For all those who played the Witcher 3 Hearts of Stone. The quotes "Would you wait, sir, for dribble to subside" and "You don't strike sir, you flail" come from this movie. Geralt vs Olgierd fight is literally a reference to the duel between Kmicic and Wołodyjowski.

Fun fact that makes you appreciate the actors even more: this movie was based on a book, and the book was so popular that literally everybody in Poland had read it. It's author, Henryk Sienkiewicz, described his protagonists fighting styles in great details, so the actors didn't only had to learn to fight but they had to learn to fight in the styles of the characters they were playing. Small movements, spinning cuts and changing hands that you mentioned were taken directly from the book

7:10 - switching hands is explained in the novel. Wołodyjowski quickly discovered he was a better fencer and started mocking Kmicic. 7:50 - spinning cuts. It is a movie version of displaying Kmicic's desperation. He knew he was losing and was desperate. Movie is following novel pretty precisely in this moment.

"I'm not going to spoil who won this fight" proceeds to talk about how one guy is waaaaaay better than the other for 11 minutes straight.

I'm a simple Turk when i see Poland I run. (from Turkey with love)

I'm a simple Hungarian I see Poland I hit like.

As a Polish man reading the comments, thank you all. We are all beautiful countries, and we all have amazing histories, and culture. Never forget that.

The "weird" things Wołodyjowski does make more sense in a novel or if you are familiar with the context. You see, the entire premise of the duel is this: Kmicic is fighting for his life. He puts all the skill he has and all the effort there could be. For him that's life-or-death situation. And he's a nobody, a literal punk that just get into serious shit and tries to wiggle out of it by means of dueling and barely can fight in the first place (at least for the standards of the era). Meanwhile, Wołodyjowski is THE famous fencing master, renown for his skills all across the country and sole mention of his name is enough to get people back down when he steps in. So when he's facing Kmicic, he at first tries to amuse himself, then he's just bored with it. The book goes into lenght to describe him being progressively more and more bored with the whole situation, while Kmicic is in the same time more and more aware that his enemy is not only holding back, but DELIBERATELY drags the duel on to keep humiliating Kmicic and his ineffective fighting with switching hand to the left, constant disarms and standing still like a tree, while Kmicic jumps around from side to side to no effect. Hence the famous "Finish this, sir, and spare me (further) humiliation" (one of the most memetic lines in Polish and something people say to this day when they get owned), to which Wołodyjowski instantly strikes him with a finishing knock-out, something that he could done in the first 5 seconds, but that wouldn't be didactic for Kmcicic - and he wanted to teach the guy a lesson, rather than kill him on the spot. So whenever Wołodyjowski does something ineffective or that looks phoney, that's part of the deal - he does even more of this stuff in the book. On the flip-side, when Kmicic does something ineffective or stupid, that's to show how incompetent he really is (remember the number of close-ups to footwork?) and noted as such in source material - including his erratic, chaotic movement, just trying to power-through early on and then realising his opponent parries without a flinch all his "trademark" lounges, leaving him with nothing for himself. Also, a side-note: prep and filming for this scene took over 3 MONTHS. That's a time you can film a feature-lenght movie. The duel itself lasts slightly below 3 minutes.

In those times in Poland every actor needed to know how to ride hourse, fight with sword etc. They were a big part of phisical education in Polish acting schools.

"I nearly got my skull caved in, so I needed a breather. Then we resumed the filming the movie." - Polish dude

Kmicic's strange movements perfectly reflect the description in the book. This man was so sure of his abilities that when he confronted Wolodyjowski, who was far superior to him in abilities, he flew into a rage, started to hover and jerk irrationally.

I'm impressed how well you've described behavioural and psychological traits of these characters merely observing their fighting style :D

The actor Tadeusz Łomnicki who played Mr. Wołodyjwski was well trained by Witold Woyda - Polish fencer who won four Olympic medals in the foil between 1964 and 1972.

