The Knave of Spades

"Jack of Spades" is a film about a man who, after experiencing a heartbreak, decides to make a radical change in his life, swapping his bank desk for a solitary lighthouse. Wacław Kawanias, once a bank cashier and deeply in love with the beautiful Melania, is rejected. Heartbroken and bitter from this feeling, Kawanias withdraws from social life and moves into a remote lighthouse, where his only companions become criminology textbooks. After years of peaceful solitude, one day Inspector Marac, who is conducting an unsuccessful investigation into the whereabouts of the wanted criminal Teston—a legendary thief—arrives at Kawanias’s lighthouse. A twist of fate leads Wacław to seize the opportunity to put his theoretical criminology skills to the test in practice. He proposes a temporary exchange of professions to the inspector—Marac stays at the lighthouse, while Kawanias sets out to pursue Teston.