Rite of Passage (Mała matura 1947)

This is the story of one boy's coming-of-age during the first postwar years, the history of his struggle for his soul, which touches on issues related to biology and politics, nature and habits, and the need for freedom in an oppressive system. A couple with two small children (Ludwik is fourteen and Hania is nine) travel from Lwow to a newly liberated Krakow. Ludwik attends a good school and quickly establish friendships. Before the 1946 June "3XTAK” referendum Stanislaw Mikolajczyk, leader of the PSL party, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Agriculture, came to Krakow. During his visit Ludwig was involved in a street brawl and consequently, was arrested. In turbulent times in which Ludwik matures, things trivial and silly still verge on the serious and the tragic ...