Tricks

TRICKS is a nostalgic portrayal of a young boy using magical charms to improve his luck in life. Stefek lives with his teenaged sister Elka and his mother in a depressed town with few advantages. His dad left them years ago and his mostly absent mom works in a grocery. Elka is her brother's summer keeper, and she and Stefek spend hours together, discussing the best methods of affecting fate. A dishwasher and waitress, Elka makes Stefek keep his fingers crossed that her job interview with the glamorous new Italian company in town will be successful. Meanwhile, Stefek pursues his own childish pleasures: eating cold watermelon, trying to get homing pigeons to fly over the village, watching trains come and go through the depot. His heartfelt dream, though, is to get his dad, whom he imagines he's spotted at the station, to come back to the family. This major trick of fate will take all the luck Stefek can muster. Dedicated to his sister, “who would make me sit on top of the wardrobe,” TRICKS is a loving tribute to director Andrzej Jakimowski's childhood. (In Polish with English subtitles) – B.B.