I was at first puzzled by the way in which we got the impression that Nikifor had been 'discovered' at the point that the film began. He had actually been known since the late 1930's, albeit in a limited way. However, the film hinted at his mysterious background - what, for example, did he do during the 1939-45 war? Possibly it gained, though, from not going down that route as well as for ignoring the deportation that he underwent in 1947/8 when the Lemko (the Slav ethnic group to which he belonged) were deported to north-eastern Poland. His creative 'awkwardness' was subtly presented by Krystyna Feldman; and Roman Gancarczyk gave a a realistic performance as the artist, Marian Wlosinski. However, I gained the impression that we were supposed to see Marian finding himself as an artist through his care for Nikifor. I didn't find this entirely coherent. However, as a study in the development of a human being in that situation I thought that it succeeded entirely, especially against the subtle portrayal of the breakdown in his family. I thought that the background of People's Poland through the 1960s was convincingly presented and the range of characters in the film was brilliantly presented through some very accomplished and intelligent acting by the wide range of people presented in often quite small parts.
Review of Mój Nikifor
