A Polish-Russian coproduction with a strong propaganda message.
A biographical movie showing four years of Feliks Dzierżyński’s life based on Julian Siemionow’s book.
The years 1902-1906. Having escaped from Siberia, the Polish revolutionary Feliks Dzierżyński gets through to Warsaw, where he embarks on rebuilding the destroyed party structures. Catching him becomes the main goal of Okhrana, which convinces a young labor movement activist – Helena Górowska to collaborate with the Department for Protecting the Public Security and Order. Her betrayal blights Dzierżyński’s continued efforts. The apartment, where the revolutionary newspaper “Czerwony Sztandar” is printed, is attacked by Okhrana’s agents and more activists are put in jail… Only Dzierżyński manages to evade the agents. The Russian officer Glazov prepares a provocation that is to help him get a promotion and arrest Dzierżyński.
The controversial and much hated cruel leader of the first Bolshevik safety authorities – called purposefully the “Red Executioner” and “Bloody Feliks” was totally idealized in Bobrowski’s movie. The man who’s become one of the symbols of the communist terror, is presented as a sensitive idealist, who rejects violence and hate and is ready to sacrifice everything for his values.
Feliks Dzierżyński’s later life was shown in Anatolij Bobrowski’s movie “Krach operacji terror”, which can also be found in Kadr Film Studio archives.
Excerpt from the movie
