Daniel (Dawid Ogrodnik) is an activist and artist who spends his time supporting young queer people who have nowhere else to turn. Considered a pariah by the people of his village, Daniel is shocked when his friend Jagoda (Agata Labno) commits suicide following relentless bullying about her sexuality. Cutting down the tree that Jogoda hung herself on, Daniel fashions it into a cross and embarks on a journey to honour her.
‘All Our Fears’ from directors Lukasz Gutt and Lukasz Ronduda and it’s based on the life of Polish gay visual artist Daniel Rycharski. The film isn’t your typical slice of LGBTQ+ fare – there’s no well-trodden coming-of-age story here. Instead the film explores the way that sexuality and religion co-exist together and the tolerances and intolerances that can bring with it. Daniel wants the young queer people of his community to be able to live their authentic lives but when Jagoda unexpectedly takes her own life, Daniel searches inwards, as well as outwards, to understand why it happened. He blames himself for the tragedy and the people of the village are quickly to lay blame at his door.
His actions following that tragedy are somewhat unorthodox. He creates a ‘Way of the Cross’ procession in a bid to help Jagoda’s soul find peace, which sees him walking around like a biblical figure lugging a huge cross. The parallels to the story of Jesus are evident and at times, I felt that distracted from the story of queer youth that the film is trying to tell. Even though the film is only 90 minutes, it’s a slow burn and it’s one that’s not going to sit comfortably with all viewers.
The central performance of Dawid Ogrodnik is the real hook of the film. Ogrodnik gives an incredibly intense performance and he fully commits to the character of Daniel. Even when you’re not sure how you feel about Daniel’s actions, Ogrodnik keeps you on side and he keeps you interested in what’s going on. He really is the main reason to watch this film and it’s unsurprising that he’s received so much attention for his performance.
‘All Our Fears’ is an unusual film and the story it tells isn’t one that we’ve seen time-and-time again on screen. It’s not as easily accessible as other entries into the LBGTQ+ cinema strand but it poses plenty of interesting questions. If you’re particularly interested in the juxtaposition of sexuality and religion, you may get a lot out of this but if you’re not, you’ll probably not find the story all that thrilling.
Cast: Dawid Ogrodnik, Maria Maj, Andrzej Chyra, Oskar Rybaczek, Agata Labno Directors: Lukasz Gutt & Lukasz Ronduda Writers: Marta Konarzewska, Michal Oleszczyk & Michal Pabian Certificate: 15 Duration: 90 mins Released by: Peccadillo Pictures Release date: May 2024 Buy ‘All Our Fears’ now
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