A Polish doctor (Jacek Poniedziałek) working in the Russian Empire uses ether to rape a woman, accidentally murdering her. By a stroke of unjust luck, he is reassigned to a border fortress in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, where he continues his chemical experiments as the subtle murmurings of a barbaric upcoming war beckon him to increasingly immoral ends. In Ether, Krzysztof Zanussi again tackles the moral anxiety that results from modernity’s struggle between theology and philosophy. The film premiered at Rome Film Festival and was nominated for awards at the Polish Film Festival and Camerimage.
Screening will be followed by Q&A with Krzysztof Zanussi.
