A Short Film About Killing

A Short Film About Killing

1988 · 85 min · ★ 7.6 · Crime, Drama

Jacek climbs into the taxi driven by Waldemar, tells him to drive to a remote location, then brutally strangles him, seemingly without motive.

Directed by Krzysztof Kieślowski · Written by Krzysztof Kieślowski

Your Rating

Where to Watch

Streaming

Criterion Channel

Cast

Trailers & Videos

Make it a double feature

2h 18m together

A Short Film About Killing

Decalogue I

Both from Krzysztof Kieślowski.

More from Krzysztof KieślowskiSee all →

DekalogDekalog · 1989
Dekalog
★ 8.31989
SeriesDrama
The Ten Commandments, exact and uncompromising, literally cast in stone, continues to provide a source of moral conflict in contemporary society. In the ten part collection of films, The Decalogue, Krzysztof Kieślowski examines the dilemma of fundamental sin in the lives of ordinary Warsaw citizens.
Decalogue IDecalogue I · 1989
Decalogue I
★ 8.11989
MovieDramaTV Movie
Krzysztof, a semantics professor and computer hobbyist, is raising his young son, Paweł, to look to science for answers, while Irena, Paweł’s aunt, lives a life rooted in faith. Over the course of one day, both adults are forced to question their belief systems.
Decalogue VDecalogue V · 1989
Decalogue V
★ 8.01989
MovieDramaTV Movie
Jacek, an angry drifter, murders a taxi driver, brutally and without motive. His case is assigned to Piotr, an idealistic young lawyer who is morally opposed to the death penalty, and their interactions take on an emotional honesty that throws into stark relief for Piotr the injustice of killing of any kind.
Decalogue XDecalogue X · 1989
Decalogue X
★ 7.91989
MovieDramaTV Movie
Jerzy and Artur’s father dies, leaving behind a valuable stamp collection, which, they discover, is coveted by dealers of varying degrees of shadiness. The more involved the brothers get in their father’s world, the more dire and comical their situation becomes.
Three Colors: RedThree Colors: Red · 1994
Three Colors: Red
★ 7.91994
MovieDramaMystery
Part-time model Valentine unexpectedly befriends a retired judge after she runs over his dog. At first, the grumpy man shows no concern about the dog, and Valentine decides to keep it. But the two form a bond when she returns to his house and catches him listening to his neighbors’ phone calls.
A Short Film About LoveA Short Film About Love · 1988
A Short Film About Love
★ 7.81988
MovieDramaRomance
19-year-old Tomek whiles away his lonely life by spying on his opposite neighbour Magda through binoculars. She's an artist in her mid-thirties, and appears to have everything - not least a constant stream of men at her beck and call. But when the two finally meet, they discover that they have a lot more in common than appeared at first sight...
Decalogue IVDecalogue IV · 1989
Decalogue IV
★ 7.81989
MovieDramaTV Movie
A father and daughter, Michał and Anka, have a unique intimacy, which the college-aged Anka is beginning to feel conflicted about. When she finds an unopened letter from her deceased mother, it seems to justify her attraction to Michał, who may not in fact be her father.
Three Colors: BlueThree Colors: Blue · 1993
Three Colors: Blue
★ 7.61993
MovieDrama
The wife of a famous composer survives a car accident that kills her husband and daughter. Now alone, she shakes off her old identity and explores her newfound freedom but finds that she is unbreakably bound to other humans, including her husband’s mistress, whose existence she never suspected.
The Double Life of VéroniqueThe Double Life of Véronique · 1991
The Double Life of Véronique
★ 7.51991
MovieDramaFantasy
Véronique is a beautiful young French woman who aspires to be a renowned singer; Weronika lives in Poland, has a similar career goal and looks identical to Véronique, though the two are not related. The film follows both women as they contend with the ups and downs of their individual lives, with Véronique embarking on an unusual romance with Alexandre Fabbri, a puppeteer who may be able to help her with her existential issues.
Three Colors: WhiteThree Colors: White · 1994
Three Colors: White
★ 7.41994
MovieComedyDrama
Polish immigrant Karol Karol finds himself out of a marriage, a job and a country when his French wife, Dominique, divorces him after six months due to his impotence. Forced to leave France after losing the business they jointly owned, Karol enlists fellow Polish expatriate Mikołaj to smuggle him back to their homeland.
Decalogue IIDecalogue II · 1989
Decalogue II
★ 7.31989
MovieDramaTV Movie
Dorota Geller, a married woman, faces a dilemma involving her sick husband's prognosis. Her husband's doctor, who believes in God, sweared about it in vain.
The Big AnimalThe Big Animal · 2000
The Big Animal
★ 7.12000
MovieComedyDrama
When the circus leaves town, Zygmunt and Marysia unwittingly adopt a camel into their home. The couple quickly forms a close bond with the nameless camel, but as the bond grows stronger, their neighbors slowly begin to ostracize them.
Decalogue IIIDecalogue III · 1989
Decalogue III
★ 7.11989
MovieDramaTV Movie
It’s Christmas Eve, and Ewa has plotted to pass the hours until morning with her former lover Janusz, a family man, by making him believe her husband has gone missing. During this night of recklessness and lies, the pair grapple with choices made when their affair was discovered three years ago, and with the value of their present lives.
No EndNo End · 1985
No End
★ 7.01985
MovieDrama
1982, Poland. A translator loses her husband and becomes a victim of her own sorrow. She looks to sex, to her son, to law, and to hypnotism when she has nothing else in this time of martial law when Solidarity was banned.
Curriculum VitaeCurriculum Vitae · 1975
Curriculum Vitae
★ 7.01975
MovieDrama
A communist party control committee interrogates a worker and party activist who is to be excluded from the party.
The OfficeThe Office · 1966
The Office
★ 7.01966
MovieDocumentary
The insane government bureaucracy at a state pension window.

