Academy of Polish Cinema: Teutonic Knights (1960)

Teutonic Knights, 1960, directed by Aleksander Ford

Jurand, a knight from Spychów falls victim to the revenge of the Teutonic Order. Young Zbyszko from Bogdanec falls in love with his daughter Danusi. Romantic love and paternal tragedy are shown against the background of the Polish-Teutonic War, the culmination of which is one of the greatest battles of the Middle Ages - the Battle of Grunwald in 1410.

The adaptation of Henryk Sienkiewicz's novel, a work from the canon of Polish historical fiction and school readings, was planned to celebrate the 550th anniversary of the Battle of Grunwald, and its premiere took place on July 15, 1960 in Łódź. It was part of the historical policy shaped by the then First Secretary of the Central Committee of the PZPR, Władysław Gomułka, reinforcing Polish-German antagonisms and integrating the Eastern Bloc. For its needs, hundreds of historical consultants were engaged and modern panoramic image technology was used. Given the momentum of the production, it is safe to speak of a super-production, entrusted to Alexander Ford, who is still trusted by the authorities and adept in directing art.

The audience received the film with enthusiasm, although the opinions of film critics were divided. The success of the film was confirmed by the attendance record. The place of the Teutonic Knights among the most popular Polish films was confirmed by the Polityka poll of 1999, where they took 10th place in the list of “The Most Interesting Polish Films of the 20th Century” and the selection by Martin Scorsese and the team of digital reconstruction for screenings in the UK, USA and Canada and the collector's edition of the DVD “Masterpieces of Polish Cinema Presented by Martin Scorsese” (2014-2015).

18:00 - lecture by Dr. Iwo Sulka

19:30 - screening of Alexander Ford's film

Screening with english subtitles.