The Peasants

Words by Bella Littler

A film as intense visually as it is thematically, The Peasants (DK & Hugh Welkman, 2023) is an equally stunning and experimental follow-up to the Welkmans’ first feature, Loving Vincent (2017). Set in a fictional Polish village at the turn of the twentieth century, the film tells the story of Jagna (Kamila Urzedowska), a young woman whose beauty leads to a tumultuous love triangle, ending with her small village turning against her. Based on Władysław Stanisław Reymon’s award-winning book of the same title, the film paints a compelling portrait of Polish peasant life and the struggles that are perpetuated by a community that values tradition, family, and, above all else, survival.

Jagna is forced to marry the recently widowed Maciej Boryna, the richest man in the village, despite her true feelings for his son Antek. Antek and Maciej’s already fragile father-son relationship is further challenged by both Jagna and Antek’s continued love affair and Maciej’s refusal to give Antek’s family the land and wealth they believe they are owed. However, all blame is in the end shifted onto Jagna, who is criticized for being the source of the village’s continued misfortunes.

The film is by no means an easy watch, as characters continue to make irrational decisions that lead to devastating consequences. At times, it can almost be difficult to understand character motivations, particularly those of Jagna, Antek, and Maciej. While this can on one hand be labeled as lazy writing and a convenient means to an end, it is perhaps on a deeper level truly symbolic of just how deep small-town connections lie. The desire to remain accepted by the larger community always comes out on top, regardless of how many individual relationships must be shattered and rebuilt to maintain the “greater good.”

From the first scene, a visual interpretation of Józef Chełmoński’s painting Bociany (Storks), it is not surprising that the film took five years and over 200,000 hours of work to complete. Initially shot live-action, then animated by tracing them with oil, the technical style takes some getting used to but is undoubtedly stunning in its rich hues and attention to detail. This technique becomes especially useful in portraying the tie between the villagers and their land, as the complex palette of colors cuts no corners in showing both the beauty and harshness of the Polish countryside across four seasons.
While it is debatable whether the narrative truly demands such a high-effort style, it does help to translate the story’s novelistic origin. The painted scenes are a stand-in for rich, intricate setting descriptions that bring the viewer’s attention to the importance of the landscape, both to the village and the overarching story. The animated form is increasingly able to tell complex, mature stories and The Peasants is a major step forward in proving just how versatile the style can be.