Funfact: the actor playing Kmicic, Daniel Olbrychski's grandson is Antoni Olbrychski, who is currently top 10 on HEMA Ratings in both longsword and saber, and fought in Swordfish Longsword final last year :)

The movie - "Potop" is about Swedish assault of Poland in July 1655. The Sweeds crossed the border of Poland and made 2nd biggest loot and destruction of Poland after Germans in 2nd World War (1939-1945). The country was so much destroyed it paved the way to the complete country partition between Germany, Russia and Austria. The movie is based on a book of the Nobel price awarded Polish writer - Henryk Sienkiewicz. The book is mandatory in high school to read. It's ficticious story however it has many real events like for example the defence of Czestochowa. One of the best Polish actors play in the movie like - Olbrychski, Hańcza, Łomnicki, Braunek... These are the actors that were the best in late 70tees when it was recorded. This movie is literally played in Polish tv on every Chrismass or Easter... You can find it at least on one channel. Thanks for notificing and appreciating this movie.

Kmicic is young, brash, stubborn, and full of himself (and drunk a lot of the time) at that time in the story (he has a redemption arc). He has also been winning easily up until that duel, since he was mostly surrounded by people less inteligent or less skilled. So his style of fighting fits perfectly. I love this movie. I wish we were still making them like that...

I don't think even polish people speak polar. That's a bear dialect

Yes, Geralt of Rivia vs Olgierd von Everec duel was based on this movie.

fun fact: later in the movie you see both these characters training together and becoming friends. after that at the battlefield you can see Kmicic (the guy with a shirt) fighting better than in the scene mentioned in the video, quite a nice detail in a quite old movie.

I saw this video of yours a long time ago but finally went and saw this film, Potop. It's one of the best films I have ever seen, genial. You can get subtitles fairly easily, it's really a beautiful film with an amazing script too. Thanks for the tip!

Hi I'm from Poland and I don't know if you've seen the whole movie, but Wołodyjowski didn't want to kill Kmicic, just humiliate him

Love Polish people from Persia ,poland is a very old nation, also during medival was the only europian nations which always had close relations to Persia. Persia 💝 Poland La viva

Andrzej Kmicic and Michał Wołodyjowski, one of the most epic fights in Polish cinematography

Im from.the US but I've met great mates from Poland virtually. The country has an amazing culture and history with great people to back it up!

Wołodjowski was called First Saber of The Republic, Kmicic was arrogant troublemaker. From Wołodjowski point of view purpose of this duel was not to kill Kmicic, not even to physically hurt him, but to humiliate him in front of all men present. To theach him a lesson. Movie scene shows this perfectly.

Fun fact -- the movie was praised for very long uncut shots. However the western critics were unaware, that this was made out of necessity. The film strip was simply so expensive by Polish standards.

Hello, I'm half Polish, living in Poland. I wanted to thank all the other nations for liking us so much. Sending love to all ♥️ Poland sending cheers to all Europe, Africa, Asia, North and South America! 😁

I am Polish, and this film series has always been a part of my life from childhood into adolescence. I've always admired how realistic the swordplay felt in these movies. Hats off to you for featuring a film on your channel that is such a huge part of preserving our heritage! 🇵🇱🍻

If there's anything to add for context (not a fencing expert, but it might explain some things about the fight): - The fight is about a woman, namely, about a woman whom Kmicic (very good pronunciation!) kidnapped and Wołodyjowski was tasked with getting back (not a love interest for him, but a love interest for Kmicic). - Both fighters were renowned for their fencing skills, but haven't met before. Kmicic is more of a rogue here, Wołodyjowski more a military type. So, in a way, one is a "self-taught" fencer, the other a professionally trained one. - Wołodyjowski clearly treats the fight as a teachable moment; he sees a rough-hewn, fiery-tempered brawler with some skill that is revered by his company. But Kmicic isn't yet a soldier, he doesn't know he's in way over his head. So, Wołodyjowski is showing it to him - I wouldn't say 100% to humiliate him, but the effect is clear. (Hence the bit where he whirls the blade around for, like, a full minute and comments "You're handling it like a flail.") - Part of the reason for the humiliation is that the longer the fight lasts, the more clear it becomes that Kmicic is actually at an end and that Wołodyjowski can pretty much do as he pleases with him. The fight ends with Kmicic lowering the blade and saying "End this, sir; spare me the shame," but the cut that Wołodyjowski applies is only enough to put Kmicic out of action, not enough to kill him. When Kmicic recovers, Wolodyjowski hands him the colonel's baton as both of them are assigned regiments for the war against Sweden. On a final note, part of the reason why Kmicic seems so flamboyant and Wołodyjowski so economic is because of the age and fitness difference (perfect casting, btw!). Olbrychski (Kmicic; pronounced ol'-BRYKH-skee) was a full 18 years younger than Łomnicki (Wołodyjowski; wom-NEETS-kee) and much fitter; I think he did all his stunts himself. This translates very well into the image they project - that the fight is between a cocky upstart who thinks he knows the game and an old head who sees right through the kid. Anyway, as a complete noob when it comes to fencing, I just wanted to say I like it when experts confirm my beliefs - this fight, and the fight scenes in the Eastern European historical movies of the period in general, always seemed more "real" to me than the carefully choreographed fights from more modern films and shows. It does seem that filmmakers simply employed reconstructors and experts in the field, rather than fight choreographers. Who'd have thunk it that it might work out better!

