Jerzy Skolimowski is one of the most original Polish directors and one of only a handful who has gained genuine recognition abroad. This is the first monograph, written in English, to be devoted to his cinema. It covers Skolimowski''s career from his early successes in Poland, such as Identification Marks: None and Barrier, through his émigré films, Deep End, Moonlighting and The Lightship, to his return to Poland where, in 2008, he made the internationally acclaimed Four Nights with Anna.

Ewa Mazierska addresses the main features of Skolimowski''s films, such as their affinity to autobiographism and surrealism, while discussing their characters, narratives, visual style, soundtracks, and the uses of literature. She draws on a wide range of cinematic and literary texts, situating Skolimowski''s work within the context of Polish and world cinema, and drawing parallels between his work and that of two directors, with whom he tends to be compared, Roman Polański and Jean-Luc Godard.

Jerzy Skolimowski is one of the most original Polish directors and one of only a handful who has gained genuine recognition abroad. This is the first monograph, written in English, to be devoted to his cinema. It covers Skolimowski's career from his early successes in Poland, such as Identification Marks: None and Barrier, through his émigré films, Deep End, Moonlighting and The Lightship, to his return to Poland where, in 2008, he made the internationally acclaimed Four Nights with Anna.

Ewa Mazierska addresses the main features of Skolimowski's films, such as their affinity to autobiographism and surrealism, while discussing their characters, narratives, visual style, soundtracks, and the uses of literature. She draws on a wide range of cinematic and literary texts, situating Skolimowski's work within the context of Polish and world cinema, and drawing parallels between his work and that of two directors, with whom he tends to be compared, Roman Polański and Jean-Luc Godard.

List of Illustrations
Acknowledgements

Introduction: Outsider, Nonconformist, a Man In-between

Chapter 1. From Participant to Observer: Autobiographical Discourse in the Films of Jerzy Skolimowski
Chapter 2. About a Boy: Characters, Narratives and Ideologies in Skolimowski's Films
Chapter 3. Between Realism and Non-realism: The Artistic Context of Skolimowski Films and their Main Visual Motifs
Chapter 4. In the Land of Hamlets and Don Quixotes: Skolimowski's Encounters with Literature
Chapter 5. ‘I Don’t Like Obvious Film Scores’: Music and Other Sounds in Skolimowski's Films

Conclusions

Biographical Note
Filmography
Bibliography
Index