The narrative of Jan P. Matuszyński’s feature debut starts in 1977. Tomek Beksiński is moving to an apartment in the same neighborhood as his parents. They stay in close contact, as they’re well aware of Tomek’s unsettling, even destructive personality. The turning point is Tomek’s first attempted suicide. For his father Zdzisław, who is so focused on his art, and his mother Zofia, the struggle to save Tomek’s life is the greatest challenge of their life. But despite the complex situation and the darkness looming over the Beksiński family, there’s still room for intimacy and a particular kind of absurd sense of humor. Based on a screenplay by the extremely talented Robert Bolesto, The Last Family is one of the most interesting debuts Polish cinema has seen in recent years. The performances by Andrzej Seweryn, Aleksandra Konieczna and Dawid Ogrodnik are truly exquisite, as is the maturity with which the young director has approached his subject. Matuszyński’s film is much more than a biography—it’s first and foremost a film about a family.