Olbrychski, Daniel

(1945-)

   One of the most important Polish actors known for a range of roles in more than one hundred historical, action, psychological, and comedic films made in Poland and abroad. He debuted in 1964 in Janusz Nasfeter's The Wounded in the Forest and gained popularity and star status after appearing in Andrzej Wajda's Ashes (1965) and Everything for Sale (1969), in the latter as himself (Daniel), rejecting the identification with Zbigniew Cybulski. Olbrychski also starred in several other films in the late 1960s, such as Julian Dziedzina's The Boxer (Bokser, 1966) and Janusz Morgenstern's Jowita (1967). His lead roles established him as a charismatic generational actor, known for his screen characters that were sometimes hot tempered, emotional yet intellectual, athletic, and energetic. In the early 1970s, he became the most popular Polish actor, once again being identified with Wajda's films. His roles in Birchwood (1970), Landscape after Battle (1970), The Wedding (1973), and The Promised Land (1975) were much different than his previous films, displayed the range of his talent, and earned him critical acclaim as well. He also appeared in films directed by Kazimierz Kutz (Salt of the Black Earth, 1970), Krzysztof Zanussi (Family Life, 1971), and many others. Olbrychski sealed his popularity with Jerzy Hoffman's adaptations of Henryk Sienkiewicz's historical trilogy. His role as a color sergeant, Andrzej Kmicic, in The Deluge (1974) was perhaps the pinnacle of his career. He played a character that changes from a fun-loving, irresponsible young man into a national hero.

   Olbrychski's widespread popularity perhaps caused him during the Cinema of Distrust period, with the exception of Kung-fu (1980) directed by Janusz Kijowski, to remain outside its main realistic trend. His most important films at that time include Wajda's nostalgic evocation of the past, The Maids of Wilko (1979), and Volker Schlondorff's adaptation of Gunter Grass's The Tin Drum (Die Blechtrommel, 1979, Germany). In the 1980s, Olbrychski acted in several films made outside of Poland directed by Claude Lelouch (Bolero, aka Within Memory, 1981), Lordan Zafranovic (The Fall of Italy, 1981), and Margarethe von Trotta (Rosa Luxemburg, 1986), among others. On Polish screens he appeared infrequently in films by Piotr Szulkin, Andrzej Trzos-Rastawiecki, and Krzysztof Kieślowski (Dekalog 3, 1988). Also in the 1990s, Olbrychski acted frequently in films made in Hungary, Russia, France, and Italy, directed by Lelouch and Nikita Mikhalkov (The Barber of Siberia, 1998), among others. Polish viewers saw him in a popular directorial debut by actress Krystyna Janda, Pip (1995), and, earlier in 1993, in two satirical comedies: Filip Bajon's It's Better to Be Beautiful and Rich and Radosław Piwowarski's The Sequence of Feelings. In the latter, where he stars as a famous aging actor who comes to a provincial theater in Silesia, he plays with his own star persona; his performance, a near mockery of "Olbrychski," came as a refreshing turn in his career. In recent years, Olbrychski regained popularity in Poland starring in several big-budget adaptations of the national literary canon that were very well received by local audiences. He appeared in Wajda's Pan Tadeusz (1999) and Revenge (2002), Hoffman's With Fire and Sword (1999) and The Old Tale (2004), and Bajon's Early Spring (2001).

   Historical Dictionary of Polish Cinema by Marek Haltof