Being Polish it saddens me to see our cinematography took such a big step backwards since that period of time. Nowadays most Polish movies try to look as Hollywoodish as possible and they fail so much in this attempt... The Deluge was world level production when it was made. And now?

I have only basic knowledge of swordsmanship, and even I can tell that the actors are really going ham in making that duel look GOOD.

I'd never heard of this movie before seeing this video; I love when KZfaq videos draw my attention to interesting movies/shows/books/music that I normally wouldn't hear about.

After watching this I still believe the most realistic sword fight scene ive ever seen is the one where king Arthur fights the black knight in Monty Python and the Holly Grail.

It's cool how much story you have managed to read from the fight scene alone. WARNING SPOILERS AHEAD In terms of characters Wołodyjowski is a seasoned soldier, who has fought in many campaigns and is considered the finest fencer in the Commonwealth, while Kmicic is a flamboyant young troublemaker with a natural knack for flashy techniques, but who has no proper training and never really met a worthy opponent until this point. Kmicic starts the fight very sure of himself, but his wild and flashy attacks are repeatedly thwarted and he gets more and more desperate. This self-centred bad boy who thought himself undefeatable sees that he is no real match for Wołodyjowski, who has honed his fighting skills in the service of the country. Meanwhile Wołodyjowski, as the fight progresses, changes his intention from killing to humiliating Kmicic and teaching him a lesson, as he sees that while no match for himself, this bad boy could do great things for the country, if he was given a chance and motivation. This also explains why several times he does not punish Kmicic's mistakes. The whole scene is very symbolic and it's message is "while Kmicic is kind of badass, serving the country has made colonel Wołodyjowski the true badass here". PS. You're second take on pronouncing Kmicic was correct.

I'm an Olympic-style sabre coach, and Wołodyjowski's disengages are a thing of beauty. The long point looks like it developed into "point in line" for foil and sabre. I use it all the time for the same reason you outlined...to slow my opponent down.

As a Pole I'm always happy to see some of the lesser-known but classic parts of Polish pop-culture appreciated abroad. Things like the Trilogy books and adaptations have a hard time getting through to the international mainstream because there are already so many huge English-language historical epic movies with great special effect etc. It's nice to feel that things like "The Deluge" can be embraced despite the language barrier - these books/movies are quite fictionalised takes on history, but still great and hugely entertaining stories and a great entryway to a very interesting historical period. Thank you for a great video 🙂

For Wiedzmin fans This fight from the Polish film, the creators of the game The Witcher 3 - Hearts of Stone, drew the motive for the entire addition as well as the fight between Geralt and Olgeird. The same words fall into battle even

Kmicic knew he was weaker, that is why he was more frustrated at the end. At the end he also said "End me, save me the shame" (Kończ waść, wstydu oszczędź) because he didn't want to be a toy for Wołodyjowski. I wasn't aware that someone outside from Poland would watch it. Thank you :)

A great analysis. Some more details to add: As you've correctly deduced, Wołodyjowski is leagues above Kmicic and is pretty much mocking him through the whole fight. The way he switches hands in between blows, purposefully strikes his opponent's saber instead of his exposed torso, and later disarms him and allows him to pick up his weapon, it's all meant to teach this arrogant youngster a lesson in humility. He doesn't want to kill his opponent, just put him in his place. Meanwhile, Kmicic fights with the over-exaggerated movements of someone who's never learned proper fencing, but still considers himself unbeatable. As he grows tired and angry with how unfazed Wołodyjowski is, you can see his blows becoming even more erratic and careless. It's a wonderful scene that really shows the difference in their skill and personalities... with less than a dozen words spoken.

