Richard J. Brzostek - 02/21/2012 
When considering Polish cinema, Stanislaw Bareja directed the funniest comedies of the 1970s. His style was exposing the ridiculous and absurd, giving us a good laugh at the regular things we don’t think too much about. Keeping with his usual approach, Brunet wieczorowa pora (Brunet Will Call) has a slight twist, as besides being a comedy it almost gets the feeling of a horror. But it really never gets too far into being a horror, so don’t worry this really is just a comedy.
Michal Roman (Krzysztof Kowalewski) is looking forward to a quiet weekend alone with his wife and kids being away. However, he has anything but a quiet weekend with interruption after interruption. When a gypsy tells him his future, he is skeptical, but also a bit worried as she predicts he will kill a mysterious brunet. Michal gets very concerned when a couple of the prophecies come true, so he goes to great lengths to try to not accidentally murder anyone. In his quest to avoid brunets, he gets into all sorts of ridiculous situations for our amusement.
Almost everything in this movie is funny. It is like stringing joke after joke together, with some parts just being there to build up to the greater gag. Although making fun of the way things were in communist Poland had to be done carefully to not offend those in charge, the good jabs at America probably helped this film pass the censors. We are constantly reminded that this is a comedy and that we really should not take anything too serious, so at no time does it try to do something philosophic or have subtle hidden meaning. Brunet wieczorowa pora is a gem and I highly recommend it for everyone, not just those who enjoy Stanislaw Bareja’s work. |
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