| Summary: | <p>This thesis provides an in-depth analysis of war films made in Poland between 1945 and 1970. The Second World War was an important topic for both filmmakers, and the government, and thus this genre provides a fascinating insight into the complex relationship between directors and the Communist Party during this period of rebuilding and political change. The government recognised the potential cinema held in creating and disseminating a socialist agenda, and creating a new national narrative of the conflict, that united the country around an image of unified resistance, and strong anti-German sentiment. This thesis will hypothesise that due to a number of factors, including the decentralisation of the film industry, the PZPR never fully controlled cinema, and as such a number of diverse images of the Second World War emerged during this period.</p>
<p>This work studies a selection of films from a number of leading directors, discussing their distinctive styles, and how their image of the war fit with the prevailing narrative of the time in which it was made. It will look at the circumstances surrounding film production and how the movies were received by reviewers. It examines the impact that the structure of the film industry; the changing political climate; and the experiences of the filmmakers had on the portrayal of the Second World War in cinema. It will also use this specific genre to investigate, and draw conclusions about the nature of censorship in Poland between 1945 and 1970.</p>
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