As a coroner, Janusz undertakes precise research, analysing the crime scene in minute detail. Yet when faced with his anorexic daughter Olga, still grieving for her dead mother, he feels helpless. Fearing that she might kill herself, he commits her to a clinic where Anna, a psychologist, carries out her duties. Years before, Anna lost her baby to cot-death and now sequesters herself and her big dog in a heavily barricaded flat and conjures up spirits who communicate with the living from beyond the grave.
An extraordinary and innovative Polish creation exploring three highly dissimilar topics in a blend of dark comedy and psychological drama: mourning for the dead, anorexia and acknowledging the existence of ghosts. Silver Bear for Best Director at the 2015 Berlin Film Festival.
"I wanted to make a film about anorexics. I thought about it for a long time but then gave up this idea as I felt that this theme would be so hermetic and closed that it would not reach the audience. However, the plot about the plot about Olga’s character and the idea that a body has a lot of different meanings were still present in my mind. A body – physical, astral, dead – might be treated as an object, might be adored and hated. So this story has emerged from the material that the body is." (Małgorzata Szumowska)
Małgorzata Szumowska
Born in Krakow in 1973, Szumowska graduated from the National Film School in Łódź and subsequently began directing short, feature and documentary films. One of the most prominent Polish directors today, Szumowska’s films tend to present a critique of present-day society. Her movies have received many international festival awards. Her last feature, Body, received the Silver Bear for Best Director at the 2015 Berlin Film Festival.