Corpus Christi (2019 film)

Corpus Christi (Polish: Boże Ciało) is a 2019 drama film directed by Jan Komasa and written by Mateusz Pacewicz.

An international co-production between Poland and France, the film stars Bartosz Bielenia, Aleksandra Konieczna, Eliza Rycembel, Tomasz Ziętek, Leszek Lichota, and Łukasz Simlat.

Inspired by real-life events, it follows a 20-year-old man who experiences a spiritual transformation while living in a youth detention center.

Daniel, a devout Catholic serving a sentence for second-degree murder, finds his dream of becoming a priest upon release thwarted by his criminal background.

Before the planned Mass following the burial, the priest from Daniel's youth detention center arrives, having been tipped off about the impostor.

Komasa has also said that the car accident that caused such trauma for characters in the film is a symbol for the 2010 Smolensk air disaster, in which 96 people died in a plane crash, including Poland's president and a number of officials from the government.

The website's consensus reads: "Led by an impressive performance from Bartosz Bielenia, Corpus Christi thoughtfully and engagingly examines questions of faith and redemption.

"[20] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 77 out of 100, based on 20 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.

[21] Variety's Peter Debruge called the film "stunning" and "quietly subversive", despite a few plot points that feel like a soap-opera to him.

[22] "Bielenia is never less than totally compelling," wrote Christy Lemire for RogerEbert.com, adding that "this is a complex character full of layers and contradictions.

"[23] The Washington Post's Ann Hornaday described the film as "an absorbing, spiritually attuned drama" and added that "Bielenia presents the perfect embodiment of haunted asceticism" while "Komasa's careful framing and lighting reveal him to be innocent-looking one moment and more menacing the next".

[17] It won a record eleven Polish Film Awards: Best Film, Best Director (for Jan Komasa), Best Actor (for Bartosz Bielenia), Best Actress (for Aleksandra Konieczna), Best Supporting Actor (for Łukasz Simlat), Best Supporting Actress (for Eliza Rycembel), Best Screenplay (for Mateusz Pacewicz), Best Cinematography (for Piotr Sobocinski Jr.), Best Editing (for Przemyslaw Chruscielewski), Discovery of the Year (for Pacewicz), and the Audience Award.