Guest Author - Ewa Sapinska

On meeting Piotr Adamczyk, you could be forgiven for having a metaphorical swim in the gentle blue waters of his eyes, the sun lapping its rays on your flesh as you blissfully float by……… , yes yes, I know; forgive me for having a runaway imagination. Well, on with the show!

Talking about shows, Piotr Adamczyk, is widely regarded as one of Poland’s most talented actors of theatre and film of the moment, (especially if you take into account the awards he has wrapped his fingers around recently) and one can see why, for his performance in “Karol, the man who became Pope”, was simply virtuous, and how apt, considering the man he portrayed.

Most actors would wane at the mere thought, of acting such a loved and venerated pillar of society, but, I can honestly say, that Piotr Adamczyk really proved that he can stand firm in the shoes of determined dedication, and deliver.

The film starts with the Pope as a ten year old boy, and ends, as he is elected Pope in 1978. The film was directed by Italy’s Giacomo Battiato, who truly deserves a mention for his true reflection of Poland at the time. Battiato himself was responsible for Piotr Adamczyk being picked for this role. One might say, he was guided by heavenly forces, as his choice was inspired.

The beauty of Piotr Adamczyk’s representation of our cherished John Paul the II, is in the encapsulation of the essence of our pontiff’s character. The gentleness of his smile: the hauntingly familiar look in his eye. Piotr Adamczyk’s gestures seem to have been moulded from the same form as that of the Pope; surely divine influence was involved.

There were moments in the film, when I shed more than a few salty tears (lets just say, the popcorn bucket came in handy) as I was transported to wartime Poland. In fact, being Polish almost guarantees that you will have had family that suffered and fought for their freedom, at the time, that the first part of the film depicts.

I would strongly recommend that you see this film, before, the multi million dollar Hollywood block buster version, arrives on our screens. I for one am loath to believe that Jon Voight will fill the Papal Doc Martins quite as well.

The second of this two part mini series is due to be premiered soon. So I am sure Piotr will be busy, but if I manage to pin him down on one of his less busy days, I will be sure to find out a little more about the Actor. Watch this space!

Enjoy!

Ewa Sapinska