1940s Poland: Middle class pianist Joanna (Urszula Grabowska, who received several best actress awards for the role) goes to church to pray for news of her husband at the front. But she stumbles across petrified eight-year-old Jewish girl, Rose, who has somehow managed to evade the Nazis who captured her mother. Joanna decides to hide Rose in her flat, but finds herself faced with tough decisions as her neighbours become suspicious and it is increasingly unclear who can be trusted. Matters complicate further when she falls victim to a denunciation, and must contend with the romantic advances of a Nazi officer (Joachim Paul Assböck).
Veteran director Feliks Falk draws a commanding performance from his cast, not least from Sara Knothe who plays the young Rose and Piotr Śliskowski's cinematography is stark and elegant, helping to convey the tragic power of this drama about righteous gentiles. Dan Susman