That's the spirit of older generations' work culture. More concentration on quality, realism, real value, details and truth than in current time.

You got the point exactly right Skallagrim. Kmicic (you pronounced that right at second try, so respect) was a crazy vagabound at the begining of the story. You could even call him a bandit, as he murdered a lot of people and kidnapped a daughter af a nobleman because he was in love with her. Wołodyjowski rescued her from Kmicics hands. Later on Kmicic is becoming sort of war hero and very honorable knight. It is a story about change in mans heart. In this scene, Kmicic is very arogant and very perky about his skills in combat. Wołodyjowski is also proud of his skills but he has very right to be so, as he is literaly the best fencer in Poland. He is ideal polish knight in this story. But also he likes to show off. So you generaly get in perfectly. And to be honest, I have now more respect for this movie. If someone who do not know the whole story can read all of this from just moves in fight it means two things. Firstly - they did a great job making this movie. Secondly - You are real expert on the matter. Big respect.

Author of "The Deluge" explained that changing hands in duels was quite important as most of people were inexperienced with fighting against left handed opponent. And yes, Wolodyjowski was toying with Kmicic, in the book you can read that he could have finished the duel in first few seconds. Great content btw :)

A little explanation: In the book this movie is based on, Wolodyjowski was a master swordsman. Kmicic regarded his own skills higly and with haughtiness, so Wolodyjowski decided to give him a lesson and play with him - like a cat playing with a mouse. Hence the showoffiness, and Kmicic's erratic movements that quickly lose flamboyancy and confidence, replaced by frustration and desperation. It's all on purpose and faithful to the novel. The scene has a slightly different tone in the book, but personally I prefer the cinematic rendition (rain, no quips from Wolodyjowski bar one etc.) Also, while they're fighting for a woman, there's more nuance to that. Kmicic basically kidnapped Olenka (whom he loved, and who loved him back, but found him repulsive for the bloodshed he was responsible for and refused to be with him) while Wolodyjowski challenged him to a duel in order to free her without unnecessary bloodshed. The protagonist of the whole novel (and movie adaptation) is Kmicic - a young and reckless but overall good-hearted young leader of a ragtag band of fighters - his arc being redemption in the eyes of Olenka and his own country. It's regarded as the best one in Sienkiewicz's so-called Trilogy (By Fire and Sword, The Deluge, Sir Wolodyjowski). Anyway, enough prattling. Thank you for a great analysis! p.s. if you REALLY want to nitpick - Kmicic's sabre changes all of a sudden half way through the scene :D

Worth mentioning that even though most people nowadays dont care about old dramas theres a few quotes from this scene so iconic that most Poles still know it. "Kończ waść, wstydu oszczędź" which means "Finish it sir, save the shame" as well as "Waść machasz jak cepem" meaning "You wave it around as if it was a flail".

Whenever Wołodyjowski doesn't take advantage on Kmicic mistake it's all intentional. He didn't want to hurt him because he knew he is far better fighter and he basically won before fight started. Fight doesn't seem to be choreographed, but their fighting styles brilliantly mirror their personalities in the story. Calm, calculated and efficient Wołodyjowski and hot headed, reckless and arrogant Kmicic. This fight is one of milestones in character development of Kmicic. This scene beyond realistic fight is very importand to the story itself

I'll try spinning, that's a good trick. - Anakin Skywalker

7:10- The switch is a license for the film. Never happened in the novel, but in a different novel of the series Wołodyjowski won a difficult duel with this kind of switch. But he only use this movement to surprise his oponent. This kind of movement in the film scene is like a tribute to the character.

A friend of mine is Polish-Australian and LOVES this sequence. He says he is not at all surprised it is so realistic as he tells me that, at the time, a lot of people in Poland did sabre fencing and would be very knowedgable about the proper way to do a sabre duel.

