A Strong Man

A Strong Man
Poster for the film
PolishMocny człowiek
Directed byHenryk Szaro
Written byJerzy Braun
Henryk Szaro
Produced byMarek Libkow [pl]
StarringGregori Chmara
Agnes Kuck [pl]
Julian Krzewiński [pl]
CinematographyGiovanni Vitrotti
Music byFeliks Maliniak
Production
company
Gloria
Release date
  • October 2, 1929 (1929-10-02) (Poland)
Running time
about 78 minutes[1]
CountryPoland
LanguagePolish

A Strong Man (Polish: Mocny człowiek) is a 1929 Polish psychological thriller directed by Henryk Szaro and produced by Marek Libkow [pl]. It is the second adaptation of Stanisław Przybyszewski's 1912 novel of the same name. As one of the last Polish silent films, it presents a study of an artist (played by Grigorij Chmara) who ultimately loses a battle with his own conscience.

A Strong Man was inspired by the achievements of German expressionist cinema. Thanks to Giovanni Vitrotti's cinematography and the use of several innovative film techniques – such as double/triple exposure, point-of-view shots, and expressive montage – the film was highly regarded for its technical execution, especially within the context of Polish cinema during the interwar period. After World War II, when all known copies of the film in Poland were destroyed, it was long considered lost. It was only in 1997 that a copy was discovered in Belgium and subsequently returned to Poland. In 2006, a digitally restored version was released.

  1. ^ "Filmoteka Narodowa: Mocny Człowiek" [National Film Archive: "A Strong Man"]. fn.org.pl (in Polish). Archived from the original on 2015-09-24.