Poland's legendary filmmaker Andrzej Wajda takes on Lech Wałesa, Poland's man of the people, in this fictional documentary "Wałesa: Man of Hope," and it comes as somewhat of a surprise.
At 88 years old, Wajda's insular and experimental artistic approach has shifted to a more global and, dare one say it, entertaining mode. Wajda fans noted the shift in 2007 when he came out with "Katyn," which rendered the Katyn massacre of 1940 (in which Wajda's father was killed) accessible to an audience with little or no knowledge of World War II. And now Wajda has crafted "Wałesa" (originally titled "Wałesa. Czlowiek z Nadziei") with a global audience in mind. When it was shown at the Chicago International Film Festival last year, young moviegoers gave a standing ovation; one even described Lech Wałesa as a "cool dude."
In 1970, Wałesa (Robert Wieckiewicz) is working in a Gdansk shipyard, married to the formidable Danuta (Agnieszka Grochowska) and expecting the first of eight children that the couple would eventually have together. The news comes in that a labor uprising is about to happen, and Wałesa rushes to the scene, where he tries and fails to stop the police from killing the workers. Wałesa himself is arrested and jailed, later he's released on condition that he becomes a spy for the government. Wałesa conveniently forgets his pledge and begins honing his abilities as an activist, workers' leader and relentless negotiator.