Starring: Marcin Dorociński, Krzysztof Stroiński, Magdalena Popławska
Directed by: Bartosz Konopka
Krakow Post rating: ★★★☆☆
The father-and-son relationship has become the narrative leitmotif for a new generation of Silesian filmmakers who have produced a number of strident, festival-targeted but psychologically dense works in recent years. Bartosz Konopka has joined this trend after captivating documentary devotees worldwide with Królik po Berlińsku (Rabbit à la Berlin, 2009).
As with the main character in Marek Lechki’s solid debut Erratum (2011), Konopka’s lead Tomek (Marcin Dorociński) decides to put aside his regular life for a while in order to solve conflicts with his estranged father (Krzysztof Stroiński). In Lechki’s film, the barrier separating father and son remains, both literally and figuratively, impassable. By contrast, in Lęk wysokości (Fear of Falling), the door is almost immediately beaten down by Tomek, who becomes entangled in an unhealthy relationship with his schizophrenic old man. Tomek eventually begins to talk to himself and his private life is suddenly on the verge of ruin.
Stroiński has hit it big with his chameleonic and self-destructive character, while Dorociński demonstrates an anguished coolness once again. Thanks to Studio Munka’s task- force, Konopka’s debut was distributed with English subtitles in some parts of Poland – an unusual practice that should certainly be followed in future.
Originally published by The Krakow Post on July 11, 2012