POLISH FILM ACADEMY

This large production on a grand scale is characterised by its picturesque locales and reverential reconstruction of the realities of the era. An outstanding performance by Jadwiga Barańska, who perfectly portrays the complex character of the heroine.

The Film (and TV series) enjoyed enormous success with the public.

Part I. Bogumił i Barbara

Part II. Against the Wind

August 1914. Barbara Niechcicowa leaves German-occupied Kaliniec. Szymszel, a Jew, drives her to the Borowno estate. The owner, Józef Toliboski, was Barbara's first love. While travelling, the heroine remembers the past: She was twenty-five when she met Bogumił Niechcic who  administered the Krępa estate. Barbara is not sure she can love Bogumił, however, she marries him. She moves to the countryside and gives birth to a son, Piotruś, but she still cannot forget Toliboski. After the death of their child, Bogumił accepts a position as the Serbinów estate administrator. Gradually, he is able to lift the estate from ruin. The Niechcic couple have a daughter, Agnieszka. Mrs. Niechcic often used to go to Kaliniec, where her siblings lived. She was constantly haunted by a feeling that life in the city is a lot easier. Bogumił endures the moodiness of his wife with great understanding. She is attached to him, but she still dreams of love. The death of her sister Teresa Kociełłowej comes as a shock for Barbara. However, she draws her strength from Bogumił. She gives him more children: Emilka and Tomaszek. Her old mother moves in with the family in Serbinów. Soon after, she dies. An unexpected inheritance is revealed after a rich relative invested in plots of land in Kaliniec. This investment has been a constant concern for Mrs. Barbara ever since.

Another source of everyday worries is Tomaszek. The recklessness of their son and his lies are a significant cause for concern for the parents. Therefore, Barbara moves with the children to Kaliniec in order for them to receive education under her motherly supervision. The lonely Bogumił begins to visit the neighbouring Pamiętów. Ksawunia Woynarowska, the landlord’s daughter, falls in love with him. The flirtation is short-lived. Bogumił wants to remain faithful to his wife. He is, however, very lonely. In the absence of Barbara, he takes a servant girl, Felicja, as his lover.

Hearing of this, Mrs. Niechcic experiences a shock. The Serbinów owner suddenly sells her estate. With the money from the sale of their plots of land, Bogumił buys Pamiętów from Woynarowski. Soon after, however, he falls ill with pneumonia and dies. The widowed Barbara settles in Kaliniec. Now, after the death of her unloved husband, she tenderly nurtures his memory. Her peaceful existence is interrupted by the outbreak of World War One. She escapes from the burning Kaliniec. After a long journey, among a crowd of fugitives, Barbara reaches Borowno. The son of Józef Toliboski comes to meet her. She looks at the face of this young man, so similar to the face of her former beloved, with deep emotion.

Joanna Piątek, Leksykon polskich filmów fabularnych, Warszawa 1996