Granice miłości

Borders of Love is banality that’s precise in dialogue and authentic in acting, with one casting surprise. From the first moment, you figure out where it will go and that’s exactly where it goes and ends up. (23.07.2022)

Formally, it is an interesting conversational film, but unfortunately, the work with the main topic is written very amateurishly. Instead of a real study of situations that the world of open relationships, swingers, and associated emotions may offer, there are a lot of clichés, whether in the view of introducing the issue by one sexually aggressive couple (of course, the alpha male is played by Martin Hofmann), through the presentation of an apparently polyamorous polycule (headed, of course, by Hynek Čermák...) to the typically simplified reactions to the given situations. Hana Vagnerová plays Hana, who dares to discover her sexuality with mutual agreement, her partner is Petr played by Matyáš Řezníček, who does the same until the moment when his partner confesses that she experienced something new with another man. The vain Petr cannot handle this, but at the same time allows Hana to continue with her experiments. While Hana still invites Petr on further adventures, Petr grows disgusted by Hana and finds a new closed relationship. It couldn't be more cliché. The film's promotion almost promised full-length porn, but Tomasz Wiński only made a typical chauvinistic anecdote. (11.01.2024)

This film is beating inside me. I would not like to admire it just because of the common phrase "good for a Czech film", although that is what it is. The manifesto of Wiński et al. is itself apt and I agree with it in principle on many, many points. At the same time, the creators say that they do not consider their works to be perfect, and I would underline that here. I can't help feeling that the script downplays the issues presented in an unrealistic way and the character arc comes across as too simple. Borders of Love is actually a film where I could have imagined some extra twenty minutes, some extra plot loop, some extra viewer satisfaction, but unfortunately I got none. Nevertheless, I recommend it, as a Czech film, it definitely stands out from most of the current production. [KVIFF 2022] (22.07.2022)

After the initial four minutes, I had an intense feeling that there were enough sounds in the film for a pornographic movie, while the visuals were significantly lacking in this regard. There was too much of both for a drama, though. I gave up all hope and prepared myself to write a negative review, but the creators surprised me with this slightly bizarre spectacle, which gradually began entertaining me. The film had a high-quality cast. I always enjoy seeing Martin Hofmann and Hynek Čermák. I also like redheads with freckles, and Matyáš Řezníček portrayed Petr convincingly enough. So, the only thing that bothered me was Eliska Křenková, who had a bland expression, and Captain Antonie Formanová, who didn't seem to be acting. The long, pathetic dialogue between Antonie and Petr made me decrease the number of stars. It was nothing special, but it could have been above average if the director had handled the situation better. / Lesson learned: If you have a fragile psyche, don't get involved in anything major. 2+ (12.04.2023)

Few people managed to make a drama about intimacy, cohabitation and the depth of a relationship. And here, unexpectedly, it's been done very nicely. Sometimes witty lines occur that allow you to take a moment to breathe in the rush of emotion. I'm glad the entire creative team decided to work hard on the film because it just shows. I was a little concerned about the way the main characters filmed everything on their cell phones, because it would have been wonderful without it. Overall, it's a good film that I'm sure a lot of people will go to the cinema to see. (06.07.2022)