Majchrzak, Krzysztof

(1948-)

   Character actor known for several memorable roles in the films directed by Jan Jakub Kolski, Witold Leszczyński, and Filip Bajon. A 1974 graduate of the State Acting School in Warsaw (PWST), Majchrzak has played episodic and supporting roles since 1970. The leading role of wrestling champion Władysław Góralewicz in Bajon's Aria for an Athlete (1979) proved to be a turning point in his career. He followed it with another outstanding performance in Leszczynski's Konopielka (1981). In the 1980s, he played strong supporting roles in Radosław Piwowarski's Yesterday (1985) and Piotr Szulkin's political science fiction films.

   After his tour de force performance as an unorthodox Catholic priest in Kolski's 1994 film Miraculous Place, Majchrzak also appeared in Kolski's later The History of Cinema Theater in Popielawy (1998) and Pornography (2003). In addition, he appeared in Jerzy Kawalerowicz's Quo Vadis (2001), Natalia Koryncka-Gruz's Amok (1998), Jerzy Antczak's Chopin—Desire for Love (2002), and Tomasz Wiszniewski's multinational production about the Balkan War, Where Eskimos Live (2001). Majchrzak was voted the best Polish actor in 1998 by Film readers. He also received acting awards at the Festival of Polish Films for his roles in Kolski's films, including Best Actor (for The History of Cinema Theater in Popielawy and Pornography) and Best Supporting Actor (for Miraculous Place).

   Historical Dictionary of Polish Cinema by Marek Haltof