While it might seem that everything about martial law in 1980s Poland has already been said, Tomasz Wolski manages to surprise audiences once again. We remember Gen. Jaruzelski’s signature glasses, uniformed anchors on TV, and Niedenthal’s iconic photograph with tanks parked by the “Moskwa” movie theater, i.e. the entire, well-worn catalog of images stashed away in a dusty drawer labeled “December 13.” But “A Year in the Life of a Country” eschews these familiar scenes. Composed of previously unseen footage, it offers a rare backstage view of those days, much of it shot by the Militia or Security Service. While some of the footage is undeniably disturbing, Wolski’s documentary steers clear of martyrdom; instead of monumental heroes, we encounter authentic people who, regardless of which side they’re on, mostly just want to get by. Even the general’s infamous rigidity softens as we see multiple takes of his historic speech being recorded. 

Konrad Wirkowski