Bread and Salt

Set in a small provincial town in one of Europe’s most xenophobic countries, drawing inspiration from a real-life incident of racist violence and inviting non-professional actors to contribute their (furious or subtler) drive on screen, the latest film of an already recognizable new voice of Polish cinema starts on a low-key note and reaches a dramatic climax like an elaborate symphonic work. As we follow a young talented pianist who managed to escape to the big city and listen to his calling, we plunge into a place where time has frozen and frustration has grown roots, and end up in a kebab place run by some Arab immigrants and frequented by some hot-headed locals. Reminiscent of the cinema of Gus van Sant (without the grooming aesthetics), Larry Clark (saving the obsession with nudity and teenage hormones), or even Spike Lee (without the funkiness of his “joints”), this chilling portrait of modern Western society reminds that the serpent’s egg can not only be hatched but also cooked and served in the most unexpected corners of everyday life.