A Short Film About Love (1988)
Polish director Krzysztof Kieslowski's masterpiece is based on a piece from his celebrated Dekalog cycle of shorts.
It follows a young man who falls in love with an older woman he spys on in the same Warsaw apartment block. Seeing a succession of lovers she brings back with her. When she becomes aware of him she confronts him with a sexual invitation.
The film explores the themes of love and voyeurism that despite the cold Polish settings displays a warmth and erotic air that other films strive for. The film is romantic but its a different sort of romance, the viewer is desperate for the young man to meet the woman and then fall in love. When the almost inevitable happens the film takes a sinister turn as the lad can't cope with the womans promiscuity and the likelihood that to her it is just sex rather than fulfilling a yearning.
For the most part A Short Film About Love is a study of desperate love that inevitably leads to heartbreak. Its a brilliant piece of film making, both poignant and tender, and beautifully acted.
A film i regularly go back to.
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