I'm a simple Cuban. I see Poland I want to know more!!

"Waść machasz jak cepem" :D

Your knowledge is amazing. I'm Polish and it makes me incredibly proud, that you have appreciated this scene, which for us, Poles, is iconic. Both actors involved in this "duel" are well recognized in Poland for their acting skills, but in this film they have created a characters that are timeless.

It was interesting, because Kmicic is described as a capable soldier, yet about halfways into the duel, you can see that Wolodjowski is clearly playing with him and there is also a short dialoguge between them when Kmicic says something like: "Finish already and spare me the shame." It's also interesting to look at how Wolodjowski had a very hard duel against Bohun in With Fire and Sword and by the time of The Deluge, he becomes the sabre wielding Chuck Norris. Awesome 3 movies and books though.

"i dont speak polar"

Polish audience targeting, aprecciated :D

"I don't speak polar" Skallagrim, 2019

"Potop" is probably the greatest historic masterpiece in Polish cinema history. Greetings from Poland😊🇵🇱 Pozdrawiam😊

One reason for the reality of this duel is that actors at that time were required to practice fencing at Polish acting academies, among certain other potentially usefull skills for cinema, like horse riding.

Fun fact in witcher 3: Hearts of stone in first fight between Geralt and Olgierd there is followup to this fight scene.

I'm really jealous of Skall's wardrobe, his outfits are always so amazing

Even after watching the original movie, I could learn about "Potop". Thanks!

Actually, both of these actors come from an old film school, they actually learned to fight with a saber, ride a horse, learn the basics of stunting (sometimes more than the basics). It was a completely different type of actor than today, in the 1960s and 1970s, no one heard of "stunt men", most of the dangerous scenes were made by actors themselves, not by the alternates. The film takes a lot of shortcomings, especially historical ones (for example costumes or weapons), but for the times when it was created, it keeps a really high level.

I definitely WASN"T expecting this. Mad respect to you Skall. Finally, someone pointed out the fact that indeed there are more accurate historical movies out there worth watching. Especially those from Central and Eastern Europe. BTW, another polish movie A Long Time Ago in Ilza can easily claim the title of the most historically accurate move as literally all roles are played by historical reenactors in their own reenacting gear. The move is available for free on KZfaq with English subtitles.

"The Most Realistic Sword Duel in Movie History" me: i mean, it was a real duel...

I'm glad Skallagrim does actually address the character's emotions in the fight. Both are proud men, intent on humiliating the other, due to their differing personal positions. The Colonel is clearly the superior swordfighter, and is intentionally tiring his opponent out, forcing the fight to continue by not taking easy kills and goading his opponent to continue. The Kmicic is so arrogant and confident in his skills that he keeps trying to show off only to be punished for it, growing more and more frustrated as it continues. Truly one of the best swordfights in movie history!

8:15 In the plot, Kmicic at this point, understands the difference in Wołodyjowski's skills, and he just acts desprate. At the end he says "Finish it. Spare me shame."

This was exactly the point of those "pointless" Wołodyjowski's movements. He might have killed the guy in a second but he wanted to embarrass him first publicly instead.

Great film, and Henryk Sienkiewicz’s Trilogy is some of the greatest heroic fiction ever written.

This is Freddie Mercury vs Charles Bronson. No wonder it's the best duel of all time

The actor (Tadeusza Łomnickiego) who played colonel Wołodyjowski, took fencing lessons from a fencing master ( Andrzej Piątkowski), then in another movie from the trylogy (Pan Wołodyjowski) he had a duel with him (Andrzej Piątkowski played a Turkish soldier there). The man who stands behind that duel (back in Potop - the one that you refer to) was prof. Waldemar Wilhelm. To learn and play it well, they have been practicing only that scene for 2 months. The actor who played Andrzej Kmicic is Daniel Olbrychski. And last but not least - they used real, XVII century sabres there ;) I hope you have seen the whole movie, so I recommend you to read the books. They are all translated in English.

