Apinya Sattayanond

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Aj. Verita Sriratana

Ida A Film By Pawe Pawlikowski

As we have learnt about the Holocaust through the given films and texts, namely

The Boy in Striped Pyjamas, The Shop on Main Street, or Mendelssohn Is on the Roof, we have

explored lives of those who are witnesses, oppressed, or victimized during the time of the

dominance of Nazis power. Most of the characters we have learnt from these works already

mentioned carry their own first-hand memories because they are there, whether it is a

concentration camp, or a Nazis governed state, Slovakstadt. We have also observed how the

makers of the films, and the writers of the texts attempted to approach this issue by using

different narrative methods, writing styles, filming techniques, etc., with the same hope to deliver

to the audience and readers with more or less glimpses of what really happened, what it actually

felt like, and what kind of impact it had on the directly affected victims during that period of

time, regardless of what nationalities they were.

However, as we are all well aware that, even though time passes, and what has happened

will eventually become a past and history, memories are somethings that never end. They are

passed on generations through generations and will have an influence in anyone who inherits

them, no matter how far they might be now from the first carriers. Not only because of this

which interests me, after having done the courses final exam and the second question

concerning the Holocaust, it triggers me to think about the period of time right after the

Holocaust and the impact it had on those who were close relatives of the victimsperhaps they

were children who happened to live far away from the Holocaust, or grandchildren who only

heard about the deaths of their grandparents in concentration camps. It is fascinating for me to

learn how these people reacted to this new piece of information about their family's tragic past,

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how their identities might change or transform after having received these memories. Therefore,

I have chosen the film, Ida, as an answer to my curiosity, since it is a film that is set in Poland, or

Polish Peoples Republic under the control of the Soviet Union back then, in the year 1962

which is the period after the peak of the Holocaust, but the air of the tragedy and violence were

still hovering in the air, and shown quite clearly in the peoples emotionless eyes. Moreover, the

film was directed and written by Pawe Pawlikowski, a Polish who was born in Warsaw and who

was indirectly affected by the past about his Jewish grandmother who died in Auschwitz. This

film is therefore, possibly a reflection of his own piece of memory, or something that represents

his own identity.

Through this film, I would like to explore and analyze several interesting points, which

are, how the storyline and the characters are portrayed, what kind of narrative method the film

uses, how the film portrays the atmosphere of the settings and the society during that time, how

the main characters which represent different generations cope with the past that keeps haunting

them and transforming their old identities and perceptions of the world, how religious belief and

faith in God are related in the story, and in what way the message of this film is delivered to the

audience of later generations and how much they are affected.

First of all, Anna, or Ida Lebenstein which is her real name before she is adopted and

raised in a convent in Warsaw, is told to visit her long-lost aunt whose name is Wanda Gruz, and

who was a state prosecutor taking side with the Stalinist system and whose job was to eliminate

whom she calls, Enemies of the People. Idas Jewish origin is revealed, quite in an as-the-

matter-of-fact manner, by Wanda. Ida, therefore was forced to face with the inevitable past

which later on set both Ida and her aunt on a road trip leading all the way back to the time during

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the World War II and when Poland was still under German Occupation, in order to find out how

Idas Jewish parents were killed, and where their bodies might be. If comparing with The Boy in

Striped Pyjamas in terms of the leading character, Idas situation is not very different from that

of Bruno. Although Bruno is considered as a victim who in the end is directly affected by the

Extermination Regime, both he and Ida are at first hidden away from the reality of the world they

are living in. For Ida, who has always been in the convent, the world of purity where any harm

from the chaotic outside world cannot reach, and where her daily life will be praying, or painting

the statue of Christ, she is still as innocent as a little child when she is let out to live with her

relative for the first time. She is of course unprepared for such information about her Jewish

identity and her parents who were victims of the Holocaust effect. Furthermore, implying from

her circumstances, she can also represent children of later generations, who was still too young

to remember anything about the Holocaust, and whose connection with this event is merely a

story told by adults. It is worth noticing that Ida shows only little concerns or care about her

familys past, for instance, when they finally find out the Lebensteins and Wandas bodies, Ida

hardly shows her dramatic emotions unlike Wanda. This might seem disturbing for the audience

but the reason for it might be because, unlike Wanda who had intimate bonds with both of the

three victims before (even though she herself evaded to the Great Britain with the Communist

Resistance Fighters), Ida was raised in a place so distant from any of this information. She

neither knows nor feels related to any of her people. Even though she tries to do so, it is still

difficult for someone to immediately accept his or her new identity, especially the undesirable

one they are forced to have. In contrast with Bruno, however, Ida seeks out the truth about her

parents and gradually collects pieces of information as she moves on in the road trip with

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another two companions, Wanda and Lis, an alto saxophonist whom Wanda picks up during

their journey. It appears that not only the miserable past will Ida and Wanda discover later on,

but it is through these three characters that we will also learn about their struggle as the members

of the traumatized society, which I will discuss in following paragraphs.

