Pat-Down Search

The story takes place over a few hours in a customs chamber in southern Poland, where Mrs. Basia, her fourteen-year-old son Piotr, and her seventeen-year-old cousin Krystyna return from the West. Their large fiat, filled to the brim with Western goods and painted bahama yellow, immediately catches the customs officers’ attention. Both women are willing to do whatever it takes to get their purchases across the border, but they encounter an exceptionally honest head officer who orders a personal search. Since the inspection can only be carried out during the next shift, Basia and Krystyna gain a few hours to try and persuade the official to change his mind. The older woman tries everything: bribes, pleas, and threats, citing her influential husband. The younger one attempts to seduce Łukasz, a young intern and close collaborator of the head officer. Her plan achieves partial success, but Basia’s efforts prove futile. In desperation, she calls her husband, unaware that her humiliating behavior is being watched with growing disapproval by her son Piotr.