At the very beginning, I must point out that this film is one of the main components of my fascination with the ’00s. Although it was shown in cinemas in 2004, I watched it a few years later, already on TV. My parents accompanied me to the screening, or rather I accompanied them, and although I didn’t understand everything about the film at the time, I immediately liked it very much. And this love remains to this day.
I’m also not going to pretend that I’m a huge fan of romantic comedies. On the contrary. I usually avoid films of this genre, especially Polish ones. But “Never in a Lifetime” is a great exception! I realize that this is not an outstanding work. However, in some respects I think it was groundbreaking. Especially when we remember that we live in Poland.
Why? First: Judith
It was 2004. Polish cinema is dominated by cinema presented from a male perspective, but in this film it is the other way around. The main character is a middle-aged woman whose seemingly organized life suddenly falls apart like a house of cards. Literally and figuratively. Her husband leaves her for a younger lover with whom she is expecting a child and wants to move into their apartment, de facto leaving Judyta and her daughter homeless.
And now I can admit that “Never in a Lifetime” gave me a simple picture of the world when I was a child, which only expanded with age. The main character, despite many obstacles thrown at her, managed to change her life 180 degrees and find the happiness she longed for, which showed me that there are few situations without a solution. Moreover, her cutting retorts and palpable fortitude can be treated as the foundations of contemporary mainstream feminism, which was very groundbreaking for those times.
Why? Secondly: Warsaw and a house by the river
I come from a medium-sized city, Częstochowa, and as a child I rarely visited larger metropolises. And it was after watching “Never in a Lifetime” that I began to become curious about the capital, which, although twenty years ago was much more gray, was presented in the film as a city where you simply want to be.
This aesthetic was later adopted by the creators of many television series, but it is in the adaptation of Katarzyna Grochola’s novel that the image of the city is the most natural. Judyta drinks coffee with a friend in a cafe at Trzech Krzyży Square, but also walks with her parents around the Społem supermarket. And some of the interiors of these stores haven’t changed much since the production was filmed.
However, what I was most curious about was the railway bridge, which can be seen from behind the windows of Judyta’s apartment. Or rather, a viaduct. If someone told me 15 years ago that in a dozen or so years, as an adult, I would have a friend who lives near this structure, or that I would be wandering there at night with my friends to find an open store nearby, I wouldn’t have believed it. !
Moreover, I am a typical city dweller, but I also really appreciate the peace and quiet that can be found in the countryside. That’s why a plot by the river with a wooden house and a journey to it by suburban train seem to be as idyllic to me as to Judyta, who at some point decided that she wanted to live there and no sudden increases in plot prices dissuaded her from this idea!
Why? Third: music
The distinctive soundtrack for the film was composed by Maciej Zieliński. His music is perfectly integrated into the plot and, depending on a given scene, only intensifies the feelings evoked by the action on the screen in the viewer. Moreover, “Never in My Life” is full of songs that were big hits at that time.
From memory, I can mention that we will hear songs by Renia Jusis, Wilków, Edyta Bartosiewicz and Blue Cafe, when the band’s vocalist was Tatiana Okupnik. The song “I regret” by Ewelina Flinta deserves special attention, as it sounds during the favorite scene of the author of the novel and co-writer of the screenplay, Katarzyna Grochola:
For me, the prettiest scene in the film is the one in which Judyta lies in bed with her T-shirt pulled out. I think that if there were more scenes like this, the film would have a nice patina. If people bought Judyta in the book: not always perfectly dressed and coiffed, they would also accept her in the movie – we read in the book ‘Podcastex. Polish millennium.
20 years after its premiere, “Never Again” is a TikTok phenomenon. Why is it so cool for Gen Z?
Interestingly, for many years I thought I was alone in my fascination with this film. I knew that my peers also liked him, but I wouldn’t have suspected that they liked him as much as I did. I only realized that I was not alone a few months ago, when various videos with references to “Never in a Lifetime” began to appear en masse on TikTok.
There are thousands of these videos, and representatives of Generation Z cover literally everything. The most popular are humorous videos showing specific scenes from films that are already considered iconic. This includes: the moment when Judyta, smiling from ear to ear, walks dynamically through the editorial corridors with a pink bouquet in her hand, while we hear the hit Blue Cafe in the background.
However, humorous recordings are not everything. There are also many other tiktoks that clearly convey sentiment. Fans of the film also show the locations that could be seen on the screen. The most characteristic place is the place of the last scene – the Świętokrzyski Bridge in Warsaw, which in the 1900s was perceived by Poles as a great sign of modernity. It was there that Judith became sure of what she wanted so much.
There is also a noticeable admiration for the music, which many people well associate with this film. This is proven not only by videos from the popular social media platform, but also by many playlists that can be found on streaming services. One of them with the charming name “A 40-year-old divorcee changes her life” was liked by almost 60,000. Spotify users. It includes songs from “Never in Life”, but also those that, according to the authors, perfectly reflect the atmosphere of the production from twenty years ago.
Women on top. Judith was one of the first characters to inspire us
Anyway, it seems that the reason this movie is special to many people my age is because of the idea of ”girl power” that emanates from it. That is, celebrating women’s empowerment, independence, self-confidence and strength. And that is the message of this film. No matter how bad things are, Judyta does not give up and, against all odds, pursues her desired goal. And this at a time when this way of thinking was rarely promoted in mainstream cinema.
My life goal is to be like Judyta – I read in the comments under the video about the video on TikTok.
But there is one thing that seems to remain constant. Despite the clear emancipation of Polish women in recent years, who have repeatedly shown that they are strong and can fight for their own affairs, many of them (and many of us) still dream deep in their hearts of a man who will be handsome, intelligent and this is funny. So he is the proverbial prince charming. And I think there is nothing wrong with losing yourself in these types of dreams, which may seem trivial. Each of us deserves love, and Judyta’s story shows that despite the film’s title, it is always worth believing in it.
Source: Gazeta
Bruce is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment . He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
