''The Last Ferry'' () is a 1989 Polish

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

directed by

Waldemar Krzystek Waldemar Krzystek (born 23 November 1953) is a Polish film director and screenwriter. His film ''The Last Ferry, Ostatni prom'' was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1990 Cannes Film Festival. His 2008 cold war romance ''Little ...

. It was screened in the

Un Certain Regard (; 'A Certain Glance') is a section of the Cannes Film Festival's official selection. It is run at the Debussy, parallel to the competition for the . This section was introduced in 1978 by Gilles Jacob. The section presents 20 films with unusua ...

section at the

1990 Cannes Film Festival The 43rd Cannes Film Festival took place from 10 to 21 May 1990. Italian filmmaker Bernardo Bertolucci served as jury president for the main competition. American filmmaker David Lynch won the ''Palme d'Or'', for the drama film '' Wild at Heart' ...

Plot

Poland 1981. There is a growing economic and political crisis in the country. The ''Wilanów'' ferry leaves from

Świnoujście Świnoujście (; ; ; meaning " Świna ivermouth"; ) is a city in Western Pomerania and seaport on the Baltic Sea and Szczecin Lagoon, in the extreme north-west of Poland, mainly on the islands of Usedom and Wolin, and Karsibór island, once ...

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

with a trip around the Baltic cities. However, its participants are only interested in the first port on the route - Hamburg, where almost all plan to leave the ship and stay in the West. However, halfway to the ferry, the news about the introduction of

martial law Martial law is the replacement of civilian government by military rule and the suspension of civilian legal processes for military powers. Martial law can continue for a specified amount of time, or indefinitely, and standard civil liberties ...

in the country and an order to return to the country arrives. At the news of the return, passengers raise a kind of revolt and start lowering the lifeboats on their own, so as not to return. The drama of the situation increases when German cutters approach the ship, informing people on board about the situation in Poland through megaphones. Passengers start jumping straight into the sea. In one of the last scenes, on the empty ferry calling at the port, there are only those who could not escape - the crew, a few passengers and a dog. The plot of the film is interwoven with the story of a high school teacher, Marek Ziarno, whose task is to smuggle important documents related to NSZZ ''

Solidarność Solidarity (, ), full name Independent Self-Governing Trade Union "Solidarity" ( , abbreviated ''NSZZ „Solidarność”''), is a Polish trade union founded in August 1980 at the Gdańsk Shipyard, Lenin Shipyard in Gdańsk, Polish People's Rep ...

'' to the West and its duel with

Służba Bezpieczeństwa The Security Service (; ), in full Security Service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and commonly known as SB, was a secret police force established in the Polish People's Republic in 1956 as a successor to the Ministry of Public Security (P ...

(secret service) agents on the ferry who tried to prevent it.

Cast

Krzysztof Kolberger Krzysztof Marek Kolberger (13 August 1950 – 7 January 2011) a Polish actor and theatre director. His father's surname was changed from Kohlberger in the 1950s. He had daughter, actress Julia Kolberger, with Anna Romantowska. Life and care ...

- Marek Ziarno * Agnieszka Kowalska - Renata *

Dorota Segda Dorota Segda (born 12 February 1966) in Kraków, Poland, is a Polish theatre, film and television actress. Besides acting, she is also a Professor of Theatre Arts, and the Rector since 2016, at the AST National Academy of Theatre Arts in Kraków ...

- Kasia Trelkowska *

Ewa Wencel Ewa or EWA may refer to: Places ; Ethiopia * Ewa (woreda) ; Nauru * Ewa District, Nauru ; United States * Eastern Washington, the portion of the state of Washington east of the Cascade Range * ʻEwa Beach, Hawaii, a census-designated place * E ...

- Ewa *

Artur Barciś Artur Barciś (; born 12 August 1956) is a Polish actor and film director. His television appearances include Krzysztof Kieślowski's anthology series ''Dekalog'' (1989), the soap opera '' Aby do świtu...'' (1992), and '' Kurierzy'' ("Couriers" ...

- Rysiek *

Jerzy Zelnik Jerzy Zelnik (born 14 September 1945) is a Polish actor. He has appeared in more than 60 films and television shows since 1963. He was awarded the Badge of Merit in Culture (1997) and Knight's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta (2007). Sel ...

- Andrzej *

Aleksander Bednarz Alexander () is a male name of Greek origin. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are A ...

- First officer Stefan * Miroslaw Konarowski - Michal Walewski * Maciej Robakiewicz - Steward * Feliks Szajnert - SB officer Stalinski *

Anna Ciepielewska Anna Ciepielewska (7 January 1936 – 20 May 2006) was a Polish actress. She appeared in more than forty films from 1955 to 2004. Filmography References External links * 1936 births 2006 deaths Polish film actresses {{Poland ...

- Marecka *

Barbara Grabowska Barbara Grabowska (28 November 1954 – 12 August 1994) was a Polish actress. She starred in the 1981 film ''Fever''. The film was entered into the 31st Berlin International Film Festival, where Grabowska won the Silver Bear for Best Actre ...

- Jola *

Leonard Andrzejewski Leonard Henryk Andrzejewski (1 March 1924 – 18 October 1997) was a Polish actor. He appeared in the television series '' Ballada o Januszku'' in 1988-89. He was a winner of the Medal of the 10th Anniversary of People's Poland The Medal of the ...

- Commerade Zdzislaw Marecki *

Leon Niemczyk Leon Stanisław Niemczyk (15 December 1923 – 29 November 2006) was a Polish actor. Niemczyk developed into a leading box-office star throughout the 1960s, known for serious dramas, including historical dramas and war films. He appeared in over ...

- Captain

References

External links

* 1989 films 1980s Polish-language films 1989 drama films Films directed by Waldemar Krzystek Polish drama films Films set in Poland Films set in West Pomeranian Voivodeship Polish-language drama films {{Poland-film-stub