Bez znieczulenia (1978)

The film opens with a broadcast of the television program Three Against One, whose subject is foreign correspondent Jerzy Michałowski. He arrives at the airport after another trip, where his wife Ewa and daughter Gapcia are waiting to greet him. In the car outside their home, Ewa tells Jerzy that she is leaving him, then drives away. Jerzy cannot understand her decision and tries to get in touch with Ewa through her friend Wanda, a dentist. It turns out that Jerzy’s television appearance has come in for considerable criticism. At a meeting of the editorial board jury for the Best Book of the Year award, Michałowski tries to support a book whose author ultimately loses the contest. Jerzy’s opponent is Jacek Rościszewski, a young journalist and Ewa’s friend. Jerzy discovers that his wife is cheating on him, then gets into a fight with Jacek, whom he encounters along the way. Soon afterward, Jerzy’s university lectures are abruptly canceled. Students come to the Michałowskis’ home, asking for an explanation. Their conversations continue late into the night. The students leave at dawn, but one of them, Agata, stays in the Michałowskis’ apartment longer. In the morning, the Michałowskis’ housekeeper finds Agata and brings Gapcia over without Ewa’s knowledge. Jerzy gets a chance to try to reconcile with Ewa when his older daughter, Oleńka, who is studying abroad, comes to visit. The parents go for a walk together and pretend to make up. But after Oleńka leaves, the couple fall into conflict again. Michałowski soon receives word that a valuable trip abroad has been canceled. Jerzy tries to seek advice from his friend Broński, but it turns out that Broński has been removed from his post and sent to an overseas posting. Despite having dinner together, Jerzy still cannot reach an understanding with Ewa, and she files for divorce. Jerzy consistently refuses to consent to the divorce, while the other side puts forward fabricated arguments against him. Irritated by the way the trial is going, Michałowski leaves the courtroom. Ewa, driven by guilt, tries unsuccessfully to stop him. Ewa arrives at Jerzy’s burning house and sees her husband’s mutilated body. Distraught, Agata tells Ewa that the tragedy was caused by an explosion in the gas heater.