Przybleda

The Stray (Przybleda) is a drama that feels like a classical tragedy, but is set in the Polish highlands. As the story has all the basic themes, such as jealousy, infidelity and murder, that are part of tragic tales ancient and modern. I think the story has a timeless appeal, but presents it in a special way. It fully embraces its setting making it part of the fabric of the story. The beautiful landscapes and colorful costumes of the people that live in the Polish highlands are unforgettable.

The outsider of this story is Maryjka (Ina Benita). She is a beautiful blonde woman that outshines all of the village women with her looks. The women of the village despise Maryjka because their men adore her. All of the village women are convinced Maryjka is cursed and brings death to their cows, but her only curse is her looks that make men behave like animals. All of the men desire Maryjka, including the married ones, which begets troubles for them all. Even the chieftain is smitten by Maryjka, so in order to stay on the good side of the most powerful man in this village isn't an easy task for her.

The witch-hunt mob mentality that possesses the village is frightening, but is part and parcel of every story about an outsider. The story doesn't have a great deal of dialogue and uses a lot of visual communication to get its messages across. Despite the mistakes Maryjka and the others make, the story doesn't leave us without the hope that things can get better and one can redeem oneself. Considering how much the story does in just over an hour is quite impressive, so I have to give a lot of credit to Jan Nowina-Przybylski and Jan Rogozinski, the directors of Przybleda.