# The best Polish films of all time

The top of the survey by the Łódź Film Museum and the University of Łódź for cinema's 130th anniversary (287 people from film culture), plus the classics critics and audiences mention most.

- 3 votes · 21 items
- Jun 30, 2026 · Grzegorz Nowak
- https://even.best/en/l/443/the-best-polish-films-of-all-time

## Top 20

1. **Ashes and Diamonds** (1 · ▲1 ▼0) — Andrzej Wajda, 1958. Zbigniew Cybulski as Maciek Chełmicki on the last day of the war.
2. **Man of Marble** (1 · ▲1 ▼0) — Andrzej Wajda, 1977. A film student uncovers the truth about a model worker.
3. **The Promised Land** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Andrzej Wajda, 1974. Three partners build a factory in 19th-century Łódź; first place in the Film Museum survey.
4. **The Saragossa Manuscript** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Wojciech Jerzy Has, 1964. A nested tale from Jan Potocki; a favourite of Scorsese and Coppola.
5. **Night Train** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Jerzy Kawalerowicz, 1959. A night train to the coast and a hunted murderer; the critics' choice for best Polish film in the survey.
6. **Day of the Wacko** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Marek Koterski, 2002. Marek Kondrat as the neurotic teacher Adaś Miauczyński.
7. **Knife in the Water** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Roman Polański, 1962. A couple and a hitchhiker on a yacht; Oscar-nominated.
8. **The Hourglass Sanatorium** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Wojciech Jerzy Has, 1973. A dreamlike journey from Bruno Schulz; Jury Prize at Cannes.
9. **Ida** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Paweł Pawlikowski, 2013. A novice nun discovers her Jewish origins; Poland's first Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film.
10. **Blind Chance** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Krzysztof Kieślowski, 1981. Three versions of a life depending on whether the hero catches a train.
11. **Camera Buff** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Krzysztof Kieślowski, 1979. A worker buys a camera and discovers the power of filming; Golden Prize in Moscow.
12. **Camouflage** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Krzysztof Zanussi, 1976. A linguistics summer camp and a cynical lecturer.
13. **Teddy Bear** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Stanisław Bareja, 1980. A satire of communist Poland with club president Ochódzki; cult dialogue.
14. **Sexmission** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Juliusz Machulski, 1984. Two men wake up in an underground world without men.
15. **A Short Film About Killing** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Krzysztof Kieślowski, 1988. The murder of a taxi driver and an execution; Jury Prize at Cannes.
16. **Mother Joan of the Angels** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Jerzy Kawalerowicz, 1961. Possessed nuns and an exorcist priest; Jury Prize at Cannes.
17. **Cold War** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Paweł Pawlikowski, 2018. A musician and a singer's love across the Iron Curtain; Best Director at Cannes.
18. **The Pianist** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Roman Polański, 2002. Władysław Szpilman survives occupied Warsaw; Palme d'Or and three Oscars.
19. **The Wedding** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Andrzej Wajda, 1972. The adaptation of Wyspiański's play about a wedding in Bronowice.
20. **Dekalog** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Krzysztof Kieślowski, 1989. Ten films about the Ten Commandments on a Warsaw housing estate.
21. **The Cruise** (-1 · ▲0 ▼1) — Marek Piwowski, 1970. An absurd river cruise on the Vistula; a source of countless quotes.

How is this ranking ordered? By people's votes: each ▲ adds a point and each ▼ takes one away. Anyone can vote and add what is missing.