Cold War

2018 Polish romantic drama

Rating: 15/20

Plot: While roaming about with a partner to put together a folk music troupe, Wiktor runs across a troubled singer named Zulu. They form an up-and-down relationship for the next decade or so.

Lovely black and white cinematography and more than a few shots of random animals--especially in the early going--are more captivating than the characters or their love affairs. Paweł Pawlikowski's film is easy on the eyes, and so are the leads played by Joanna Kulig and Tomasz Kot. I mean, I'd probably do either one of them. If possible, I'd make love to any number of these shots, Pawlikowski's cinematographer Łukasz Żal showcasing this ability to film space like it's time and time like it's space and people like they're people existing in a particular time and a particular space. As a person who enjoys silent movies, I appreciated the visual storytelling in this movie. The romance develops mostly through camera angles, lighting, and the use of space.