Reflected Light 1989

Synopsis

The 1980s. A psychotherapy session is in progress. A therapist encourages Zbigniew, a writer past his prime, to tell his story... The mid 1950s. Eighteen-year-old Zbyszek lives near Cracow. He makes his first attempts at writing poems, but gets unfavorable reviews from people who read them. At that time he also experiences first encounters with women, but he is not successful in this field either. What is more, his mother considers him a freak and hinders his relationships with girls. One day Zbyszek comes across poems, fragments of which he secretly writes down and sends to the publishing house as his own. When it turns out that he has compiled a politically explosive mix of the early poems of Czesław Miłosz, he wins admiration of young Cracow writers and is admitted to their circle. There he meets and makes friends with And, a young and incredibly talented poet, who is visibly fascinated by Zbyszek\'s freshness and naivety. And\'s undeniable and unaffected talent, as well as his fascinating and eccentric manner, act as a magnet for Zbyszek. This friendship completely determines Zbyszek\'s life and leads eventually to his nervous breakdown. The film is based on a short story by Stanisław Czycz "And", which is a kind of biography of Andrzej Bursa, the famous Cracow poet and the legend of his generation.