Our Folks

A plebeian version of Fredro’s Revenge – the first part of a trilogy which tells the story of a neighbourly quarrel over a fence. The movie became a hit on TV in the Polish People’s Republic, a cult object for the audience, the source of many quotes used in everyday life. Years ago, it was a comedy that millions of Poles laughed at. Nowadays it is a film that is being rediscovered through the lens of the Polish peasant heritage and the ‘sleepwalkers’ revolution’ – a large social change that happened in Poland in the first years after the war, when the liquidation of the remains of the feudal world was accompanied by forced resettlements. Questions about the experience of migration and the identity of people who settled on the so-called Recovered Territories, are also asked in Sylwester Chęciński’s comedy. The film’s status was confirmed by the fact that Our Folks was the first Polish film that was digitally coloured – although we will show the reconstructed black and white version at the festival. Mandatory screening before watching this year’s prequel.

Piotr Sadzik

Sylwester Chęciński (1930–2021) was a Polish director and screenwriter, best known for his trilogy of comedies Our Folks (1967), Take It Easy (1974) and Love It or Leave It (1977). Depicting two quarreling peasant families, they are among the most popular Polish films of all time. He also directed Calls Controlled (1991), a follow-up to Stanisław Bareja’s cult comedy Teddy Bear (1980), and films in several other genres, including crime, war, and drama.