For my money, one of the best historical films I've seen. Although I know nothing of Polish history in WW2, I still found a great story on morality and the complex nature of war. The main character, played by Zbigniew Cybulski was fascinating! He was childlike, cynical and violent at the same time. It's no wonder they called him the Polish James Dean, he acted with such subtlety, style and charisma that you could't help liking him. Man He Was Cool!! And the Director too! I give many kudos to him for the excellent directing. The excellent plotting and symbolic imagery throughout the film made it an enigmatic experience. What a great move to open the film with such action! The first scene starts off things with such a bang and never lets you go! You are invested in every character, even the relatively bad ones (ie The Communist Guy). See this movie even if you know nothing about Poland in WW2, it's a great film anyway!