In Bartosz M. Kowalski’s latest feature, Maciej Damięcki, one of the most prominent actors of his generation, plays his last role. 

Cisza nocna can be considered both a horror and a drama. It is scary during the night, and saddening throughout the day. It tells a story of Lucjan (Maciej Damięcki), an older man, whose beloved wife has recently died. When Lucjan arrives at the home of the elderly, sent there by his son, strange things start happening around him. Other residents start slowly dying, while doctors and nurses act weirdly. Our hero will soon find out that the whole institution is haunted, but he’s unsure, just like the entire audience, if it’s a reflection of reality or a shattered mind of a sick and old Lucjan.

Two layers of Cisza nocna’s contexts make the screening even more painful. Firstly, this is Damięcki’s last feature film, while the plot is about coming to terms with death, ageing with dignity and closing the last chapter in his character’s life. Damięcki died right before the film’s premiere, which makes watching Kowalski’s horror almost heartbreaking. 

Secondly, his Lucjan is also an actor, so the film gives us flashbacks that paint a portrait of an artist unable to do his job properly, due to memory loss and health issues. Lucjan is Damięcki in another universe, one that is more depressing. Here, he’s an actor forgotten not only by his audience, but also by his most beloved son, Paweł (Sebastian Stankiewicz). We can read this film as Damięcki’s bad dream about how the direction of his life could turn. Instead of spending his last days around his closest ones, he could end just like Lucjan, alone, scared and grief-stricken. Lucjan will soon realise the elderly house is a nebulous, far-off place from which no one returns.

It would be interesting to see Kowalski rebranding himself in terms of a genre, at least for a film or two. Cisza nocna proves he’s a great storyteller and a terrific observer of human conditions, so watching his family or social drama (without any horror additions) might actually be refreshing. For now, it is up to Kowalski to find his own path (and style) in future movies. And, it’s a journey worth following, even if the Polish director decides to go back to his body-horror roots in an upcoming project.

Photo: Universal Pictures

3.5/5 stars

Author: Jan Tracz