What can you possibly say about a 2 minutes long film without using spoilers ? Nothing of course. The title is Morderstwo, meaning 'murder' and that's exactly what you are getting. But what it really interesting, is the way Polanski uses light and camera positions to create a kind of 'hitchcockian' atmosphere. Quite interesting if you get the opportunity to watch this, especially in light of the greater things Polanski would accomplish later (Le Locataire, Repulsion..)
9 Reviews
Murder in front of our eyes
Horst_In_Translation11 May 2016
Warning: Spoilers
"Morderstwo" or "A Murderer" is an almost 60-year-old short film and it was made by the really young Roman Polanski in the year of 1957, so roughly a decade after World War Ii was over, to put things in perspective. Not only is it among the filmmaker's earliest works, it is also among his shortest as this one does not even run for 90 seconds. It is okay for that. Obviously, you cannot expect a great story, but it's pretty dramatic and as such not a disappointment to watch. We see a man in a large coat enter a room where another man is sleeping. The title already gives away what happens next. It is okay for what it is, but there is really nothing too special about it, so it may be a decent watch for huge Polanski fans and everybody else can skip it. Again, you won't need to understand Polish here. No dialogue is included, no music even this time. It is one of Polanski's very few silent works.
A respectable exercise in minimalism
stomach1716 February 2021
A murder - the title says it all
Michael_Cronin8 April 2004
Man enters room, stabs sleeping man, walks out. The end.
Roman Polanski devotes no more than one sentence to this short in his autobiography, & refers to it as a "preliminary exercise".
That's all it really is, just a simple exercise with a camera, & a grand total of two edits, not counting the titles (which, I suspect, were added years later).
However, it has an eerie quality about it not usually found in simple film-school exercises. The murder itself is committed in such a matter-of-fact fashion that it has an almost documentary sense of realism about it. It's not done with waving arms, bizarre camera angles or splashing blood - it's done with a pocketknife, positioned above a man's chest & pushed firmly downwards. Can't say I've ever seen a murder done like that on film before, & that's what's so nasty about it - it's so bland it feels as if it must be real.
The lack of any soundtrack just makes this minor entry in Polanski's filmography seem even creepier. A disturbing hint of things to come.
Roman Polanski devotes no more than one sentence to this short in his autobiography, & refers to it as a "preliminary exercise".
That's all it really is, just a simple exercise with a camera, & a grand total of two edits, not counting the titles (which, I suspect, were added years later).
However, it has an eerie quality about it not usually found in simple film-school exercises. The murder itself is committed in such a matter-of-fact fashion that it has an almost documentary sense of realism about it. It's not done with waving arms, bizarre camera angles or splashing blood - it's done with a pocketknife, positioned above a man's chest & pushed firmly downwards. Can't say I've ever seen a murder done like that on film before, & that's what's so nasty about it - it's so bland it feels as if it must be real.
The lack of any soundtrack just makes this minor entry in Polanski's filmography seem even creepier. A disturbing hint of things to come.
Murderer
Steffi_P6 July 2007
If you're interested in seeing the origins of a master, Polanski's Morderstwo won't disappoint. In spite of its being a student piece, it is actually more typically Polanski than many of his subsequent shorts.
The thing that stands out most about Polanski is his ability to manipulate space. Hitchcock could create tension out of nothing, Polanski can create a feeling of confinement out of nothing. Morderstwo is just a minute long and nothing happens other than a quick yet frenzied murder, but the overwhelming impression is one of an enclosed suffocating space, with the plain, windowless room, shot in indistinct slightly-too-close-ups. The eponymous murderer himself virtually fills the screen and creates an extra wall between camera and subject.
As is the case with several of Polanski's shorts, Morderstwo is less a short film in its own right, and looks something like a snippet from a full-length feature. It's clearly nothing more than a student assignment, and probably served no other purpose than to help Polanski get to grips with a few basics. Today it has no real value than to film buffs interested in the early development of one of the best filmmakers of his generation.
On a side note, I had a chuckle at the IMDb plot summary for this, which tries to build it up into some kind of suspenseful thriller. Talk about making something out of nothing!
The thing that stands out most about Polanski is his ability to manipulate space. Hitchcock could create tension out of nothing, Polanski can create a feeling of confinement out of nothing. Morderstwo is just a minute long and nothing happens other than a quick yet frenzied murder, but the overwhelming impression is one of an enclosed suffocating space, with the plain, windowless room, shot in indistinct slightly-too-close-ups. The eponymous murderer himself virtually fills the screen and creates an extra wall between camera and subject.
As is the case with several of Polanski's shorts, Morderstwo is less a short film in its own right, and looks something like a snippet from a full-length feature. It's clearly nothing more than a student assignment, and probably served no other purpose than to help Polanski get to grips with a few basics. Today it has no real value than to film buffs interested in the early development of one of the best filmmakers of his generation.
On a side note, I had a chuckle at the IMDb plot summary for this, which tries to build it up into some kind of suspenseful thriller. Talk about making something out of nothing!
It's two minutes. You might as well watch it.
