“Doppelganger. Doppelganger” is a new film by Jan Holoubek. After “25 Years of Innocence” he’s making a film about spies, what do the reviewers say?

Marta Ossowska from WP points out that Holoubek, whose credits include the fantastic series “Rojst” and “Wielka Woda”, is presenting only his second feature film to viewers. And it’s not an easy task. “It is not without reason that it is said that the second film is a real test for the director. After the success of ’25 Years of Innocence. The Case of Tomek Komenda’, Jan Holoubek’s next work is a production refined in every detail. It may not be appreciated at the festival in Gdynia, but it has “has a good chance of achieving commercial success” – after watching the production of “Doppelganger. Doppelganger” at the Polish Feature Film Festival in Gdynia.

The film takes viewers back to the turn of the 1970s and 1980s, and its action takes place on both sides of the Iron Curtain simultaneously. Hans (Gierszał) lives in the bustling city of Strasbourg, taking advantage of the opportunities offered by the West. He blends into the local community while also conducting espionage activities. Bitner (Schuchardt) lives with his family in Gdańsk, works in a shipyard. There seems to be nothing in common between the two men, but the past hides a secret that will force them to face their own weaknesses and passions. Both will face questions about their identity.

Jan Holoubek: I think that Jakub Gierszał has been waiting for such a large, complex role for a long time, and he used it perfectly

– The plot is not particularly unusual – it is simply a very well-told story about two men who are looking for their identity for completely different reasons. They don’t know about each other’s existence for a long time, but they are inextricably linked from the very beginning. One of them stole the other’s identity, the second one is looking for it, but the first one realizes that he doesn’t actually know who he is and that he has lost himself in pretending to be someone else – explains the director. The script is based on a true story. The director even met the prototype of the character of Hans. Jakub Gierszał plays this role, the other main character is played by Tomasz Schuchardt.

– When Kuba came to the casting, right after he left, I had no doubts that this was the role for him. I think he’s been waiting for such a big, complex role for a long time, and he used it perfectly. Additionally, he speaks perfect German and excellent French, which means he has the features that this character had to have – says Holoubek about the choice of Gierszał. He also spares no compliments to Schuchardt, with whom he had already worked on “Big Water”:

What I was looking for in Janek was, above all, charisma. In my opinion, Tomek Schuchardt is one of the most charismatic actors of his generation. He has something in his eyes that you can’t take your eyes off him.

Doppelganger. Double Jarosław Sosiński

“Doppelganger. Doppelganger” now in Gdynia, soon in cinemas. First impressions: This is not James Bond

“I was counting on a spy thriller with a slightly faster pace, in which the action would be divided evenly between two characters. However, I got something different. Doppelgänger. Doppelgänger” is primarily a story about Józef Wieczorek and his intelligence activities, as well as the moral and identity problems associated with with pretending to be someone else for too long, as well as the inability to enter into emotional relationships or lead a normal life” – Dawid Muszyński from Na Ekranie. However, how much closer to the truth is the character from Holoubek’s film than the film’s James Bond, the writer Vincent V also told me . Severski, who has a history in the services:

Piotr Guszkowski from “Gazeta Wyborcza” also draws attention to the same thing. Like Muszyński, however, he draws attention to the film’s problems with maintaining pace. “The monotony of a spy’s work was so evocatively conveyed that I began to get bored” – . In turn, Paweł Piotrowicz from Onet is in a better mood after the screening and: “There is something of Hitchcock and Polanski here, as well as the sensational and espionage spirit of old Polish comics. “Doppelgänger. “The Double” by Jan Holoubek, which opened the festival in Gdynia, is a film that may have a little too much ambition to be everything – a thriller, a social drama, a story about difficult love or a testimony to the cruelty of totalitarianism. Fortunately, it is the viewer who wins the most.

Jakub Gierszał in the film ‘Doppelganger. Double’ Photo Jarosław Sosiński / TVN Warner Bros. Discovery / Promotional materials Next Film

“It showed an intriguing story, but set in difficult times for our country”

Also Ewa Stępień for Elle.pl that despite a few stumbles, the film is very good to watch. “What’s more, Holoubek created a spy film/psychological thriller that does not refer to well-known productions of this genre. He showed an intriguing story, but set in difficult times for our country,” he emphasizes. Many journalists regret that there is so little of Schuchardt and his hero in the film. “Perhaps he wanted to tell too much, because at times the film seems to be cut in a somewhat incomprehensible way” – Jakub Nowociński from Filmawka tries to understand the screenwriter, who: “I wonder how many scenes with Schuchardt had to be cut – it’s hard for me to believe that his character “she was introduced as a full-fledged second main character, only to abandon his fate so spectacularly a moment later in favor of Hans and his identity crisis. Due to this decision, the intrigue significantly lost its power.”

Dawid Smyk from Pełna sala bitterly sums up the film: “It looks dazzling and initially holds interest, but it inevitably goes into exaggeration, hastily opens new threads without developing them properly (are we also waiting for a TV series version?) and leaves us with a feeling of dissatisfaction, because the cloak of a dark odyssey through the hellish circles of history hides a script cliché. As in the case of Jan Holoubek’s other projects, ‘Rojst’ or ’25 Years of Innocence’, it is an efficient craft, most recipients will find something for themselves in it, but as a whole it is difficult to for a handful of editorial corrections. Will viewers buy this production despite its minuses? We’ll find out when the film hits theaters. Coming soon, on September 29.