Kmicic is a young, arrogant hothead, pretty strong. Wolodyjowski is considered master of sabre - he is short so people underestimate him. This is what is happening in the scene, Kmicic thinks it is gonna be easy fight but he bites more he can swallow :)

About erratic movements of Kmicic. He, as a protagonist of Potop books, at first was a scoundrel. Heavy drinking antihero, progessing through his story to become a genuine hero. So his fighting stile was wild, as his character was. On the other hand, Wołodyjowski was a master swordsman. Unique and unbeatable. His skill had no match, so he was kinda flashy with changing hands and the other stuff. Theyre did not fight over woman... kinda. Kmicic obducted his love interest, and Wołodyjowski led a resecue, but he was there to accquire Kmicic to Polish army preparing to war. So Wołodyjowski showed that Kmicic was no match for him. When Kmicic understood that (he was exhausted at the end) he spoke the famous (in polish literature) words: "Kończ waść. Wstydu oszczędź." which translates to "End it sir. Spare me a humiliation."

Thanks for the great material. It is not without reason that this fencing duel is considered the most realistic in the history of Polish cinematography. Both outstanding actors did not even consider using stuntmen and both trained in fencing for this film and also practiced saber fighting. The effect is still amazing to this day and fully reflects the intensity of this scene - I don't think anyone has managed to repeat it in Polish cinema since. Thanks for taking care of this particular duel - it was great to listen to your analysis. Thanks for a great episode,best regards Bro 💪😎🥝👊

Skall, you hit the nail on the head with their fighting styles and the portraying of the emotional states of the characters.

That was exacltly what this scene was about: Wolodyjowski wanted to give a lesson to cocky Kmicic.

The end of this fight has the best summary of it. Wołodyjowski says "Kończ Wać, wstydu oszczędź", "End this Sir, spare the shame". He was playing with Kmicic all this fight

You are right. I am Polish and I know there was some personal background in making this take. Anyway, both of them showed the highest level of Polish Sabre School. Great thanks for the film. Greetings to You.

One more interesting thing about this scene ;) Here, Wołodyjowski is the pro, and he's toying with Kmicic. But in reality, the actor who played Kmicic was trained in the sword fight. So he had to act like he was less skilled but also had to make sure not to hurt his opponent. That's why the actor who played Wołodyjowski said that he had troubles to guard himself fast enough. So the roles in the movie and in reality was completely reversed :D

At the end Kmicic says: " End it, Sir. Spare the humiliation already"

Ah yes, back when Polish cinema was actually good. Potop holds up even today, it's beautiful and brutal. edit/ one thing about the pointing towards your opponent: in kendo this is the default position of kamae, and if done right it's the strongest, practically impossible to beat position. The idea behind it is not only that a charging opponent would get stabbed, also if you point the tip of the sword directly between the opponent's eyes, they will not have a point of reference and will have difficulty assessing the distance, forcing them to be at a disadvantage.

Dziękuję. Thank you. Greetings from Poland!

Seeing you talk about this fight makes me happy. Potop was one of my favourite books growing up, the movie is fantastic, and the fight is tense and to the point. A point of correction: they weren't exactly fighting over a woman. If memory serves Wołodyjowski came to deal with Kmicic who basically kidnapped a local noblewoman. Kmicic was something of a loose cannon and gloryhound, while Wołodyjowski was known to be the finest swordsman in Poland, and one of the mlst honourable ones, too.

Don't worry Skal - you didn't butcher the names, actually, you did very well for somebody who doesn't speak Polish. After seeing your countless reviews of poor movie swordfight scenes, I'm quite honored to see that our Potop is your personal favorite. Stay strong, and - nie kończ, waść ;)

Kudos for actually preparing for the pronunciation! Yeah i'm polish myself. You did quite well there :)

Came back to see it again. _The Deluge_ is a classic of Polish Cinema. Great review, Skall, and good links too.

Wow, this video was quite a surprise for me - I didn't expect to see a scene from "Potop" here. Such a familiar accent. :) It's always on TV during Polish Independence Day and it's also shown in many schools, since the novel it's based on is a set book. I think this film did pretty well as far as recreating the time when it it set is concerned and the fight scenes are ones I most vividly remember. You're right about saying that the fight is to allow the men to show off their skills and show others how manly they are. That's probably why one of them sometimes does strange, over-the-top movements. Also - you did really well with Polish pronounciation. :D Best regards from Poland.