Another very interesting thing about the film, Ida, which I think is an element very

unique and indispensable for a film to capture the mood, tone, and atmosphere of the storys time

frame, is its filming techniques. Firstly, Ida is a film shot in black-and-white. This does not just

remove the audience from the present world into the unforgettable past, but the black and white

colours of the film also set the story into a dark and grim mood. Throughout the film, the

audience will be able to sense the tension, the feelings of grief and terror that are still lingering in

every corner of the town after being oppressed and threatened under German Occupation. The

tension from the film brings back the time when the countrys citizens, both Polish and Jewish-

Polish, were almost equally in danger. The Jewish-Polish were fatally targeted, and the Polish

who helped hidden the Jews or showed signs of any resistance to the Nazis were considered as

an equal threat. Secondly, the film contains frequent still close-up shots of the characters faces,

especially Idas, and each shot is filmed in an unusual angle, with the elements in the frame quite

unproportioned. Mostly it tries to make the head of the character as the focus, but it is not put in

the position according to the rule of third. Most of the time the head falls to one corner at the

bottom of the frame, leaving the rest as an empty wall. By doing this, the emphasis of each frame

belongs to the facial expression of each character. For example, if we observe Idas face and her

facial expression in each still close-up frame, we will see that she looks almost emotionless, as if

she is indifferent to what has happened to her. This kind of sterness and solemnity also appear on

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the townspeoples faces whom Ida and Wanda meet during their journey. Moreover, when being

asked about the whereabouts of the Lebensteins or any matters about the Jews, people seem to

refuse to give any information and end the conversation with them quite abruptly. There are

scarcely traces of smile of friendliness along the road that leads to their past. Personally, I think

the film portrays the atmosphere in the story really well, and it reflects the actual social condition

in Poland during that time when people were forbidden to express their feelings or any

objections to the power of the Nazi. It was the time when people had completely lost self-

security because they could end up being victims at any time. This traumatic, haunting past is

what they all try at their best to forget, or escape from, since there were only shame, disgust,

selfishness, guilt, nothing that are worth remembering for them. Yet, their way of life, their

behavior towards other people shown in the film make the audience feel uneasy and

uncomfortable. Thirdly, the film tries to express the sense of emptiness, vastness, and silence

through motion pictures. There are wide shots of a town with only few inhabitants walking along

the streets, a long straight road with no cars on it except Wandas and Idas, and a scene of a

countryside with a huge grass field where Ida, Wanda, and Skiba are walking past towards the

woods where the three bodies are buried. These shots represent the whole community after the

World War II and the Holocaust were ended. They shows the aftermath of the inhumane acts

done during that time, resulting in the loss of millions of Jewish citizens, and also the Polish who

offered the Jews support, and who were against the Nazi. Because so many lives had lost, the

town, even almost two decades after that, still stays silent, and those who are left with the ruins

still appear self-guarded.

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Apart from the films narrative method and filming techniques, another interesting point

in Ida is the characterization of the two characters, Ida Lebenstein and Wanda Gruz. It is worth

noting that the director chooses two female characters to represent life in Poland during 1960s.

This might be because he aims to show another different aspect, which, in this case, is lives of

the two women who need to find a place or something they can hold on to in life while the whole

world is facing the decadence in humanity and morality, as well as hope in human capacity and

religion. And in choosing these two characters to be the centre of the story, the audience is faced

with two generations that are products of the World War II and the Holocaust. For Wanda, her

model figure, according to the directors, comes from the actual Jewish-Polish political figure,

Helena Woliska-Brus, who represents those who were involved in Stalinist regime that

promoted communism in Poland against fascism of the Nazi. However, although she fights

against the German force, Woliska-Brus also made charges against the people of Polands

underground force who resisted the Nazis power but also rejected the communist political

system. She was also accused of making unlawful arrests, skeptical trials which most of the time

eventually led to executions. If we observe Wanda during the story, we will notice the way she

talks to those who carry information about the Lebensteins. She does not seem to speak with

respect to them, but instead, she threatens them quite aggressively. She even tries to break into

Skibas room even if she has no right to do it. She also violates the law, driving while

intoxicated, and uses her status as a judge to bail out of the arrest. But if we take her as one of the

victims who is also affected from the World War II and the Holocaust, we might start to

understand the underlying reasons why Wanda has become like this, and later feel sympathetic

for her, because it is the War that has deprived every ideal, in politics or in religion. The War has

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made people wonder whether what they used to believe to exist-- whether it is peace and justice.

