricature.
THE MOLE: UNDERCOVER IN NORTH KOREA, dir. Mads Brügger
A retired cook leads an undercover operation to gain access to North Korea’s top secret military details : without his wife’s knowing. No mountain too high. This film is pure gold. A document showing our need to do something unique.
THE BOOKSELLERS, dir. D.W. Young
The uninspiring original title hides a story on true fanatics. Book fanatics, thank God.
THE PAINTER AND THE THIEF, dir. Benjamin Ree
A film about how a victim of a robbery can come to terms with the robber himself, gain some common ground, and even become friends. An incredible story that starts with the stealing of two paintings.
I AM NOT YOUR NEGRO, dir. Raoul Peck
A story of the United States as seen from the Afroamerican writer Jamesa Baldwin. He coined the phrase „recipe fort he fall of a nation”. We study this recipe in the film and learn to use it in self -defence – just in case anyone wants to use it on us.
NOMAD: IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF BRUCE CHATWIN, dir. Werner Herzog
Chatwin and Herzog. If you enjoy watching landscapes, especially those of Patagonia and Australia, if slow narrative does not put you to sleep, if you’ve read Bruce Chatwin and like Werner Herzog, then this one’s for you. A welcome escape from everyday politics and urban rush.
Hard to swallow for moralists, Young boys from Ghana find hard disks on a dump, which we created by all the computers we throw to waste. They use the disks to collect our data, and later –pretending to be women – attract us and our cash. Kept on watching and keeping my fingers crossed for them.
THE SWEDISH THEORY OF LOVE, dir. Erik Gandini
Solitude as a human right, assured by the state. Alienation as something publicly and culturally acceptable.
FACES PLACES, dir. Agnés Varda, JR
The most cherful and positive title in the collection Two artists give special meaning to the life of a miner’s wife, a farmer, a waitress, or factory workers.
