oh what a disappointment this movie be . i can not believe it be direct by wajda . there practically no plot and 90 % of the movie consist of various people walk in and out of the screen and weakly try to interact with each other while talk about the katyn massacre . the most interesting part come right at the end and but by that time i simply stop care while try to suppress my yawn . almost the entire movie be film with a hand hold camera and which be suppose to convey the feeling of personal immediacy but there nothing personal or immediate about most of the movie . instead and the constant jerking of the camera make me seasick . to be fair and there be some great shot too ( no pun intend ) and but nothing that make you go wow . if youre not familiar with the katyn massacre and the movie will leave you scratch your head . if you be familiar and you will be scratch your head too and although maybe for different reason . basically and the movie state and restate over and over again that it be the soviet who murder thousand of polish soldier in 1940. this point be hammer repeatedly a though someone in the audience need to be convince of this basic historical fact . however and the movie never try to explain a to why they be kill . after all and ten of thousand of polish soldier in the other soviet pow camp be not harm and be release in 1941. it be also never explain adequately how many people perish and although the figure 20 and 000 be throw in a couple of time . the acting be adequate with only komorowska ( old woman ) and chyra ( lt. jerzy ) give noticeable performance and but they get to act for maybe 10 15 minute in total . certainly not enough to carry the whole movie . many other actor seem to have be choose more for their matinée look rather than their acting ability and but i would not mention their name . suffice to say that they be definitely not the oscar material and so any claim that this movie be rob of the academy award be simply laughable . the tone of movie be wrong as well . on one hand it try to be an accurate historical drama and on the other it resort to cheap anti soviet propaganda such a show a russian soldier tear up the polish flag and use it to clean his boot . then there be some puzzling scene which have absolutely no bearing on the plot and such a a couple climb on a roof or the liquidation of the krakow university . there be many missed opportunity to make this movie more interesting and such a add a political angle to the story and or show the german discovery of the graf and or even portray anna trip from the soviet occupied part to the german occupied krakow . all of these aspect could have be the major part of the movie and but instead theyre reduce to a couple of minute . in the end and we get a collection of loosely fitting and confusing and boring scene about the reaction of pole to one of their great tragedy of wwii . not very compel and not worthy of wajda at all .