''Lotna'' is a 1959 Polish

war film War film is a film genre concerned with warfare, typically about naval, air, or land battles, with combat scenes central to the drama. It has been strongly associated with the 20th century. The fateful nature of battle scenes means that wa ...

directed by

Andrzej Wajda Andrzej Witold Wajda (; 6 March 1926 – 9 October 2016) was a Polish film and theatre director. Recipient of an Honorary Oscar, the Palme d'Or, as well as Honorary Golden Lion and Honorary Golden Bear Awards, he was a prominent member of th ...

Overview

This highly symbolic film is both the director's tribute to the long and glorious history of the

Polish cavalry The Polish cavalry ( pl, jazda, kawaleria, konnica) can trace its origins back to the days of medieval cavalry knights. Poland is mostly a country of flatlands and fields and mounted forces operate well in this environment. The knights and heavy ...

, as well as a more ambiguous portrait of the passing of an era. Wajda was the son of a Polish Cavalry officer who was murdered in the

Katyn massacre The Katyn massacre, "Katyń crime"; russian: link=yes, Катынская резня ''Katynskaya reznya'', "Katyn massacre", or russian: link=no, Катынский расстрел, ''Katynsky rasstrel'', "Katyn execution" was a series of m ...

. The horse Lotna represents the entire

Romantic Romantic may refer to: Genres and eras * The Romantic era, an artistic, literary, musical and intellectual movement of the 18th and 19th centuries ** Romantic music, of that era ** Romantic poetry, of that era ** Romanticism in science, of that e ...

tradition in culture, a tradition that had a huge influence in the course of Polish history and the formation of

Polish literature Polish literature is the literary tradition of Poland. Most Polish literature has been written in the Polish language, though other languages used in Poland over the centuries have also contributed to Polish literary traditions, including Latin, ...

. Lotna is Wajda's meditation on the historical breaking point that was 1939, as well as a reflection on the ending of an entire era for literature and culture in Poland and in Europe as a whole. Writing of the film, Wajda states that it "held great hopes for him, perhaps more than any other." Sadly, Wajda came to think of ''Lotna'' "a failure as a film." The film remains highly controversial, as Wajda includes a

myth Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narrati ...

ical scene in which Polish horsemen suicidally charge a unit of German tanks, an event that never actually happened.

Synopsis

Poland has been invaded by

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

. Lotna, a beautiful

mare A mare is an adult female horse or other equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than f ...

that belonged to a wealthy nobleman (

Henryk Cudnowski Henryk may refer to: * Henryk (given name) * Henryk, Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, a village in south-central Poland * Henryk Glacier, an Antarctic glacier See also * Henryk Batuta hoax, an internet hoax * Henrykian articles, a Polish cons ...

) is given to Captain Chodakiewicz (

Jerzy Pichelski Jerzy Pichelski (27 November 1903, Saratov – 5 September 1963, Warsaw) was a Polish film and theatre actor. Selected filmography * ''Ostatnia brygada'' (1938) * ''Florian'' (1938) * '' The Three Hearts'' (1939) * ''Border Street'' (1948) * '' ...

), the commander of a Polish Cavalry squadron, and immediately becomes a bone of contention for everyone in the unit. Lieutenant Wodnicki (

Adam Pawlikowski Adam Pawlikowski (1925–1976) was a Polish film actor. Selected filmography * ''Kanal'' (1957) * '' Lotna'' (1959) * '' Bad Luck'' (1960) * '' Goodbye to the Past'' (1961) * ''Ashes and Diamonds ''Ashes and Diamonds'' ( Polish original: ''Pop ...

), Cadet Grabowski (

Jerzy Moes Jerzy Moes (Jerzy Michal Moes; 29 September 1935 – 27 April 2019) was a Polish film and television actor. Moes was born in Warsaw, the sixth son of ten children of Aleksander Moes and his wife Barbara Sobańska (Junosza coat of arms). He is also ...

) and Sergeant Major Laton ( Mieczysław Łoza) jealously scheme among themselves to get their hands on the horse. However, the war takes the lives of Captain Chodakiewicz and Cadet Grabowski, and Lotna falls is passed to Wodnicki. Laton feels he should get the animal and so he steals Lotna and flees amidst the abandoned supply wagons and equipment of the retreating

Polish Army The Land Forces () are the land forces of the Polish Armed Forces. They currently contain some 62,000 active personnel and form many components of the European Union and NATO deployments around the world. Poland's recorded military history str ...

Cast

as Captain Chodakiewicz *

as Lieutenant Wodnicki *

as Cadet Grabowski * Mieczysław Łoza as Sergeant Major Latoś * Bożena Kurowska as Ewa *

as nobleman *

Irena Malkiewicz Irena Malkiewicz (15 September 1911 – 23 January 2004) was a Polish actress. She appeared in more than 30 films and television shows between 1936 and 1988. Selected filmography * ''Serce matki'' (1939) * ''Lotna'' (1959) * ''Passenger ...

* Bronisław Dardziński *

Wiesław Gołas Wiesław Ryszard Gołas (Polish: vʲε.swav 'gɔ.was 9 October 1930 – 9 September 2021) was a Polish actor and Armia Krajowa soldier. He was cast in the role of Tomasz Czereśniak in ''Czterej pancerni i pies'' (Polish: ''Four tank men a ...

Legacy

During an

ad limina A quinquennial visit ''ad limina'', or simply an ''ad limina'' visit, is the required visit of Catholic residential diocesan bishops and certain prelates with territorial jurisdiction (such as territorial abbots) to the ''thresholds of the'' om ...

visit of the Polish bishops to the Vatican,

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

referenced the scene in ''Lotna'' depicting an equine competition won by a priest, encouraging the Polish bishops to charge forward like the priest in the film and give witness to their faith in society. When learning that the pope had referenced his film, Andrzej Wajda replied that it was worth living as long as he did.

References

External links

*
Essay on ''Lotna'' by Peter Gessner
{{Andrzej Wajda 1959 films 1950s Polish-language films Polish black-and-white films Invasion of Poland Films directed by Andrzej Wajda Polish World War II films