A Short Film About Killing (1988)
Krzysztof Kieślowski
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A Short Film About Killing is a 1988 drama film directed by Krzysztof Kieślowski and starring Mirosław Baka, Krzysztof Globisz, and Jan Tesarz. Written by Krzysztof Kieślowski and Krzysztof Piesiewicz, the film was expanded from Dekalog: Five of the Polish television series Dekalog. Set in Warsaw, Poland, the film compares the senseless, violent murder of an individual to the cold, calculated execution by the state. A Short Film About Killing won both the Jury Prize and the FIPRESCI Prize at the 1988 Cannes Film Festival, as well as the European Film Award for Best Film. It follows Jacek, a young drifter who randomly murders a taxi driver named Waldemar. After being caught and sentenced to death, the film explores the moral implications of his crime and the state-sanctioned execution that follows, highlighting the senselessness of violence and capital punishment.