Synopsis
A pious 20-year-old juvenile delinquent is sent to work at a sawmill in a small town; on arrival, he dresses up as a priest and accidentally takes over the local parish. The arrival of this young, charismatic preacher is an opportunity for the local community to begin the healing process after a tragedy that happened a year prior.
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Cast
- Bartosz BieleniaDaniel
- Aleksandra KoniecznaLidia
- Eliza RycembelMarta
- Tomasz ZietekPinczer
- Barbara JonakEwa Kobielski - the widow
- Leszek LichotaWalkiewicz - the mayor
- Łukasz SimlatFather Tomasz
- Zdzisław WardejnPriest
- Anna BiernacikMarta's friend
- Lidia BogaczównaMother
Recommendations
- 88
Movie Nation
I found the entire enterprise a touching, rough-hewn delight, never sparing us the explicit sex and violence of Daniel’s life “before,” moist-eyed in seeing how his “outside the collar” thinking is a tonic for a tortured town that needs to move on. - 80
Film Threat
The film is an important one, but above all, it is an exceptionally pleasing and easy one to watch despite its density. This is partly due to Bartosz’s fantastic performance showing great acting range by going through a whole spectrum of emotions very convincingly and subtly. - 80
The Guardian
Often moving but also disquieting and even intermittently funny, this drama unfurls a spiritual parable that is uniquely Polish but accessible to all. - 80
Screen Daily
Bielenia captures a vivid sense of the emotions that Daniel experiences from the alertness of a trapped animal at the offenders institution to the euphoria that seems to surge through him after the delivery of a rousing sermon. His committed performance and Komasa’s assured storytelling convince us that God can work in mysterious ways. - 75
The Film Stage
Bielenia delivers a fantastic performance as his character overcomes insecurities and regret to speak the words he knows from experience can help those who’ve lost their way. - 75
Slant Magazine
It’s within the murky realm of self-doubt and spiritual anxiety that it’s at its most audacious and compelling. - 70
The Hollywood Reporter
There's visual command and a compelling intimacy to the storytelling, plus intellectual engagement in the reflection on who gets to claim nearness to God. - 70
Variety
All of this makes for compelling dramatic conflict, and it’s satisfying to watch an impostor shake up the status quo. But there’s also a soap opera-like dimension to Corpus Christi that threatens the more thoughtful aspects of the script.
