In this political satire from Poland, Jerzy Stuhr plays Filip, a factory worker who, after the birth of his first child, buys an 8mm movie camera to record his daughter's first few years on film. Before long, Filip is happily obsessed with his new hobby, and he graduates from simply capturing his daughter's activities to photographing practically everything around him. His movie mania attracts the attentions of his boss, who gives him a new task: making films that will give outsiders a clearer
picture of how things work at their factory. However, Filip's ceaseless photography begins to drive his wife (Malgorzata Zabkowska) crazy, and she threatens to leave him, while his boss is not at all happy with Filip's films. They're quite good, earning television broadcast time and winning awards, but their messages don't conform with his party's political and economic agenda, and Filip is warned to soften the tone of his work or he'll lose his job. This dark comedy from director Krzysztof Kieslowski was released in the United States under the title Camera Buff. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
While Camera Buff lacks some of the artistry evident in the director's later projects, it's worth seeing not only as an example of Kieslowski's early work, but as an important film in its own right.
A modest metaphorical examination of the problems and pressures suffered by artists in semi-authoritarian societies, the picture won the grand prize at the 1977 Moscow Film Festival.
As one character puts it, "filmmakers are service providers," and despite the unromantic tone of such a designation, this seems to be very near to Kieslowski's own view.
What a fantastic film about the artist's journey and the desire for something more than mere "tranquility." While this is my first Kieslowski film, this seemed to be a good place to start as it illuminates Kieslowski's own passion and perfectly encompasses the power & consequences of film. While I would have liked to
see more about the effects on the protagonists home life, it is none the less a powerful film. I am very excited to check out the rest of the director's work.
February 15, 2011
Reid Volk
Super Reviewer
Remarkably insightful film by Kieslowski on film making, family and the affect art has on the world.
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