Rent Ashes and Diamonds (1958)

Assassinating - Ashes and Diamonds review by RhysH

The last in Wajda's war trilogy an excellent example of Polish realist cinema.

Zbigniew Cybulski who plays the main part of Maciek was asked to base his performance on the style of James Dean and there is certainly something of that in the performance of Maciek's almost total indifference to the life he leads, that is until he falls in love. An engaging performance.

Eva Krzyzewska gives a fine performance, not just the simpering barmaid but a strong and intelligent woman.

The film is beautifully photographed, often from a low level and each shot exquisitely framed

Taut political thriller - Ashes and Diamonds review by JO

A taut political thriller set in the days immediately after the liberation of Poland in 1944. The country is facing an uncertain future torn between Nationalism and Communism. Wajda's classic Polish film, influenced by Italian Neo-Realist cinema, questions the post war identity of Poland through its anti-hero protagonist. 

Maciek, a young soldier in the right-wing Nationalist Army, is ordered to assassinate the newly arrived communist district secretary. The initial attempted assassination is bungled and he winds up killing two innocent civilians. Ordered to try again, Maciek falls hopelessly in love with a girl at the hotel where he and  his target are staying. His love for her forces him to question his conscience and the loyalty to his cause. Maciek learns that his lifestyle is meaningless in the new, post war Poland. 

An excellent, gripping film with a tour de force performance by Cybulski. The cinematography is gorgeous: every frame is exquisite. Highly recommended. 

Youth searching for meaning after WWII in Poland - Ashes and Diamonds review by Oli

I'll first say that Ashes and Diamonds was a lot different to what I was expecting, I thought there would be a lot more guns etc. I thought it would be a story of a kind of serviceman which Maciek kind of is looking at it, I couldn't quite tell what he was part of exactly! Anyway, I still thought it was decent and the film had a couple of good moments and quotes.

I was kind of confused by what the film was though, was this to show a celebration after WWII? Or was it meant to be more of a love story? No idea honestly but it does work in a way, just all in all I didn't find a lot of scenes that memorable, there's some good conversation between Maciek and the lobby desk clerk when they find out they are both from Warsaw and between Maciek and his lover, all in all it's worth a watch to see what Poland was like when Germany surrendered in WWII, but I was expecting a bit better, there's not that many memorable characters in the film and a lot of the scenes left me feeling like they weren't that iconic, this is a far off comparison but even in a film like Rules of the Game for example, in that movie I wouldn't say there was a bad or boring scene, but in this I felt like there was some.

Also, I'll add the film deserves some credit for some of its cinematography, like the fireworks at the end, superb! Overall though I'm torn.