1900 (1976)

The epic tale of a class struggle in 20th Century Italy, as seen through the eyes of two childhood friends on opposing sides.

This classical romantic melodrama, based on the novel by Helena Miniszkowna, is retold without any hint of irreverence, even though it had been a favorite target of satires for generations. Waldemar (Leszek Teleszynski) is a Polish aristocrat who lives in a magnificent palace. Stefcia (Elizbieta Starostecka), the woman he falls in love with, is extremely beautiful, but is just a high-school teacher. The town in which they both live is scandalized, and will not permit the two of them to remain together.

In 1946, a soldier fathers a child then dies before its birth. Jump to 1952: on a train, the child and his mother meet a handsome soldier who makes a play for her. She accepts. Posing as a married family, the soldier finds them a rooming house where he becomes everyone's favorite through his good looks and generosity. Meanwhile, he gives the boy, Sanya, lessons in life: to fight back, to win at all costs. The child's mother, Katya, is head-over-heels in love with Tolyan, the soldier, but the relationship becomes rocky when Tolyan's true plans for the rooming house become clear. It starts them on a treadmill of flight that risks Katya's life, Tolyan's liberty, and Sanya's trust.

Ludovic, a young boy neglected by his artsy parents, falls in love with Sophie, the daughter of a piano teacher. They meet in secret places in the city. Not long after Sophie's father finds them naked together in her room, Ludovic is sent away to spend time with his grandparents. Sophie runs away from home to join him, and they hide along the seashore and in abandoned buildings. After they are found, their parents try to keep them separate, but they both fall into deep depressions.