One day, hospital orderlies, watching corpse in the morgue, recognize film director. Man, even though he died, he begins to remember his life. He made a career making movies, had numerous mistresses, but never realized their dreams. His life was interspersed with many setbacks that enfeebled him from the inside. Although he made a career in film, he was not happy with his life.
Set in Poland in the 1970s, the main character half-heartedly goes about his job as a censor at the state run television station, whilst conducting affairs with nurses, airline pilots, etc. Interesting scene where main character must illegally emigrate to his own country.
The action is set in the early 20th century. The film is made up of six sequences. In the first, Michal, young man who came from Poland to Germany, enrolls in a course on how to behave in social situations and on etiquette. However when he tries to approach girls using the rules which he's been taught... he only makes a fool of himself. Then, he goes to work for a man who owns a carousel and who loves to chase other women. In the next sequence, Michal meets the divorced landlady, Mrs. Luther, and goes through a whole lot of erotic experiences. When he escapes exhausted from his landlady, he starts working in a mine and visits brothels on a regular basis. He looks on women in a totally cynical manner. However, his persistent wandering must finally result in a true love.
A dream-like meditation on post-industrial life in Communist Poland.
In 1807, Napoleon meets and falls in love with 22-year-old Polish countess Marie Walewska, who is unhappily married to a much older man. Enchanted by the blonde, blue-eyed countess, the emperor enters into an affair with Marie, who uses the relationship to induce Napoleon to treat Poland fairly.
A tale of a young impoverished nobleman, who with his uncle returns from a war against the order of the Teutonic Knights in Lithuania. He falls in love with a beautiful woman and pledges an oath to bring her "three trophies" from the Teutonic Knights.
Two fairies, Terencja and Felicja are in posession of the Lucky Rain Boots, which they intend to give to the most deserving person in the city of Kraków. However, they consistently fall into the wrong hands, creating a multitude of absurd and comedic situations.
Ewa Bonecka, a young student about to start school in a new place finds herself without a place to sleep after she is declined a room in a women-only hotel. Helped by a pleasant policeman, Piotr, she tries to find a lodging in the strange town full of thieves and petty troublemakers.
Tells two tales set during WWII: A seemingly feckless and selfish man finally takes up arms in the national struggle against the Nazis. Set in a POW camp, Polish inmates cling to their hopes for an eventual escape, encouraged by the legendary escape of one of their own.