Film and Theater

The U.S. television premiere of "A Man Who Became Pope" is Monday, August 15 (8/7 c) only on the Hallmark Channel. It will be rerun on Sunday morning, August 21 and later August 27.

Hallmark Channel is honored to present the U.S. television premiere of, A Man Who Became Pope, the remarkable, true story of the life and times of Pope John Paul II. It is the first biopic on the life of the late Pontiff produced and broadcast on American television.

Read more: Premiere of "A Man Who Became Pope "

The first part begins with the start of the war - when Poland is attacked by Nazi Germany (September 1, 1939). We see Karol with his father in a crowd of people running away from the war to the East - true episode from his life and a very dramatic. Escaping people greet first under-equipped Polish soldiers cavalry but later are "welcomed" by Nazi German bomb airplanes that kill many of them. Eventually the crowd see Polish soldiers withdrawing since the Soviets unexpectedly attack Poland from the East (September 17). Nowhere to go - the crowd among them Wojtylas -father and son come back to Krakow, but this is a different Krakow - decorated with Nazi flags - a capital of General Government and a newly appointed Governor-General, Hans Frank.

Read more: A Man Who Became Pope - Film Review

Schindler's List was originally released in 1993, it is presently being re-released again on DVD (March, 2004). The movie directed by Steven Spielberg received seven Oscars, it had excellent reviews so it is hard to write anything new about the movie but I will try - from the position of my Polish origin.

Read more: Schindler's List from a Polish Perspective

Polish and Eastern European cinematography is known all around the world. Several movie directors from Eastern Europe gained fame in Hollywood. Two most known are probably Milos Forman, who came from Czechoslovakia to Hollywood and Polish director Roman Polanski.

Read more: Famous Polish and Eastern European Filmmakers: Forman, Polanski, Wajda