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| Rift Over Air Crash Roils Poland’s Artists | Rift Over Air Crash Roils Poland’s Artists |
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| WARSAW — On a foggy April morning in 2010, the Polish president’s plane crashed over Smolensk in western Russia, killing him and 95 other members of Poland’s political and military elite, traumatizing the nation and opening a bitter political divide over what caused the disaster. Now the fissures have spread to the cultural realm, as filmmakers, writers and artists fiercely debate how — or even whether — to portray this still-visceral history. | WARSAW — On a foggy April morning in 2010, the Polish president’s plane crashed over Smolensk in western Russia, killing him and 95 other members of Poland’s political and military elite, traumatizing the nation and opening a bitter political divide over what caused the disaster. Now the fissures have spread to the cultural realm, as filmmakers, writers and artists fiercely debate how — or even whether — to portray this still-visceral history. |
| Some leading Polish actors have refused to participate in “Smolensk,” a feature film to be released next year, and Antoni Krauze, its patrician 73-year-old director, fears that his views challenging the official version of events, and suggesting a cover-up, could cost the movie millions of dollars in state financing. | Some leading Polish actors have refused to participate in “Smolensk,” a feature film to be released next year, and Antoni Krauze, its patrician 73-year-old director, fears that his views challenging the official version of events, and suggesting a cover-up, could cost the movie millions of dollars in state financing. |
| The makers of a decidedly sober National Geographic documentary, “Death of the President,” have been accused of being pro-Russian propagandists, while a satirical underground comic book has drawn the wrath of cultural officials for its allusion to the anti-Russian mania of those who blame the Kremlin for the crash. Its antihero, Likwidator, goes on a killing spree whose targets include Vladimir V. Putin, the Russian president. | The makers of a decidedly sober National Geographic documentary, “Death of the President,” have been accused of being pro-Russian propagandists, while a satirical underground comic book has drawn the wrath of cultural officials for its allusion to the anti-Russian mania of those who blame the Kremlin for the crash. Its antihero, Likwidator, goes on a killing spree whose targets include Vladimir V. Putin, the Russian president. |
| And Jacek Adamas, a leading street artist here, said he had been unable to find a gallery or museum willing to display his installation of black steel sculptures of human figures with targets on their chests, suggesting that the crash was an assassination. “Being an artist involves honesty, and in the current discourse in Polish arts, I’m not allowed to be honest,” he said. | And Jacek Adamas, a leading street artist here, said he had been unable to find a gallery or museum willing to display his installation of black steel sculptures of human figures with targets on their chests, suggesting that the crash was an assassination. “Being an artist involves honesty, and in the current discourse in Polish arts, I’m not allowed to be honest,” he said. |
| At the root of this culture war is intense disagreement about exactly what caused the disaster that day, when Lech Kaczynski, the Polish president, and his delegation were traveling to an official commemoration of the Katyn Massacre of 1940, when the Soviet secret police executed 22,000 Polish officers. For decades the Soviet government denied responsibility for the killings, which to Poles had become a symbol of Russian domination. | At the root of this culture war is intense disagreement about exactly what caused the disaster that day, when Lech Kaczynski, the Polish president, and his delegation were traveling to an official commemoration of the Katyn Massacre of 1940, when the Soviet secret police executed 22,000 Polish officers. For decades the Soviet government denied responsibility for the killings, which to Poles had become a symbol of Russian domination. |
| In the crash investigation, Russian and Polish investigators concluded in separate official inquiries that poor visibility and human error were to blame. But skeptics have variously insisted that it was an assassination, a declaration of war against Poland by Russia or perhaps an elaborate coup attempt. | In the crash investigation, Russian and Polish investigators concluded in separate official inquiries that poor visibility and human error were to blame. But skeptics have variously insisted that it was an assassination, a declaration of war against Poland by Russia or perhaps an elaborate coup attempt. |
