Best Polish history movies

Battle of Westerplatte (2013)

This harrowing war film is an epic dramatization of the first battle of World War II. The Battle of Westerplatte that began on 1 September 1939 will forever be remembered as the one that announced the beginning of the Second World War in Europe. Over one week, fewer than 200 Polish soldiers fought against heavy German bombardment and in the process came to symbolize the power of resistance. As the violence rages, a complex battle of a more personal nature plays out between two Polish commanders over how to best lead their men. Amid the bloodshed, they must ask themselves – should they fight until the last man standing or surrender in the face of overwhelming odds? What unfolds is a stirring exploration of the fight against the forces of tyranny.

Korczak (1990)

The story of Polish pedagogue Janusz Korczak and his dedication to protecting Jewish orphans during the war.

Battle of Warsaw 1920 (2011)

Poland's winning battle against Soviet Russia as seen through the eyes of two young protagonists, Ola and Jan. She is a Warsaw cabaret dancer, while he is a cavalry officer and poet who believes in socialist ideals

White Courage (2024)

The film tells the story of two Highlander brothers – Maciek and Andrzej. After the death of their father, which Andrzej contributed to, and the loss of his beloved Bronka, Andrzej leaves the family home. On his way, he meets the mysterious Wolfram, an anthropologist and climber. He shares with him his mountaineering technique and knowledge about the Prague origins of the highlanders. Andrzej returns to Zakopane, war breaks out. To protect the Highlanders from wartime destruction, he wants to persuade them to cooperate with the Germans. Andrzej and Maciek are standing on opposite sides of the barricade. The brothers' confrontation is bloody and painful.

Generał Nil (2009)

Generał Nil is a Polish historical film, based on the life of general Emil August Fieldorf, pseudonym "Nil".

Pilecki's Report (2023)

Polish WWII resistance fighter Witold Pilecki infiltrates Auschwitz, is imprisoned and interrogated by communist officials post-war, depicting his wartime experiences, incarceration, torture, and 1948 execution for opposing Soviet regime.

Warsaw Uprising (2014)

It tells the story of the Warsaw Uprising of 1944 through the eyes of a US airman, escaper from the Nazi Stalag camp and two young reporters, cameramen for the Bureau of Information and Propaganda of the Polish Home Army. Their mission: documenting the Uprising by shooting newsreels for the “Palladium” cinema. Looking for the right shots, they go deeper and deeper – literally and figuratively – into the heart of the Uprising. Traumatic truth becomes obvious. Aware of being witnesses of indescribable events, they realize their duties: to document them and preserve the rolls of film at any cost…

Red Poppies (2024)

We see the story of the legendary battle through the eyes of Jedrek - a boy who went through the hell of the gulag and left Russia with the Polish Army as one of thousands of polish orphans. Soon a decisive attack on a monastery located on the hills of Monte Cassino is to take place at the front - this spectacular battle will decide the lives of many soldiers and the fate of the Allied offensive in Italy, and will change Jedrek's life forever.

Embassy (2013)

Young couple living in the old house suddenly discover an elevator which takes them directly to year 1939.

Deserter's Gold (1998)

"Deserter's Gold", the sequel to the very popular "The Deserters", is a rich war comedy, skipping humorously around the more serious dangers of a war. Deserters Gold takes place during World War II, while the first film happened during WWI. The heroes' mission is to rob a Nazi-run bank in Poland for gold that will buy military supplies for the Polish Underground.

Wyklęty (2017)

In the 1940s, a small band of underground paramilitaries attempt to fight back against the Soviet-backed security ministry in post-war Poland. Determined to fight for their country's future, the group goes to extreme lengths to make their voice heard.

Pornography (2003)

Two intellectuals, a writer and a director, begin to play a mysterious psychological game in a peaceful countryside manor house during the Nazi occupation.

Truth Makes Free (2020)

A Security Service Major wishes to "buy" gullible priest Zieja and turn him into an agent who will discredit the opposition. The priest's interrogations become a natural pretext for a journey through the history of Poland in the twentieth century: from the Bolshevik war of 1920, through World War II, up to modern times. It turns out that the seemingly naive Father Zieja is actually a clever rebel.

