52 Films by Women Vol 4. 4. MUG (Twarz) (Director: Malgorzata Szumowska)
‘Losing face’ is an English expression for losing respect. In the Polish film, Mug ( Twarz ), Metallica-loving construction worker, Jacek Kalisztan (Mateusz Kościukiewicz) loses half his face, requiring a transplant, and almost all the respect from his family and girlfriend. He ends up boarding the very bus on which he used to see his beloved Dagmara (Malgorzata Gorol) leave the village, having no way to meaningfully contribute to anyone’s lives. He is worth just twenty zloty, the small amount collected for him at Sunday service. As we see a wide Kaftan-like basket being passed around, no one is moved to offer money to pay for the expensive immune-suppressants that the Polish health service won’t fund. Co-written and directed by Malgorzata Szumowska, who is married to her lead actor – Kościukiewicz previously had the lead role in her 2013 film, In the Name of ( W imie... ) – Mug is pitched somewhere between black comedy, broad satire and allegory. It never quite comes togeth...