Joanna (2010) User Reviews

Just shy of perfection.

[michaelmalak · 8/10 · 7 November 2011]

Overall a good story. Well directed, with great cinematography, cinematography with subdued mood, one that's not detracting from the picture but enriching it.

In few instances however (especially in the opening scenes) the director rushed too much info at the viewer, trying to explain the circumstances, trying to get the story rolling. Instead - the viewer would have been better served having to wait (to delay) the discovery of the few pertaining details that wove to create the story.

After the movie we've met with the director who, despite his broken English, vigorously defended, what most people found to be a gloomy, uninspiring ending. In his own words he viewed it as "open ended ending".

Excellent drama about dilemmas and unexpected kindness

[MdlndeHond · 9/10 · 7 June 2011]

Poland is popping out potential classics lately. This one is no different. In world war II occupied Poland the life of Joanna, a lonely woman waiting for her husband to return while getting by on odd jobs, drastically changes when she finds a Jewish girl hiding in a church. In a world where nobody can be trusted the roles of enemies and allies continually shift.

Wonderfully filmed in pale colours with eye for detail. It shows exceptionally well how average people become heroes with acts of kindness and how mistrust and fear during war time makes people do the most horrendous things.

A wonderful and heartfelt movie

[rightwingisevil · 30 June 2011]

This is an amazingly beautiful movie. I do agree with the other two viewers' comments on this wonderfully scripted, directed, performed Polish movie. The tones of this movie are reserved in classic blue and green, the lighting is perfectly natural, giving you an realistic pessimistic feeling of that dreary era when Poland was occupied by the German Nazi. The loneliness of the heroine and that cute little girl are a beautiful unity of consolation and humanity. I was amazed by the subtle touch of the performances of all the Polish actors, they are so natural under a very good director. The romance developed from the house raid also looked so logic and natural, a wonderful scenario. The actress who played Joanna should be awarded with some kind best performing artist, so good and so convincing as a lonely, kind, yet so strong woman. Love her great performance so much. I also noticed that she's the fastest walking woman in any movie that involved any woman who had to walk along city streets, so fast, flowing like gliding on water. Hiding a little Jewish girl in Nazi Poland not just courage, generosity and kindness but luck, pure luck.

A ray of light in the darkness

[rmanory · 9/10 · 17 November 2012]

Joanna is a woman with a number of troubling issues: Her husband was recruited as a Polish soldier and she has not heard of him after the German invasion. The café she has been working at has closed after a raid, and she is likely to loose her apartment because it is too big for a single person. She adds to her trouble by rescuing a Jewish girl whose mother has been caught in a raid. She now has to protect the girl not only from the Germans, but also from the prying eyes of neighbors and relatives. The girl is discovered by a German officer and in order to save herself and the child she offers herself to him, but this relationship gets her into trouble with the local Resistance. She then gives the child to a Monastery and flees Poland with an unclear destination. The movie is very well acted and the situations are believable, but it seems to me that the story is fiction. Many Poles have rescued children during the war, and many children were rescued by the Catholic church, so the story is not entirely fiction, but usually movies of this genre are based on real life stories. This is my only criticism of otherwise a very well made film.

Poland the new Polanski?

[petropolisy · 10/10 · 6 June 2011]

Poland has been producing some great films, I don't know why but this is a story of love betrayal nothing new. However it is also belongs to the the NovoPol Cinema that has evolved from the French Cinema revolution. Evolution is a funny thing did we really come from monkeys, maybe some did but I was created by god in a big bang right Gideo. When things evolve it is not for better or worse it is just change. I Poland producing films that have scripts acting author directing, Yes so if you like that sort of thing and want to see a chick flick with your new Eastern European bride you could do worse than watching this film. Who knows in a certain light you both may look better.

One of the gem of movies

[deeptheperfect · 9/10 · 10 January 2018]

It's very hard to find a movie which is so heartfelt and mesmerizing. Kudos to the director and whole cast and crew for such an amazing movie. Was never a fan or hater of Hitler but after watching this movie I realized that if his action would have brought such atrocities to a simple little girl then its better to have an opinion than never. About this movie, great directing except the ending could have had lots of possibilities. The cast was very good and for the little girl Sara Knothe.. hat's off girl. The story was 9 out of 10 as I rated already. This is indeed a kind of movie to recommend to other people.