Writers: Michal Grzybowski and Tomasz Walesiak
Director: Michal Grzybowski
Separating art from life proves a challenge for Marcin in Michal Grzybowski and Tomasz Walesiak’s Polish film Seasons coming to streaming platform Viaplay, when he discovers devastating news just before going on stage. A more dramatic take on disasters unfolding during stage productions than the Goes Wrong series, Grzybowski and Walesiak follow Marcin, his wife and their beleaguered company through two live performances and a dress rehearsal as they attempt to bring three very different shows to life. With enjoyable control of the personalities and the backstage and onstage shenanigans it creates, next time you take your seat in an auditorium, Seasons will leave you wondering what on earth might be going on behind the curtain.
Bickering with his wife Ola on the way to a show that their children are attending, actor Marcin is stunned to discover she is leaving him and that their turbulent marital woes are already common knowledge. Unable to manage his emotional reactions or channel them into the role, Marcin starts to come apart across a season of performances, frustrating his wife and their company colleagues whose initial sympathy quickly wanes when their success is threatened by his outbursts.
Taking an immersive approach to following his protagonist around backstage – much like Birdman – Grzybowski as director takes a serious emotional fallout and delivers subtly enjoyable satirical moments including the gratifyingly withheld first show whose double reveal is nicely played for comic timing. The contrast between the chaotic backstage experience as characters wander through corridors, in and out of dressing rooms and into the wings is well presented, creating a convincing pressure as the fallout of the different revelations along with the derailing of a group of people trying to work. And the challenge of maintaining personal and professional integrity unfolds with tension and increased stakes as Seasons moves through the run.
And while the characterisation is very good and, more importantly, amusingly credible, it is the very pure love of theatre that shines through as the company experience real dilemmas in line with the characters they are performing, the bulk of which (c.40-minutes of the running time) is given over to Ibsen. And it is this combined love of the stage and the work of the complex business of running a profitable and critically recognised theatre building that feels so insightful, everything hinging on the whole company pulling together with no understudies or backups to ensure the show goes on tonight and every night.
Any sympathy for Lukasz Simlat’s Marcin quickly disappears as a result of his antics and poor levels of self-control but the performance carries through the film well as his emotional devastation works its way out via sulkiness and a kamikaze spirit to something close to redemption. Agnieszka Duleba-Kasza s Ola is a picture of forbearance and professionalism despite her own troubled feelings and humiliation resulting from Marcin’s reactions, and the wider ensemble prove enjoyably diverse as a troupe trying to get their work done, some while discussing the relative merits of Robert de Niro’s film career, a neat running joke.
While the fictional audience may be overly enthusiastic about what appears to be a disco-version of Shakespeare that may horrify real-life critics, Seasons certainly impresses – perhaps even a 30-minute television series spinoff could prove the opportunity to extend the run.
Seasons airs in the UK on 5 February on Viaplay available as an Amazon Prime Video Channels add on.
