Characteristically of Kucia’s films, Krąg is one of loosely arranged action. As critic Jerzy Armata put it, “the logic of the precedence of events is substituted by a logic of memory”. It may be added that the film portrays real life through a surreal lens. Closed in a loop of time and camera movement the scene of a horse tiresomely pulling a wagon is observed from afar, through trees and wooden palisade. People are shown relaxing and playing by the water while nature’s cast appear up close, providing a cruel and complex contrast between the two worlds. According to the author, photos are treated like quotes from reality, pasted into the artist’s world created from drawings and cut-outs. All elements are ultimately combined by the artistic processing and colouring which make Krąg the most vivid of Kucia’s films. Yet again music is fused with natural sounds to create a truly disturbing atmosphere.

Elżbieta Wysocka