Partita for a Wooden Instrument

Far from the front lines, in a small town of the General Government, life unfolds quietly and almost dreamily. One winter day, a German lieutenant named Anton arrives in the town. He observes the sawmill, watches the townspeople and their daily struggle with poverty—knowing that their needs will work to his advantage. After gathering information, he approaches the sawmill owner, Łaciak, and offers an urgent but well-paid order. Seeing a chance for significant profit, Łaciak recruits carpenters, even though cooperating with the Germans stirs resentment among the locals. Anton appoints Weych, an experienced carpenter, as the team leader. Weych takes on the job out of necessity—his youngest daughter is gravely ill and needs medicine and food. When Weych discovers that they are to build a gallows for forty people, the workers revolt and want to quit. However, they know that refusal could bring reprisals upon them and the townsfolk, and that the condemned, who are to be brought here just before the execution, cannot be saved anyway.