Cold War: Film Review

Cold War: Film Review

Cast: Joanna Kulig, Tomasz Kot
Director: Pawel Pawlikoswki

Ending with a truly extraordinary final shot, Pawlikoswki's love story Cold War is a paean to the golden age of cinema and the universality of a romantic tale.

Shot in black and white and set in post-war Poland, it's the tale of composer Wiktor (Kot) and auditionee Zula (Kulig) who are attracted to each other, even though their fates should not be intertwined.

Landing a role in his troupe, Zula bewitches Wiktor, and as they cross Eastern Europe touring, their lines become more blurred, and their roles in each other's lives stronger than expected.

Cold War opens with local villagers singing and proceeds to let the cameras linger on the musical numbers and the committed performances of the singers. In fact, as it progresses, you could almost feel that Pawlikoski's more determined to archive local folk music and lore, before the story of Wiktor and Zula kicks in.

It is transcendantly shot; every frame oozes class as the black and white gives an eternal veneer to what plays out, but equally, the leads demand your attention to.

Kot channels inherent tragedy and frustration as Wiktor, the man for whom circumstance proves ruinous. Equally, Kulig has the kind of charm that lights up a love story throughout the years, and gives more than enough clout to the arc as it plays out.

Ultimately, Cold War will thaw even the most hardened of hearts as it dances the line between wondrously shot musical moments on stage and then veers toward the emotional intimacy of a relationship that shouldn't be.

Steeped in pathos, and riddled with seductive tones, Cold War is a luminous film that possesses a timelessness which is hard to deny.