| The range of conspiracy theories is dizzying. So-called truthers accuse the Kremlin of pumping artificial fog over the runway, planting explosives on the plane and doctoring and then sewing victims’ bodies back together in fake autopsies. Some even contend that the Kremlin murdered Kaczynski because he had traveled to Georgia in 2008 to support that country in its war with Russia. | The range of conspiracy theories is dizzying. So-called truthers accuse the Kremlin of pumping artificial fog over the runway, planting explosives on the plane and doctoring and then sewing victims’ bodies back together in fake autopsies. Some even contend that the Kremlin murdered Kaczynski because he had traveled to Georgia in 2008 to support that country in its war with Russia. |
| The crash investigation was so fraught that a military prosecutor, Mikolaj Przybyl, apparently distraught over criticism of his tactics, shot himself in the head in January 2012 during a news conference. (He survived.) | The crash investigation was so fraught that a military prosecutor, Mikolaj Przybyl, apparently distraught over criticism of his tactics, shot himself in the head in January 2012 during a news conference. (He survived.) |
| Mr. Krauze has rarely shied away from politics or controversy in his film career. His previous film, “Black Thursday,” which depicted the violent 1970 crackdown on striking shipyard workers by a Polish Communist government, was popular, but it also roiled emotions in a country coming to terms with its oppressed past. | Mr. Krauze has rarely shied away from politics or controversy in his film career. His previous film, “Black Thursday,” which depicted the violent 1970 crackdown on striking shipyard workers by a Polish Communist government, was popular, but it also roiled emotions in a country coming to terms with its oppressed past. |
| The plot of “Smolensk” will center on an investigative journalist who slowly reveals a vast cover-up. Mr. Krauze said he has set out to demystify what he called a lie-riddled official narrative, and invoked “Zero Dark Thirty,” Kathryn Bigelow’s Oscar-nominated film about the American search for Osama bin Laden, as a role model. But just as “Zero Dark Thirty” was pilloried by some for taking liberties with real-life events and for implying that torture is an acceptable antiterrorist tool, so critics here warn that “Smolensk” threatens to become a political statement masquerading as fact. | The plot of “Smolensk” will center on an investigative journalist who slowly reveals a vast cover-up. Mr. Krauze said he has set out to demystify what he called a lie-riddled official narrative, and invoked “Zero Dark Thirty,” Kathryn Bigelow’s Oscar-nominated film about the American search for Osama bin Laden, as a role model. But just as “Zero Dark Thirty” was pilloried by some for taking liberties with real-life events and for implying that torture is an acceptable antiterrorist tool, so critics here warn that “Smolensk” threatens to become a political statement masquerading as fact. |
| “It hurts me when people try to politicize this tragedy,” said Pawel Deresz, a journalist whose wife, a leading leftist politician, died in the crash. He said he feared that fiction would be mingled with fact in the name of artistic freedom. | “It hurts me when people try to politicize this tragedy,” said Pawel Deresz, a journalist whose wife, a leading leftist politician, died in the crash. He said he feared that fiction would be mingled with fact in the name of artistic freedom. |
| Borys Lankosz, a filmmaker whose 2009 film, “Reverse,” depicted Polish life in the 1950s, said that conservative artists were adroitly tapping into deep-seated feelings of victimhood formed during centuries of occupation and subjugation. And he argues that supporters of the previous president are intent on mythologizing him. | Borys Lankosz, a filmmaker whose 2009 film, “Reverse,” depicted Polish life in the 1950s, said that conservative artists were adroitly tapping into deep-seated feelings of victimhood formed during centuries of occupation and subjugation. And he argues that supporters of the previous president are intent on mythologizing him. |
| “It’s a cultural sickness,” he said. “We are always taught that we are the messiah nation. This cult of martyrdom, reflected in films like ‘Smolensk,’ is dangerous because it is based on a lie.” | “It’s a cultural sickness,” he said. “We are always taught that we are the messiah nation. This cult of martyrdom, reflected in films like ‘Smolensk,’ is dangerous because it is based on a lie.” |
| Others, including the Polish culture minister, Bogdan Zdrojewski, have warned that it is still too early to portray the events surrounding the plane crash. “It’s hard to get rid of an impression and fear that this will be a movie with a strong political message,” he told the Polish news channel TVN24. | Others, including the Polish culture minister, Bogdan Zdrojewski, have warned that it is still too early to portray the events surrounding the plane crash. “It’s hard to get rid of an impression and fear that this will be a movie with a strong political message,” he told the Polish news channel TVN24. |