Ether (2018)

At the end of the 19th century, somewhere in the outskirts of the Russian Empire, a doctor administers a lethal overdose of ether to a young woman – the object of his desire. After getting away with his crime, he finds employment in a fortress, where he continues his experiments with ether to manage pain and manipulate human behaviour. Despite his evilness, it is not too late for his soul to be saved from eternal damnation…

Young Eagles (2022)

Grodno, the eastern border of pre-war Poland. On September 1, 1939, German planes bomb the city. One of the bombs hits the school of Leoś, Ewelina and Tadek. Literally and symbolically, the world of a carefree childhood, fun and first crushes ends.

Czas Honoru (2008)

Historia Roja (2016)

In the spring of 1945, the commanding officer of the National Armed Forces in Mazowsze and older brother of 20-year-old Mieczyslaw Dziemieszkiewicz, is assassinated by Soviet soldiers. Mieczyslaw then joins the National Military Union. He becomes the commander of a partisan unit fighting for the next six years to free Poland from Soviet tyranny by terrorizing the UB and its collaborators. Communist authorities will do whatever it takes to track down the "enemy of the people's power."

Below the Surface (2022)

It's 1940. German forces are prevailing over Allies across Europe. The crew of the Polish submarine, now serving in the Royal Navy, is waging a heroic fight against the invisible enemy.

Gwiazda Piołun (1988)

The Ashes (1965)

Set in the time of Napoleon wars, shows how the wars swept over the unfortunate Polish country at the beginning of the XIX-th century. Story revolves around the Polish legion under command of General Dabrowski, who then fought on Napoleon's side with the hopes of Poland's revival.

The Mother of the Kings (1987)

Made in 1982, shelved for five years. Story opens with Lucja Krol's husband under the tram. She gives birth to her fourth son on the floor of their new apartment. Neighbor Wiktor, a communist intellectual, befriends the poverty-stricken family but is soon arrested and sent to jail. During the war Lucja narrowly escapes a Nazi roundup at the black market. Her sons hold ardent Communist meetings in their apartment, with her blessing. Lucja works hard, but without complaint. After the war, Klemens is inexplicably arrested, accused by the new regime of being a collaborator. Wiktor, now a high-ranking party member, trying to defend him, himself falls into disgrace. Klemens is tortured to "confess" and dies in jail, a Communist to the end. Lucja is never told about his fate.

Eagle (1959)

Based on a true story of Polish submarine "Orzel" (The Eagle): September 1939, "Orzel" is coming to Estonian neutral harbor in Tallin. Under pressure from Germany Estonians have intern the ship. Commander Grabinski decides to escape to England through the Baltic Sea, without any maps that has been confiscated and with only small amount of fuel on board.

Kierunek Berlin (1969)

Polish Army takes part in the Berlin Operation in the final weeks of World War 2.

Germans (1997)

A story about a German family during World War II with every family member having a different approach to Jews, raging from hatred to compassion.

Kwestia sumienia (1969)

During the Civil War, two soldiers fighting on opposite sides meet.

Mystification (2010)

Lazowski, an expelled university student, investigates the supposed suicide of the famous artist Witkacy and tries to prove that the artist is in fact still alive.

Ambition (2014)

A young apprentice struggles to master nanotechnology on an alien world and prove herself to her enigmatic master. Will her herculean goals remain tantalizingly out of reach, or will she fulfill them and in the process, change life as we know it?

March 1968 (2022)

Warsaw, 1968. Students protesting against the illegal expulsion of their colleagues from university and in defence of play Dziady, directed by Kazimierz Dejmek and performed at the National Theatre, which has been taken off the bill. Among the protesting young people are also Hania and Janek. Their families are on both sides of the March barricade. Young and madly in love with each other, like in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet in a country in revolt, they fight for their affection. Will their love survive? Will they be able to overcome the adversities that fate throws at them?

Little Moscow (2008)

During the Cold War, a local Polish officer and a young Soviet woman wedded to a Soviet officer are drawn together by music.

The Doll (1968)

Set in the 19th century Warsaw. The indolence of aristocrats who, secure with their pensions, are too lazy to undertake new business risks, frustrates Wokulski. His ability to make money is respected but his lack of family and social rank is condescended to. Because of his "help" (in secret) to "the doll's" impecunious but influential father, the girl becomes aware of his affection.