Polish Oscar winner "Ida" draws online criticism for Jewish theme
PR dla Zagranicy
Aleksander Nowacki
23.02.2015 13:58
Foreign Minister Grzegorz Schetyna distanced himself from criticism that Poland’s first-ever Oscar for the best foreign-language film proves the country’s filmmakers will only win international acclaim if they take up Jewish issues.
Paweł Pawlikowski
PAP/EPA/PAUL BUCK
“That may have helped,” Schetyna said in a radio interview, when asked about the Holocaust-themed “Ida”, last night’s Oscar winner. “But it is a universal film, its significance goes beyond the story it tells.”
“Ida” tells the story of a Polish nun who finds out she is a Jewish Shoah survivor. The film’s Oscar triumph generated a lively debate on the internet with many arguing it reflected Hollywood’s pro-Jewish bias.
An online petition that drew 20,000 signatures prior to the Oscar decision demanded the film’s screenings in the US be prefaced by an historical introduction, stating that many Poles risked their lives to save Jews during the WW2. (an)
Source: PAP, Gazeta Wyborcza, Rzeczpospolita