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Witold Pilecki was a soldier
of the Second Polish Republic, a founder of the
resistance movement known as the Secret Polish Army and ultimately a
member of the post Word War II Home Army. A decorated captain by the
age of 38, he is the only known person to volunteer to become imprisoned
at Auschwitz.
In 1940, in a private meeting
with his immediate superior officers, Pilecki discussed one of the craziest
and most dangerous plans ever conceived. Prior to this time little was
known by the Allies of the true nature and goings-on at Auschwitz. Was
it a prison? Was it an interment camp? It was Pilecki’s idea to get
arrested, enter the camp, find a way to filter information outside the
camp and at the same time promote prisoner morale, aid in providing
relief work such as extra food and medicine, train fellow prisoners
in combat in the event of an Allied raid on the camp, provide intelligence
data, and above all, always pressing on with his beliefs in freedom.
On September 19, 1940,
under an assumed name thanks to fake ID’s provided by the Polish Army,
Captain Witold Pilecki aka Tomasz Serafinski was arrested along with
2200 civilians, tortured and brutalized at the Wehrmact barracks before
ultimately being sent to Auschwitz only two days later. Amazingly, Pilecki
survived the initial tortures only to find himself plunged into a bigger
hell. Tattooed with prisoner number 4859, Pilecki organized an underground
Union of Military Organizations known as ZOW. Unfortunately, the hopes
of ZOW fell short when it was ultimately realized that there would be
no outside relief drops, military attack or any other form of landing
by the British based Polish 1st Independent Parachute Brigade or anyone
else.
Escaping from Auschwitz
in April 1943, Pilecki eventually returned to the intelligence department
of the Home Army where he supplied them with detailed reports (much
as he had done during his incarceration) of the atrocities that were
committed at Auschwitz. With the Allied forces in disbelief at his allegations,
it was the consensus of all that he “grossly exaggerated” the situation.
 Ultimately
joining a secret organization within the Polish Home Army aimed at thwarting
a Soviet takeover, Pilecki was a major part of the Warsaw Uprising and
then in 1945, again volunteered to serve General Anders of the “Anders
Army” with hopes of staving off communism and Soviet occupation. Much
as he had done in Auschwitz, Pilecki took it upon himself to gather
information, this time on the Soviet gulags, for forwarding to the West.
Unfortunately, on May 8, 1947, he was again arrested, but this time
by his fellow countrymen with accusations of, among others, espionage.
On May 25, 1948, he was executed.
Based on factual historical
events, “Death of Captain Pilecki” gives new life to the story of Witold
Pilecki. Long buried in the rubble of war and suppressed by communist
leaders, it was not until the late 1990's that the archival documents
of the military trial of Captain Pilecki came to light. Contained among
the much-falsified trial proceedings were the actual journals and documents
prepared by Pilecki over the years - all of which controverted the findings
of the court and showed Pilecki for the man he truly was - an unsung
hero.
Mark Probosz stars as Witold
Pilecki. With an uncanny resemblance to the real Pilecki, Probosz is
intensely compelling. With a large portion of the film done by way of
court proceedings and one-on-one dialogues between the head tribunal
judge and Pilecki, Probosz exerts a confidence and pride that, based
on the archival documentation, must certainly exemplify a man of Pilecki’s
integrity.
Written and directed by
Ryszard Bugajski, the film is informative and interesting, although
often disjointed at times. Using Pilecki’s trial following his final
arrest as a means to tell the story, numerous peripheral characters
are shown, but never fully introduced until over an hour into the film.
Suddenly, some of the pieces of the courtroom drama finally fall into
place. Bugajski does an excellent job of telling the factual details
of the story, but falls short when adding in concurrent parallels, such
as Pilecki being unable to write because of his fingers injured by torture
and his daughter being unable to write a paper on how Stalin appreciates
women; or the niceties and upper class possessions found in Pilecki’s
home. He provides ideal opportunities for some socio-political statements,
but doesn’t always follow through. There could have also been more depth
in the relationship between Pilecki and his wife, who he failed to tell
about his “volunteering efforts” thus creating an unexplored rift in
Pilecki’s love of country versus love of family. Again, brief mention
is made, and then no follow through.
Integrating actual footage
of post-war Poland initially sets the stage after a brief prologue,
which grabs one’s attention with an impacting visual statement. Piotr
Sliskowski’s cinematography then solidifies not just the physical time
and space of the film, but the emotional and psychological edge of the
events. With pallid tones, desaturation, varied tonal lighting - the
essence of the film is conveyed even without understanding Polish or
reading sub-titles. A little over the top, however, is the make-up when
depicting the tortures to Pilecki. With the desaturation of the film,
the bloodied bruises have a tendency to lose any look of authenticity.
Marking its American debut
at the 7th Annual Polish Film Festival held in Los Angeles in early
May, “Death of Captain Pilecki” joins the ranks of other small, independent
films that celebrate life, liberty and the indomitable human spirit
in the face of adversity. And although not disclosed in the film, for
the record, Captain Wiltod Pilecki was pardoned and acquitted on October
1, 1990 and posthumously awarded the Order of Poland Reborn in 1995.
Written and directed by
Ryszard Bugajski. Unrated. (90 min)
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