Often described as the ‘Polish Citizen Kane’, Andrzej Wajda’s epic, “Man of Marble” (1976), made a strong political statement on the use of propaganda and the corruption of the Stalinist era while presaging the fall of the Soviets and the growth of the Solidarity Movement .
Mateusz Birkut, a bricklayer, glorified in a marble statue as a State-promoted ‘Worker’s Hero’ is subsequently removed from all official mention in 1952. Flash forward to the early 70s where young documentary filmmaker Agnieszka obsessively pursues her story. Birkut’s rise and fall and disappearance into obscurity provides Wajda with a framework for a brave reassessment of the period. Although suppressed by the authorities, Man of Marble is recognized as a milestone in Polish cinema.
The film has been restored from original materials, by Cyfrowe Repozytorium Filmowe (Digital Film Repository) as a part of the KinoRP Project.
