Wojna Swiatów - Nastepne Stulecie

Poland • 1981 • 96m •

• Directed by: Piotr Szulkin. • Starring: Roman Wilhelmi, Krystyna Janda, Mariusz Dmochowski, Jerzy Stuhr, Marek Walczewski, Bozena Dykiel, Joanna Zólkowska, Wieslaw Drzewicz, Stanislaw Gawlik, Janusz Gajos, Juliusz Kalinowski, Stanislaw Tym, Zbigniew Buczkowski. • Music by: Jerzy Maksymiuk, Józef Skrzek.

December 18, 1999, a few days before the dawn of a new Millenium. A local reporter, Iron Idem, announces that the Martians have landed. Shortly after that his program loses its independence: he is given the script telling the crowds how to welcome the invaders. Then the chaos breaks out: the Martians and police mistreat the populace; things become violent. Idem's own wife is kidnapped and it seems somebody is trying to reduce his effectiveness as a reporter. Idem decides to fight back: he illegally broadcasts a message during the rock concert, but nobody believes him anymore.

Review:

Image from: Wojna Swiatów - Nastepne Stulecie (1981)

This movie is a more or less accurate cinematic reflection of "The Second Invasion from Mars" (�¿�'торое н�¿�ºшествие м�¿�ºрси�¿�ºн, 1968), a lesser-known short story of Strugacki brothers. Both the short story and the movie are set in the world where Martians landed, first posing as friends, but demanding more and more drastic changes in our everyday lives as the time goes. Thing is, we never see or hear any Martians actually demanding or enforcing anything. It's always our own authorities, our own police, our own government, our own officials who impose the Martian rule upon us. And in the end, Martians leave - if they ever existed - but the Martian rules stay.

The last missing piece of puzzle is revealed when Iron Idem corners a lone Martian and roughs him up rather effortlessly, asking "Why are you doing this to us?" and the dying Martian replies: "They promised us candy." The Martian "invasion" was just a pretense to establish a whole new system of institutionalized oppression upon the populace.

Even though this movie was originally a commentary on political situation in Soviet-ruled Eastern bloc, it stays as valid as ever. No matter where you live, "the second invasion from Mars" is happening right now, right on your doorstep. Watch for the Martians, but more importantly, watch for those who pay them with candy.

Review by ExaltedOne
from the Internet Movie Database.

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