The latest adaptation of Władysław Reymont’s work, “Chłopi” impressed during the world premiere of the production at the Toronto International Film Festival. After the show, the audience gave the creators a standing ovation that lasted several minutes.
“Chłopi” with the first reviews. Foreign critics are delighted: a visual triumph
The painting animation was directed by Dorota Kobiela Welchman and Hugh Welchman. The couple previously worked on the film “Loving Vincent”, which won an Oscar. After the world premiere of “Peasants”, it is said that another production made using an unusual technique also has a chance to win the most prestigious film Academy Award.
The Polish film premiere of “Peasants” is scheduled for October 13, but the production could also be seen by participants of the festival in Gdynia, where the animation is competing for the Golden Lion award. More and more reviews of the film appear on the Internet every day, and critics rave about the work.
‘Chłopi’ – ratings on Rotten Tomatoes rottentomatoes.com / screenshot
The film has a 100 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes, but it only has six ratings. Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter called the production “a stunningly beautiful visual triumph.” Critics unanimously praise the beautiful production of the film, but claim that the film would have worked without time-consuming decorations. “As a live-action film, ‘The Peasants’ would have been a great achievement, but by taking the time to animate every frame and adding a painterly texture to them, the Welchmans have made one of the most impressive animated films of the year,” writes Collider’s Ross Bonaime.
Critics praise “Chłopów” not only for its animations. They also appreciated the script
Reuben Baron from Looper.com calls “Peasants” a good for humanity, and Christian Blauvelt from IndieWire claims that the film managed to fulfill the imagination of the book’s readers, which accompanied them when reading the novel. Larry Fried of Rotten Tomatoes wrote on X (formerly Twitter) that the production is “one of the greatest achievements in animation he has ever seen.” “It is also a huge improvement in almost every respect compared to ‘Loving Vincent, and the story is engaging in itself,'” writes the critic.
Tomasz Raczek has a different opinion. The critic did not spare “The Peasants” bitter words, rating the production five stars on Filmweb. “Only half of the impression that ‘Loving Vincent’ made six years ago. The convention could not withstand the psychological drama and the budget could not withstand the painting convention. Cepelia,” writes Raczek. Adriana Prodeus from Vogue magazine gave a similar assessment to the film. “Yagna from a woman who dared to desire, transferred to a child who loves cut-outs. Strong dance scenes. However, I cannot find a justification for the animation,” writes the critic.
Journalists from TVP Kultura and Ekranów were more kind in their assessments. Łukasz Adamski rated the film eight stars and called it “hypnotizing and visually dazzling.” “Reymont read anew,” the journalist praises. Miłosz Stelmach appreciated not only the visual values of the work. He rated “The Peasants” as a seven and noted: “In ‘Vincent’ the plot was only a pretext for the reconstruction of images. Now we finally have a script and a few good scenes that create real cinema.”
Several hundred painters worked on “The Peasants” and painted the live-action version that had been shot before, frame by frame. The production featured, among others, Mirosław Baka, who played the role of Maciej Boryna, and Robert Gularczyk as Antek. Kamila Urzędkowska played Jagna, and Ewa Kasprzyk became Dominikowa – her mother. The music for the film was created by Łukasz LUC Rostkowski.
Source: Gazeta
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