Miraculous Place

Through the long avenues of birch he comes, the archetypal stranger who will disrupt the life of the insular community he encounters. In this case, it’s naive, young priest Jakub, whose arrival in the woodland village leads to both miracles and retribution. Sudden stigmata on the body of the barmaid / prostitute, with whom Jakub becomes entranced, fuel increasing antagonism in the settlement… Kolski’s somewhat (and quite appealingly) out-of-time vision of ‘primitive’ drives (desire as much as threat) doesn’t make claims to narrative orginality, but is often telling on the clash of faiths (the church and older sylvan impulses) and the equally ceaseless conflict between the settled and outsiders of whatever kind.