A surreal masterpiece smuggled to Cannes, this film defies time and explores lost worlds.
In short: In Wojciech Jerzy Has’s 1973 film The Hourglass Sanatorium, a man visits his dying father in a crumbling hospital where time behaves unpredictably. Smuggled out of Poland against government orders, this visually potent phantasmagoria blends childhood memories with the haunting shadow of the Holocaust, creating a dreamlike, labyrinthine cinematic experience.
Directed by Wojciech Jerzy Has, The Hourglass Sanatorium is a loose adaptation of Bruno Schulz’s short stories. The protagonist, Joseph, played by Jan Nowicki, travels by train to a decaying sanatorium to see his father, Jacob. Within this mystical space, the narrative dissolves into a series of surreal episodes where Joseph re-enters his childhood, interacts with wax mannequins, and encounters his father living in an attic among birds. The film’s structure is tripartite, anchored by a blind conductor who serves as a guide, eventually merging symbolically with Joseph as the protagonist gains a deeper, transcendent vision.
The film is notable for its complex, non-linear narrative, which scholars have analyzed through the lens of Deleuze and Guattari’s rhizome theory. This is reflected not only in the story’s structure but also in the visual motifs of uncontrolled, sprawling vegetation like ivy and ferns. Has intentionally avoided a literal adaptation, aiming instead to capture the unique atmosphere and poetic prose of Schulz’s original work. The setting draws from the turn-of-the-century Galicia of Schulz’s youth, layered with the director’s own pre-World War II memories.
The production faced significant political friction. Following a 1968 antisemitic campaign that forced thousands of Polish Jews to emigrate, Polish authorities were wary of the film’s focus on Jewish themes and its depiction of institutional decay. Despite being forbidden from entering the 1973 Cannes Film Festival, Has smuggled a print abroad. The film was honored with the Jury Prize, led by jury president Ingrid Bergman. While some literary scholars initially criticized the film for turning Schulz’s cosmic vision into grotesque folklore, it has since been recognized as a masterpiece, ranked as the fifth greatest Polish film in a 2015 poll and included in Martin Scorsese’s curated collection of Polish cinema.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: The Hourglass Sanatorium
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