More Like This

Four BrothersFour Brothers · 2005
Four Brothers
★ 6.82005
MovieActionCrime
Four adopted brothers return to their Detroit hometown when their mother is murdered and vow to exact revenge on the killers.
The Match Factory GirlThe Match Factory Girl · 1990
The Match Factory Girl
★ 7.41990
MovieDrama
Iris is a shy and dowdy young woman stuck in a dead-end job at a match factory, who dreams of finding love at the local dancehall. Finding herself pregnant after a one-night stand and abandoned by the father, Iris finally decides the time has come to get even and she begins to plot her revenge.
What Have I Done to Deserve This?What Have I Done to Deserve This? · 1984
What Have I Done to Deserve This?
★ 7.11984
MovieComedyDrama
A henpecked housewife ekes out a meager existence, surrounded by a host of colorful characters: her ungrateful husband, her delinquent sons, her headstrong mother-in-law, and her sex worker neighbor, among others.
The Harder They ComeThe Harder They Come · 1972
The Harder They Come
★ 6.61972
MovieCrimeDrama
Ivanhoe Martin arrives in Kingston, Jamaica, looking for work and, after some initial struggles, lands a recording contract as a reggae singer. He records his first song, "The Harder They Come," but after a bitter dispute with a manipulative producer named Hilton, soon finds himself resorting to petty crime in order to pay the bills. He deals marijuana, kills some abusive cops and earns local folk hero status. Meanwhile, his record is topping the charts.
Get ShortyGet Shorty · 1995
Get Shorty
★ 6.51995
MovieComedyThriller
Chili Palmer is a Miami mobster who gets sent to L.A. to collect a bad debt from Harry Zimm, a Hollywood producer who specializes in cheesy horror films. When Chili meets Harry's leading lady, the romantic sparks fly. After pitching his own life story as a movie idea, Chili learns that being a mobster and being a Hollywood producer really aren't all that different.
DominoDomino · 2019
Domino
★ 4.62019
MovieCrimeThriller
Seeking justice for his partner’s murder by an ISIS member, a Copenhagen police officer finds himself caught in a cat and mouse game with a duplicitous CIA agent who is using the killer as a pawn to trap other ISIS members.
The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her LoverThe Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover · 1989
The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover
★ 7.31989
MovieCrimeDrama
When churlish mobster Albert Spica acquires an upscale French restaurant in London, he dines there nightly, effectively scaring off the clientele with his bad manners. His wife, Georgina, is especially disgusted by him, and soon begins an affair with regular guest Michael. Despite their best efforts to keep it secret, Spica learns about their trysts, and he plots a terrible revenge.
Half NelsonHalf Nelson · 2006
Half Nelson
★ 6.62006
MovieDrama
Despite his dedication to the junior-high students who fill his classroom, idealistic teacher Dan Dunne leads a secret life of addiction that the majority of his students will never know. But things change when a troubled student Drey makes a startling discovery of his secret life, causing a tenuous bond between the two that could either end disastrously or provide a catalyst of hope.
Lemon TreeLemon Tree · 2008
Lemon Tree
★ 7.02008
MovieDrama
Salma Zidane, a widow, lives simply from her grove of lemon trees in the West Bank's occupied territory. The Israeli defence minister and his wife move next door, forcing the Secret Service to order the trees' removal for security. The stoic Salma seeks assistance from the Palestinian Authority, Israeli army, and a young attorney, Ziad Daud, who takes the case. In this allegory, does David stand a chance against Goliath?

Rate this film

Your ratings make Midnight smarter