{"id":52209,"date":"2026-03-22T15:00:46","date_gmt":"2026-03-22T19:00:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/?p=52209"},"modified":"2026-03-21T17:59:39","modified_gmt":"2026-03-21T21:59:39","slug":"the-dancing-hawk-1977-radiance-films-le-blu-ray","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/2026\/03\/22\/the-dancing-hawk-1977-radiance-films-le-blu-ray\/","title":{"rendered":"The Dancing Hawk [1977] [Radiance Films LE Blu-Ray]"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>The birth-to-death of a Polish bureaucrat is followed in 1977\u2019s strange and compelling The Dancing Hawk, written and directed by Grzegorz Krolikiewicz, on Blu-Ray via Radiance Films.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The Film<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Dancing Hawk is a patently absurd and strange film. I loved the way the cradle-to-grave story of Michal Toporny was presented. It\u2019s less of big moments and huge pushes than it is feelings and visual presence. As the kids say: vibes. Not like Boyhood, but more of a kaleidoscope of random moments, shot oddly, that give an overall impression of a discordant, yet ultimately bland life. Toporny\u2019s life might be pretty nothing in the end, a cog who thinks he\u2019s more important than he is, but really a lonely, disconnected man, as represented by the method of telling.\u00a0 Grzegorz Krolikiewicz\u2019s 1977 film, adapted from the novel by Julian Kawalec, is a truly fascinating watch.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Dancing Hawk is said to be inspired by Orson Welles<\/a>\u2019s Citizen Kane<\/a>. I can see the connection. Not in the \u201cno one knows him, so it\u2019s all second hand\u201d of that film, but no one knows him or cares because he loses himself as he gains rank, never quite on the same footing as everyone else. Franciszek Trzeciak is fantastic as Michal Toporny (since he plays him from teen to old man, that weird feeling of \u201chello fellow kids\u201d when he\u2019s a university student sets a tone). The performance is purposely pushy, off-kilter, and always sticking out like a sore thumb. Perfectly realized. It\u2019s all helped by the amazing filming methods. There\u2019s this one sequence, looking at himself in a mirror, that gives a visual to the overall disconnect in a great method. But in many ways, he\u2019s also a victim, just becoming a cog as well. An interesting character study of a different breed.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Krolikiewicz\u2019s method of crafting the story is an incredible draw. Less full scenes, but slices of oddity. Disconcertingly, slivers of moments, randomly dropping into life gives a wonderfully absurd tone. Wholly original and compelling, The Dancing Hawk is a collection of connected bits, but only in the nature of all moments in someone’s specific life. There\u2019s a sort of chaos in the methods, never allowing the audience to settle before throwing them into the next odd moment.<\/span><\/p>\n

This is brought home by the striking camera work by Zbigniew Rybczynski.\u00a0 Rybcynski never takes the shot in an expected manner. Placing it on animals, moving farm equipment, on random desks in a room, or even odder, such as a hand\u2019s point of view as its arm is cut off. Often the subject is out of center, or off frame, leaving the viewer to listen to them without seeing a context, filling in; never comfortable, always cryptic. And it\u2019s just gorgeous too in production design, or in choice of location, since I\u2019d venture it was filmed on location over set construction. But wow, does it shine and spark. Since the story is kept at arm\u2019s length, these odd choices of shots drive it visually. Auditorily, the film\u2019s sound is just as purposefully, foley with a specific sound and echo, also slightly removed from reality. It\u2019s all, visually and audibly, successfully in design, deftly constructed.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s been said that the film is a metaphor of post-WWII Poland. Of urbanization in favor of the rural, and the complications of a Kafkaesque Iron Curtain, Russian-backed communism. I can see this, with starting as a farm boy, born in a rural village during the First World War, and leading an industrialization against the same as the film progresses; flattening a personality for the sake of work and the party. My only real knowledge of Polish cinema is this film and various works of Krzysztof Kieslowski, mainly the Three Colors Trilogy, Double Life of Veronique, and the utterly depressing Dekalog. Between the length of these, one gains a feeling of life in Poland behind the curtain. I can see a through line for them, people working through the mundanities; living muted lives.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Grzegorz Krolikiewicz\u2019s The Dancing Hawk is a wonderfully strange and infinitely compelling film, speaking to its time and place with an earned confidence of oddity.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/span>The Package<\/strong><\/p>\n

Radiance Films offers The Dancing Hawk on a single-disc Blu-ray. The reversible sleeve features art by Jerzy Czerniawski and Andrzej Klimowski. Nestled within is a booklet. The release, limited to 3000 copies, has the Radiance removable OBI strip with all relevant information, leaving the packaging clear for the artwork.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Presentation<\/strong><\/p>\n

The visuals are a new 4k restoration by Filmotka Narodowa. As noted in the review, the presentation is utterly gorgeous. Crisp and colorful, with a lush palette really standing out. It\u2019s a real visual treat. The audio is uncompressed mono. Again, as noted above, The Dancing Hawk has a specifically designed sound style, and I loved the way it was used. Audio is Polish with new English subtitles.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Features<\/strong><\/p>\n

Carmen Gray Video Essay<\/span><\/p>\n

The film critic gives context to the film, making what I felt more concrete. Gray talks about the unique methods of creation and the importance of its place in Polish cinema. Quite fascinating. In English. (16m)<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Short Films\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Two films from the cinematographer Zbigniew Rybczynski, who won an 1982 Animated Short Oscar for Tango. Two other shots are featured here.<\/span><\/p>\n

Soup\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

This 1974 film features Gilliamesque animations in incredibly clever and creative methods to show the life of a marriage in 70s Poland. Quite a joy; 9m<\/span><\/p>\n

Oh! I Can\u2019t Stop!\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

I wonder if Sam Raimi saw this 1976 short before making Evil Dead? It\u2019s a 1st person perpective of a monster roaming through a city and countryside, increasing in speed as it goes. Delirious, with a fun take where it\u2019s obviously sped up but coming from Rybcynski walking around, so the speeds don\u2019t match (this is a good thing). Some really innovative ways to move. It seems to be one shot, but I have no idea how it\u2019s done. 10m\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Booklet<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

A 25-page booklet contains the standard cast\/crew listing and photos along with the essay, The Dancing Hawk: Gregorz Krolikiewicz\u2019s Plebeian and Multidimensional Citizen Kane by Piotr Kletowski. Kletowski\u2019s writing gives more context to the film and deepens the Kane reference. A solid march into the wider view of the film.<\/span><\/p>\n

Final Thoughts<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Dancing Hawk is yet another Radiance Films<\/a> release that inserts me into a world I\u2019m not too familiar with and lets me come out with new knowledge and appreciation of great cinema. It\u2019s unconventional and engrossing, with a fantastic visual and sound design. For the disc itself, the transfer is wonderful, and the extras are fun in the short films.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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