Customer Reviews

Strike

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4 star:		(1)
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Katharina Thalbach gives a brilliant performance as shipyard welder and crane operator Agnieszka Kowalska, who is unjustly fired by the shipyard managers of Gdansk shipyard for protesting the denial of widows pensions for workers killed in a fire at the shipyard, a fire caused by management incompetence.

Her stubborn insistence on justice and refusal to be payed off or intimidated by the shipyard management or Polish Government caused the strike on the Gdansk shipyard in August 1980 which spread to other Polish shipyards and public services across Poland all of which led to the creation of the first free unions and ultimately free elections in Poland 10 years later. Consequently, the consequences of her actions were a part of several domestic and military setbacks for the Soviet Union which ultimately led to its collapse.

Thalback put in a superb performance as Kowalska who shows that one person at the right time and place can lead to dramatic change for the good.

"Strike" (Strajk-Bohaterka z Gdanska) shows us the story of a woman who helped the Solidarity movement in Gdansk, Poland. Agnieszka is a welder who works harder than others and is initially disliked by some of her co-workers for it. She is optimistic to better herself and learns to read so that she can pass the exam to become a crane operator, which reflects her nature and her will to do good. Although she is fairly short in stature, she is steadfast in defending the rights of workers and becomes a heroine doing so.

In my view, "Strike" is an unusual Polish film as it is a German production in the Polish language. German director Volker Schlondorff, who is best known for "Tin Drum," brings us this story about the woman who spurred the Solidarity movement. Furthermore, two of the leading roles in "Strike" are played by Germans, including that of our heroine Agnieszka (Katharina Thalbach). The rest of the cast is Polish -- including notable performances by Andrzej Chyra and Andrzej Grabowski. The only detail that is obviously German about "Strike" is that the credits are in that language.

"Strike" isn't the first movie on the Solidarity movement. In 1981, Andrzej Wajda directed his influential film "Man of Iron" (Czlowiek z Zelaza) that showed the world what was happening in Poland. Interestingly, "Strike" has someone playing the role of Lech Walesa while in "Man of Iron" has Lech Walesa appearing as himself. Although both having a different feeling they show us history we may not have heard much about anywhere else.

In the face of injustice, corruption and bad working conditions, some people had the courage to stand up to defend the rights of workers. The dramatic story of our wide-eye heroine Agnieszka may inspire you. "Strike" is based on a true story (some report that it combines details of two women) and is great because it shows a bit of history in an entertaining way. Although not an easy battle, the Solidarity movement changed the lives of many and weakened communism to some extent with their strikes.

Twenty years (1960-1980) are covered in this moving and enjoyable fictional treatment of Polish history as played out in the shipyards of Gdansk, which gave birth to the Solidarity Movement that helped bring an end to Communist rule behind the Iron Curtain. German director Volker Schlorndorff focuses on the life of a dedicated shipyard welder, an unmarried mother, whose devotion to the ideals of socialism is transformed by the mismanagement of the shipyard directors and the lack of support by the union meant to serve workers' interests. As unrest fuels the overworked and underpaid laborers, she becomes a champion of their rights and wins the enmity of the Party while becoming a heroine to coworkers.

Meanwhile, we get glimpses of a personal life marked by her brief marriage to a jazz musician and haunted by a long ago liaison with a labor boss, who is the father of her son. It is a richly and warmly told story of an individual life that refuses to be undaunted by forces beyond her control and holds out for sweeping political reform. In the end, the irony is that communism's goal of uniting workers is finally used against the Party machinery meant to achieve that very objective. The film has wonderful performances, a perfectly plausible script, and a soundtrack that includes lyrical jazz interludes. Very satisfying.