Nie zgubiliśmy drogi

Anka and Wilhelm Sasnal’s feature film is a loose adaptation of “Till varmare länder”, a novel by Swedish author P.C. Jersild. The Polish directorial duo follow a man and a woman across separate storylines. Ewa, a translator in her mid-thirties, hardly has any work and can barely keep her head above water. About ten years older than her, Eryk is a Cervantes specialist teaching at a university. Unable to keep himself under control, he loses his job as a result. But there are a few details common to these two plots otherwise running in parallel, such as the black-and-white photograph of a lake or the notebook that Ewa leafs through, which we also see on Eryk’s desk.
In unadorned images, the Sasnals explore just how pared down a narrative can become. A composite of fragmentary scenes, many of which are self-contained rather than fitting into a meaningful whole, the film subtly undermines our faith in the linear flow of time. Yet however easy it is to get lost in Nie zgubiliśmy drogi, there is always the sense that the filmmakers do not stray for a moment from their uncompromising path.