Starring: Marcin Dorociński, Maciej Stuhr, Weronika Rosati
Directed by: Marcin Krzyształowicz
Rating: ★★★★☆
When asked to justify the release of yet another movie on the subject of World War II, the director of Obława (Manhunt, 2012), Marcin Krzyształowicz, said: “There should be dozens of movies about World War II, provided that they explore new aspects of it.”
Obława was somehow overshadowed by the international recognition of features such as W ciemności (In Darkness) and Róża (Rose), both of which were released in 2011, but Krzyształowicz’s effort is anything but a third wheel to Smarzowski and Holland’s hits. Manhunt is certainly the most audacious of the three films in terms of narrative and editing style. Krzyształowicz opted for a non-linear structure to recount the story of his protagonist, a Polish partisan nicknamed Wydra, ‘The Otter,’ (Marcin Dorociński) who mercilessly hunts down Nazi collaborators and performs, often gory, executions with cold professionalism.
Maciej Stuhr plays Henryk, a former friend turned traitor who The Otter must kill, forcing him to examine his actions and motivations. Stuhr exudes the cowardice and insecurity of a turncoat, while Dorociński is simply impeccable in his role. Set among forest clearings magisterially captured by Arkadiusz Tomiak, Manhunt feels something like an extended cut-scene from a yet-to-be-released stealth game.
Originally published by The Krakow Post on July 8, 2013