And for those who have lost something or someone they loved, they might begin to cast doubt on

God and His Existence. They might eventually lose faith completely, and be left abandoned in

the society with no certainty nor hope, even in themselves. This is clearly shown through Wanda.

One of the incidents that I personally think it has shaken her the most is the death of her own

son. The time she has been through is the time when one group of people starts expressing their

hatred towards the other that is the minority, the tries to eliminate them, forcing them to turn

against each other, reducing their own sense of morality and let the human nature to protect

ones own life to take over. So in the end, there is nothing left but death. Moreover, deeply

Wanda realizes that what she had done, persecuting the people from the same nation just because

they did not conform to Stalinist regime, which she believed to be the most idealistic way out,

was as cruel, vulgar, and senseless as the way the Nazis killed the Jews. As a result, she plunges

into a miserable life, using alcohol and cigarettes to get away from being sober. She uses jazz

music and the sound of thee saxophone as a way out. She also indulges herself in sex with

different men she met at the same gig. Most importantly, she expresses her unfaithfulness in God

even in front of her own niece It is as if she has become part of the Lost Generations. The way

she tries to make a joke about her niece becoming a nun, that. What sort of sacrifice are these

vows of yours if they arent for carnal love?, actually reflects her realization that nothing is

tangible or proved to be worth fighting for except love between humankind.

As for Ida, one of the many Jewish infants who were saved by the convent, might seem to

be given a choice to choose, to have a better life. But what if what she is doing now, being

faithful and devoted to the Catholicism is just fancying a stained glass next to cow shit.? Idas

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world in the convent seems so unreal and idealistic, shutting out the outside world, the reality,

which apparently has become a mess. Once she is out of that comfort zone, facing what is

happening with other ordinary people, she has finally come to disillusionment. What Wanda said

to her, What if you go there and found out theres no God?, might be true. And once she has

been tainted with her true miserable past and her first impression towards her own society, it is

difficult for her to go back in the convent and not being restless. However, when she decides to

go out of the convent again, she has to face with another truth, which is, she will not be able to

do anything much either. She will just become part of the desperate, hopeless society, floating

around aimlessly with the current of the Lost Generations. Unwilling or not, she has to take the

consequence of something that she does not do.

The film ends with Ida walking away, leaving Lis behind. She is walking on a small

single road towards the camera as a car is driving past her to the direction she came from.

Although we see that she has changed back into the convent uniform, we will never know where

the road she is taking is going to lead her to. Her face does not seem to look determined anyone,

but rather nervous and uncertain of her future. And from this the message is delivered to the

audience. Throughout the story we see the suffering, the feelings of sorrow, grudge, and guilt in

every character. The film neither take side nor promote any prejudices against one particular

group. Instead, it tries to make the audience realize that everyone does what they believe it is the

right thing for them to do, for the sake of their own lives, for example, Skiba did not kill the

Lebensteins because he wanted to. There is no one who can fully be blamed. But what the film

wants to remind the audience is that life goes on under the footsteps of their offspring, and all

humankind will continue walking on this endless road. Therefore, it is us now and no one else

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who are going to pave the way for those who will be living after us, with love, care, and

precaution. It is us who have to make sure not to make the same mistakes, and leave those

mistakes for our children as unwanted legacies again.

Works Cited

D Addario, Daniel. "How an 80-Minute Polish Film in Black and White Became a Breakout

Hit." TIME. 23 Jan. 2015. Web. 8 May 2016. <http://time.com/3656570/ida-movie-

polish-hit/>.

Ida. Dir. Pawe Pawlikowski. 2013. DVD.

Mazurczak, Filip. "IS IDA REALLY ANTI-POLISH AND ANTI-SEMITIC?" Visegrad

Insight. 24 Feb. 2015. Web. 8 May 2016. <http://visegradinsight.eu/polands-

controversial-oscar240122015/>.