The castle behind the author's backpacks is in Będzin, Poland . This is my hometown 😁😁😁

Switching hands might give you an advantage, because it will suprise the opponent and the opponent also isn't used to fight against a lefthanded person. Lefthanded people have an advantage in many sports for the same reason, there have been studies on this topic.

Aż się prosi na koniec tego długiego monologu pokazać scenę w całości. Nie jest długa, a przynajmniej wszyscy wiedzieliby o co chodzi.

Skall back at it again with the gorgeous coats.

This is one of the best comment sections i've seen in a long time.

4:35 "Don't hurt me, bro -- I don't wanna do this!" 👏👏👏

To właśnie stara szkoła - nie tylko najlepiej w Świecie walczyli, ale przekazali charaktery bohaterów nawet komuś, kto nie umie poprawnie wypowiedzieć ich imion!!!

I just watched a remastered version of the movie thanks to this video...it is amazing. One of the best historic dramatizations I've seen and probably one of the best out there. Thank you very much for posting this and letting me and everyone else know that there exists such a beautifully filmed movie. Actors are astounding, main hero has so much charisma it's hard to express and the atmosphere is extremely thick and immersive. I'm absolutely in love with this piece of cinematography and I encourage everyone interested in historic movies to give this one a try if you can find it with English subs or if you speak Polish or Russian(there's a dub which I watched and frankly it's really good, you can find a remastered version here on YT). Length is another concern. 4 hours 46 minutes for the whole movie consisting of two parts is quite a lot, but I didn't regret one second of my time spent on this. The thing totally deserves its 1975 Oscar. So...overall: GREAT F*CKING MOVIE!

Olbrychski, the taller actor, was especially well wersed in all things needed in historical movies - he knows how to ride horses quite amazingly too. This kind of commitment is amazing.

The moment when Wolodyjowski switches hands is a reference to the previous novel in the cycle, in which a famous cossack fighter did that to throw off his enemies. Wolodyjowski fought him and most likely learned the trick form him. In real-life terms, it's probably a reference to that earlier novel, which at the time "The Deluge" was filmed had not been made into a movie yet ("With Fire and Sword" was filmed in 1999, and there you can see Bohun do the switch as his finishng move).

'The Deluge' is largely unknown in the West, but the sabre duel is my favorite scene.

This movie is just great. One of my most favorite movies ever. Great actors, great director, great novel. "Природа плачет - полковника хоронить будут!" :)))

Hi, I would like to add a bit of commentary. Kmicic (you said it right the last time) is a local sword hero and a conceited thug. Wolodyjowski is a world class swordsman passing by the area, an army colonel. He is a tiny man, so Kmicic thinks him to be an easy prey. Little does he know - Wolodyjowski’s father, seein he was a little, frail boy, told him „God gave you a puny posture, if they won’t fear you, they will mock you”. And - trained him to be the best fencer ever known. Sienkiewicz, the author of the book, was a tiny man himself, and his characters (Ursus, Wolodyjowski) clearly reflect him compensating for his feeling of vulnerability. So, the fight happens, because Kmicic publicly provokes and insults Wolodyjowski until he has no choice but to fight. The fight is not really a fight, Wolodyjowski could take Kmicic down in a few seconds (and so he does, finally). What he aims for is a total humiliation of the bully. His „low cut” you point out is just him playng with an opponent who is so outmatched, that presents no threat. The conclusion of the fight is Kmicic realizing, how pathetic skills are, and saying a sentence so powerful, that it became a part of Polish language and culture. „Koncz Wasc, wstydu oszczedz!”. „End it, Sir, please, spare me further shame!”. Once the request is made, Wolodyjowski terminates in 3 seconds with a perfect disabling, but non-lethat cut. This is a life changing experience for Kmicic, who, once recovered becomes Wolodyjowski’s apprentice and changes from a no-good ruffian into a noble paladin and a hero.

I grew up on these classic literature and movies, I feel I had a kick ass childhood in Poland! I’ve got all the movies remastered versions on dvd

"You Swing that thing like a Flail"