Mis

Like most Polish movies of the Communist era, "Teddy Bear" has several layers of meaning. On the surface it's a comedy of absurdities. But the absurdities make perfect sense in the political context of Poland of the 1970th. The movie shows Communism is its final stages of decay. The system becomes a game with complex and absurd rules. Only people who master these rules can be successful. The film's hero is one of them.

The key to understanding the movie is the dialog between the hero and a film producer about a straw bear--a giant prop for the movie they are making. The producer uses common sense to try to minimize the movie's production costs. The hero explains to him how rational arguments don't apply in the system they are living in. The simpleton film producer is initiated in the ways of the system.

There is a progression from George Orwell's stern an tragic "1984", through Terry Gilliam's tragicomic "Brazil", to the comically absurd "Teddy Bear"--a progression which reflects the various stages and versions of Communism. The Polish version is the most benign and tongue-in-cheek and the film describes it perfectly.

Smart, absurd, outrageously funny, brilliantly acting, shockingly critical, and, at least for (and perhaps other) Polish audiences that grew up under socialism, tragic and moving. Unfortunately, much of its brilliance is lost in translation, and it may not make sense for viewers who are unfamiliar with Eastern European history after the Second World War. The general plot is as defined by other reviewers; it serves as a platform for a life tour under Soviet-imposed communism, covering various social strata-from the high-rolling, corrupt Communist Party minister residing atop the Palac Kultury to the inspiring boiler room staff, drinking their lives away while the tenants are freezing. The movie is about a disintegrating world guided to everyday acts of insanity and seeing them. The portrayal is a bit exaggerated, of course, but it's not far from that time's reality. Humor can be a mighty weapon.

Apparently quite beloved in its native Poland, this is a very amusing, sometimes over the top satire of life under the bureaucracy of communism.

The president of a soccer club tries to hold things together when his wife destroys his passport just before he has to leave a trip to play in the UK, so she can beat him there and steal some money they stashed away.

Everyone is playing and coning everyone else, with sometimes unpredictable results.

Not a great film, but a breezy enjoyable one.

Mis is a very good movie. It's not just funny - It's more than funny. I wish You saw that. The only problem is some of the jokes in that movie are understandable for Polish speaking people only. This movie is strongly placed in the '81 Polish reality.

If you lived in Poland during the 80's you will fully enjoy this movie. Every minute of it is making fun of the absurdity of life in those days. Although the scenes used in the movie might seem ridiculous, they are in fact taken straight from life, which makes them even more hilarious. The plot is a vehicle used to display the surroundings. The fact that this movie actually made it through the censorship shows, that although Poland was still in the Soviet block, it already had some degree of freedom of speech and expression in the early 80's right before the marshal law was declared. It's the best comedy I have ever seen and probably ever will see. It's a classic and a must see!