Alwayssomething9 May 2023
It might take you longer to read the reviews than it would take you to watch this short. The runtime is two minutes. You might as well check it out if you've come this far. For being so short and so minimal, it is done surprisingly well. For the little that we do get to see, the lighting and the shot composition are solid. Would anybody care about this short if it wasn't Polanski's first student film? Absolutely not. Is it better than other famous directors' first student films that I've seen? I think so. Comparing this work to the first works of a directors like David Lynch or Ari Aster, I would have to rate Polanski's higher.
An Eerie & Fascinating Debut For Polanski
ccthemovieman-117 June 2008
Warning: Spoilers
Being such a short film, I watched this several times in a row before writing this short comment. I found it better each time and fascinating. Then again, how much can you say about a movie only a minute-and-a-half long? Well, more than I might have originally thought.
This Roman Polanski debut film - his first as a student at the State Film School in Lodz, Poland, was impressive in his use of shadow and light, something he liked doing. I've watched a few of his other very short student films and have seen similar style with the contrasts, shadows, etc. Seeing this, I would think Polanski would have been right at home in the late '40s and early '50s in the film noir era.
My favorite part of this film was when the killer went by the camera and totally blacked out the picture. That was very effective. The actual murder was also odd. I've never a man stabbed in that kind of fashion before on film. The killer also was not the expected, but an older, fat man with a cane! How odd this eerie film is, but a wonderful debut for this controversial filmmaker.
You can see this early Polanski effort on disc number 2 of the "Knife In The Water" DVD.
This Roman Polanski debut film - his first as a student at the State Film School in Lodz, Poland, was impressive in his use of shadow and light, something he liked doing. I've watched a few of his other very short student films and have seen similar style with the contrasts, shadows, etc. Seeing this, I would think Polanski would have been right at home in the late '40s and early '50s in the film noir era.
My favorite part of this film was when the killer went by the camera and totally blacked out the picture. That was very effective. The actual murder was also odd. I've never a man stabbed in that kind of fashion before on film. The killer also was not the expected, but an older, fat man with a cane! How odd this eerie film is, but a wonderful debut for this controversial filmmaker.
You can see this early Polanski effort on disc number 2 of the "Knife In The Water" DVD.
4 Polanski shorts
Michael_Elliott29 February 2008
Murder (1957)
*** (out of 4)
Roman Polanski's first short film quickly shows a murder taking place. For such a short film (running time wise), the director does a very good job at showing atmosphere and the murder is quite effective as well.
Teeth Smile (1957)
*** (out of 4)
Another short from Polanski, this one dealing with a peeping tom. Once again the young director shows he would become quite capable of building some nice atmosphere.
Break Up the Party (1957)
** 1/2 (out of 4)
Somewhat amusing short from Polanski has a more interesting history than what's exactly on screen. Polanski threw a party at his school and invited a gang to break it up half way through. That's what we see here.
Two Men and a Wardrobe (1958)
*** (out of 4)
As the title suggests, two men carry a large wardrobe around the city getting in all sorts of trouble. Polanski shows good timing in the comic moments and his cameo as the gang leader reminded me of a certain scene in Chinatown.
*** (out of 4)
Roman Polanski's first short film quickly shows a murder taking place. For such a short film (running time wise), the director does a very good job at showing atmosphere and the murder is quite effective as well.
Teeth Smile (1957)
*** (out of 4)
Another short from Polanski, this one dealing with a peeping tom. Once again the young director shows he would become quite capable of building some nice atmosphere.
Break Up the Party (1957)
** 1/2 (out of 4)
Somewhat amusing short from Polanski has a more interesting history than what's exactly on screen. Polanski threw a party at his school and invited a gang to break it up half way through. That's what we see here.
Two Men and a Wardrobe (1958)
*** (out of 4)
As the title suggests, two men carry a large wardrobe around the city getting in all sorts of trouble. Polanski shows good timing in the comic moments and his cameo as the gang leader reminded me of a certain scene in Chinatown.
No Country for Useless Moments
p_radulescu17 June 2011
No spare moments in this short made by young Polanski (he was 24 in 1957). Each moment is rigorously motivated in the logic of the movie. No spare space, either: each bit of space that comes on the screen is rigorously motivated. Effective, matter of fact, that's what comes in mind. No country for useless moments. No country for useless space.
I'm tempted to think at all short movies made by young Polanski as related to his Knife in the Water. Two worlds completely distinct: ours, and theirs. Where does this murderer come from, where is he going? Why is he killing? The same questions could be put for the young from Knife in the Water, all his actions seem totally unmotivated for the other male, obviously belonging to "our world". Kim Ki-Duk is also describing such strange encounters with guys who seem to just be visiting our world.
I'm tempted to think at all short movies made by young Polanski as related to his Knife in the Water. Two worlds completely distinct: ours, and theirs. Where does this murderer come from, where is he going? Why is he killing? The same questions could be put for the young from Knife in the Water, all his actions seem totally unmotivated for the other male, obviously belonging to "our world". Kim Ki-Duk is also describing such strange encounters with guys who seem to just be visiting our world.
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