| But Mr. Krauze says he is undeterred, even if making the film costs him lifelong friends and requires him to make do with a modest $3.5 million budget. “I feel I need to make this film, even if it is me against everyone else,” he said. “I intend to show the truth.” | But Mr. Krauze says he is undeterred, even if making the film costs him lifelong friends and requires him to make do with a modest $3.5 million budget. “I feel I need to make this film, even if it is me against everyone else,” he said. “I intend to show the truth.” |
| Mr. Krauze said he drew inspiration from evidence challenging the official explanation of the crash, including the film “Anatomy of a Fall.” That documentary’s emotive crash images and breathless narration attracted a large audience of more than three million viewers when it was shown by the state television channel TVP on April 8, two days before the third anniversary of the crash. | Mr. Krauze said he drew inspiration from evidence challenging the official explanation of the crash, including the film “Anatomy of a Fall.” That documentary’s emotive crash images and breathless narration attracted a large audience of more than three million viewers when it was shown by the state television channel TVP on April 8, two days before the third anniversary of the crash. |
| The documentary’s creator, the investigative journalist Anita Gargas, interviewed dozens of witnesses, including local Russians who said they saw pieces of metal falling to the ground in the last seconds before the Russian Tupolev Tu-154M plane crashed, suggesting a possible explosion onboard. “I am fighting against disinformation and propaganda,” she said in an interview. | The documentary’s creator, the investigative journalist Anita Gargas, interviewed dozens of witnesses, including local Russians who said they saw pieces of metal falling to the ground in the last seconds before the Russian Tupolev Tu-154M plane crashed, suggesting a possible explosion onboard. “I am fighting against disinformation and propaganda,” she said in an interview. |
| Before the broadcast, the left-leaning newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza called the film a dangerous misrepresentation that threatened to divide the country into “good and bad patriots.” The station countered that it was committed to showing all sides of the investigation. | Before the broadcast, the left-leaning newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza called the film a dangerous misrepresentation that threatened to divide the country into “good and bad patriots.” The station countered that it was committed to showing all sides of the investigation. |
| “Anatomy of a Fall” was preceded the same evening by National Geographic’s “Death of the President,” which hews closely to the official reports by the Polish and Russian authorities, citing the actions by the Polish pilots, including their decision to attempt a perilous landing in dense fog. | “Anatomy of a Fall” was preceded the same evening by National Geographic’s “Death of the President,” which hews closely to the official reports by the Polish and Russian authorities, citing the actions by the Polish pilots, including their decision to attempt a perilous landing in dense fog. |
| Members of the opposition party Law and Justice called the National Geographic documentary “scandalous,” and Ms. Gargas suggested that it had been bankrolled by Moscow. | Members of the opposition party Law and Justice called the National Geographic documentary “scandalous,” and Ms. Gargas suggested that it had been bankrolled by Moscow. |
| Ed Sayer, commissioning editor at the National Geographic Channel’s international arm, said that “Death of the President” was financed solely by National Geographic and that it stuck to the facts. “We were very aware of the strong feelings connected to this event,” he said. | Ed Sayer, commissioning editor at the National Geographic Channel’s international arm, said that “Death of the President” was financed solely by National Geographic and that it stuck to the facts. “We were very aware of the strong feelings connected to this event,” he said. |
| Such is the hysteria surrounding “Smolensk” that Juliusz Machulski, a leading Polish comedy director, said the only film that could do justice to the crash would be a parody. | Such is the hysteria surrounding “Smolensk” that Juliusz Machulski, a leading Polish comedy director, said the only film that could do justice to the crash would be a parody. |
| “If anything, one could make a movie à la ‘Borat’ or Monty Python about a bumptious president of a moderately significant country in Central Europe who insists on landing in fog on a potato field,” he said. | “If anything, one could make a movie à la ‘Borat’ or Monty Python about a bumptious president of a moderately significant country in Central Europe who insists on landing in fog on a potato field,” he said. |
Joanna Berendt contributed reporting from Warsaw. | Joanna Berendt contributed reporting from Warsaw. |
| This article has been revised to reflect the following correction: | This article has been revised to reflect the following correction: |
| Correction: May 29, 2013 | Correction: May 29, 2013 |
An | An earlier version of this article misidentified the site of the city of Smolensk. It is in western Russia, not eastern Russia. |