By Robert Yaniz Jr.

DAY 9 OF THE 2018 HOLIDAY BINGE

Paweł Pawlikowski tells a classical love story loaded with melancholy and an impending sense of dread.

THE HYPE

The trailer for Cold War superbly sets up the promise of a complicated love story littered with era-appropriate bleakness (the film’s set during the, you guessed it, Cold War, in the 1950s) and a few gorgeous musical numbers. Co-writer/director Paweł Pawlikowski has essentially cornered the market on dreary, seemingly emotionally distant yet stirring dramas, having previously helmed the BAFTA-winning 2013 film Ida. With Cold War, he might very well find himself back in the center of awards contention.

THE STORY

Beginning in 1949, audiences meet Zula (Joanna Kulig), an ambitious singer whose career takes off when she charms the pants off (not literally, that comes later) of musical director Wiktor (Tomasz Kot). From there, the film plays out the highlights of their on-again/off-again love affair, playing liberally with time. Much like something like When Harry Met Sally… (a bizarre comparison, all things considered), the focus always remains on Zula and Wiktor’s romance, as their lives criss-cross and intersect at various points in their lives.

THE CAST

On the surface, Pawlikowski’s narrative structure as it were would probably falter if it wasn’t in the hands of such charismatic stars. Both Kot and Kulig — that latter, particularly, as her singing is also key to the film’s resonance — capably convey the bond Wiktor and Zula share, even when Pawlikowski perhaps too nimbly skips along their journey. At less than 90 minutes, Cold War packs in a lot of story, and what makes it all hang together is how easy it is to believe these two lovers truly have such sustained passion between them.

THE PRODUCTION

It’s already been alluded to above, but the music in Cold War by Marcin Masecki is sublime. The way it accents the changing political backdrop of Zula and Wiktor’s story is such a strength of the film, oftentimes adding to the isolation that both feel whenever circumstances pull them apart. Moreover, Łukasz Żal’s cinematography gorgeously brings to life the moodier aspects of Pawlikowski’s central love story and finds an understated beauty within as frigid an environment as 1950s Europe.

THE VERDICT

Sadly, the prospect of a black-and-white, foreign-language film will probably be enough for some subtitle-phobes to snub their noses at Cold War. But Pawlikowski’s ode to his parents — whose own real-life love inspired aspects of Wiktor and Zula’s — offers a stunningly shot, beautifully rendered story. While the central romance may not be as sweeping as it believes it is, the performances and surrounding execution of Pawlikowski’s vision more than elevate Cold War into a brisk journey worth taking. Just be sure to bundle up first.

Cold War stars Joanna Kulig, Tomasz Kot and Cédric Kahn and is directed by Paweł Pawlikowski.