SHORT FILM ABOUT KILLING (DVD/ENG-SUB) DVD

Krotki Film o Zabijaniu
This disturbing and violent feature opens with a scene of a dead rat and a lifeless cat hanging by the neck. As the plot unfolds, Yatzek (Miroslaw Baka) is a 20-year-old drifter who murders a testy taxi driver (Jan Tesarz) in a gut-wrenching scene of excessive violence. Tension continues to build as a newly licensed young attorney (Krzysztof Globisz is chosen to represent Yatzek in court. Much anticipated and well-received at Cannes, the film won the European Film Academy Award for "Best European Film" in 1988. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

Cast Miroslaw Baka as Jacek Krzysztof Globisz as Piotr Jan Tesarz as Taxi Driver

Crew Halina Dobrowolska - Art Director Malgorzata Obloza - Costume Designer Krzysztof Kieslowski - Director Ewa Smal - Editor Zbigniew Preisner - Composer (Music Score) Halina Dobrowolska - Production Designer Slawomir Idziak - Cinematographer Ryszard Chutkowski - Production Manager Ryszard Chutkowski - Producer Nikodem Wolk-Laniewski - Sound/Sound Designer Malgorzata Jaworska - Sound/Sound Designer Krzysztof Piesiewicz - Screenwriter Krzysztof Kieslowski - Screenwriter

Krotki Film o Zabijaniu
From its stark opening image of a dead cat, Krzysztof Kieslowski's A Short Film About Killing (1988) lives up to its title as it examines the nature of murder -- both legal and illegal -- and the implications of the Biblical edict "Thou shalt not kill." Written by Kieslowski and Krzysztof Piesiewicz, the deceptively simple story introduces the three principals, killer, victim, and lawyer, as they go about their day, quietly building tension through the accretion of behavioral details. Managing to humanize the killer without sanctioning his actions, Kieslowski similarly renders the victim a surly jerk who still doesn't deserve his random, violent death, deepening the questions raised by the crime and its punishment. By graphically detailing the process of the murder and the killer's execution, Kieslowski equates the killer's violence and its state-sanctioned response, without absolving either side of responsibility. With a filter lending the washed-out colors a sickly yellow tint, Kieslowski's spare style and desolate Warsaw setting match the story's relentlessly bleak tone. Originally part five of the ten-part Decalogue (1988) based on the Ten Commandments, A Short Film About Killing was expanded and released as a critically acclaimed stand-alone feature, winning two prizes at the Cannes Film Festival. ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide
 

Krzysztof Kieslowski: Cannes Film Festival, Jury Prize (winner)

European Film Academy, Best European Film (winner) Golden Duck, Best Polish Film (winner)

General Specifications: Language Options: Subtitle Options: English Sound Processing: Additional Features: Interview with cinematographer Slawomir Idziak Interview with Kieslowski collaborator Annette Insdorf Interview with filmmaker Agnieszka Holland Examination of the film by writer Antonin Liehm "A Night Porter's Point of View": A short documentary by Krzysztof Kieslowski Kieslowski filmography Theatrical trailer A Kieslowski trailer gallery Optional English subtitles Enhanced for 16 x 9 TVs MPAA Rating: DVD Discs Included: 1 DVD Sides: 1 DVD DVD Region Code: Content Length: 81 min   DVD Chapters: Side #1 -- 1. Opening Titles [:06] 2. The Interview (I) [6:30] 3. Kinds of Benevolence [7:34] 4. A Taxi Stand [8:25] 5. The Fortune [3:23] 6. Another Fare [6:13] 7. The Killing (I) [3:44] 8. A Means of Escape [9:58] 9. A Difficult Verdict [2:13] 10. Final Preparations [6:36] 11. The Interview (II) [6:37] 12. The Killing (II) [9:05]