Mubi Monday: Golem (1979)

I know a bit about the legend of the golem, or perhaps I should be referring to that as The Golem, but I'm no expert. And I would say that I know even less about the history and variety of Polish cinema. But here we are, and I am going to do my best to roll up my sleeves and write a decent review of this Polish adaptation and subversion of the classic tale.

Marek Walczewski plays Pernat, a man who finds himself in a strange and surreal nightmare in which he is questioned repeatedly about things he claims to be ignorant of, struggles to create any relationships with others, and ends up engaged in activities that do little more than keep him going around in circles.

Based on a work by Gustav Meyrink, this has a screenplay co-written by Tadeusz Sobolewski and director Piotr Szulkin that makes us of the archetype at the heart of the story to explore humanity existing in dehumanizing conditions, as well as some obvious parallels and contemplation on a major part of world history that Poland has a particularly strong connection to. Sometimes things may seem too obtuse or disconnected from reality, but Szulkin always has an anchor point to watch out for, whether it is relating to the idea of someone being an empty vessel or highlighting something that shows the ultimate fate of those who are viewed and treated as empty vessels by others.

Visually in line with the bleak and bewildering tone, Golem is as rewarding as it is challenging. It doesn’t provide easy answers, but the fact that it asks so many questions throughout the runtime is enough, especially as viewers also keep working to connect the various dots. It's Kafka-esque, it's Gilliam-esque, and probably some more terms ending in "-esque", and it also calls to mind the work of Tarkovsky (in terms of the way the themes are explored) and Jean-Pierre Jeunet (in terms of the verisimilitude and colour palette). While not a straightforward horror movie, there are certainly plenty of moments that are unnerving and disturbing, especially whenever characters are insistently questioning Pernat in a way that presumes some level of wrongdoing and guilt.

Walczewski is great in the lead role, suitably bewildered by everything both around and inside himself. There’s a solid core cast around him, including Krysyna Janda, Joanna Zólkowska, Mariusz Dmochowski, and Wieslaw Drzewicz all doing fine work, but the film really belongs to Walczewski.

I think that's enough for now. I don't want to push my luck here, considering the starting point mentioned in the opening of this review. There's a lot more to dissect and discuss here, and I'm sure this is a title that you could happily include in any comprehensive discussion of film history, but I will leave others to take the baton and run with it (which I am saying with the firm belief that there are already a number of fine essays out there that you can, and should, check out about Golem, and the filmography of Piotr Szulkin).

8/10

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