If "Forgotten Love" had been a Lifetime film, the orphaned protagonist Marysia would have had a deranged father and a philandering husband. Instead, she has a father who is a brilliant and compassionate physician with amnesia and a devoted and sensitive fiancé with an aristocratic pedigree.
This Polish film production is epic in its narrative sweep. The orphan Marysia works as a waitress in a Jewish tavern. Ironically, the father, Dr. Wilczur, who was betrayed by a jealous colleague and left for dead, arrives in the small agrarian community and becomes a miracle worker with his medical prowess.
The cinematography was spectacular with a beautiful pastoral environment. The period style of the early twentieth century moves from the horse-and-buggy era to that of motor cars. As time marches on, the clues begin to appear that will reveal the doctor's true identity.
The characters were multi-dimensional, including the beautiful country wench Zoska, who falls in love with Dr. Wilczur. The nasty countess who wants to thwart the union of her son with Marysia, is described by her husband as "a self-righteous and bumptious crone." But even she has a heart and reforms her ways.
The only loose end was the fate of the nefarious doctor who sold out his friend and, to the bitter end, attempts to ruin Dr. Wilczur. But the country wedding of the two couples was splendid and nearly Shakespearean in the carefully crafted reunion and celebration of a community filled with human compassion.
This Polish film production is epic in its narrative sweep. The orphan Marysia works as a waitress in a Jewish tavern. Ironically, the father, Dr. Wilczur, who was betrayed by a jealous colleague and left for dead, arrives in the small agrarian community and becomes a miracle worker with his medical prowess.
The cinematography was spectacular with a beautiful pastoral environment. The period style of the early twentieth century moves from the horse-and-buggy era to that of motor cars. As time marches on, the clues begin to appear that will reveal the doctor's true identity.
The characters were multi-dimensional, including the beautiful country wench Zoska, who falls in love with Dr. Wilczur. The nasty countess who wants to thwart the union of her son with Marysia, is described by her husband as "a self-righteous and bumptious crone." But even she has a heart and reforms her ways.
The only loose end was the fate of the nefarious doctor who sold out his friend and, to the bitter end, attempts to ruin Dr. Wilczur. But the country wedding of the two couples was splendid and nearly Shakespearean in the carefully crafted reunion and celebration of a community filled with human compassion.