Mark of Cain

Mark of Cain

A historical adventure film about the betrayal of one’s own conscience.

1989 · 101 min · ★ 10.0 · Drama, History, Action

In 1866, as Austria faces war with Prussia, 19-year-old Ludvík Machl joins a secret Czech resistance group. When he is caught with stolen funds and a weapon, the police commissioner spares him from prison on the condition that he work as an informant. Trapped by fear and betrayal, Ludvík is forced down a path that leads inexorably toward his own destruction.

Directed by Janusz Majewski · Written by Vladimír Körner

Your Rating

Cast

Make it a double feature

2h 10m together

Mark of Cain

Devilish Education

Both from Janusz Majewski.

More from Janusz MajewskiSee all →

Do Widzenia Wczoraj. Dwie Krótkie Komedie o Zmianie SystemuDo Widzenia Wczoraj. Dwie Krótkie Komedie o Zmianie Systemu · 1993
Do Widzenia Wczoraj. Dwie Krótkie Komedie o Zmianie Systemu
★ 9.01993
MovieComedy
1. A ring of retired provincial PRL dignitaries plots to steal their party’s banner from the Museum of Communism as an ideological relic, only to have their scheme complicated when one conspirator’s son enlists an Italian collector in a profit-seeking joint venture. 2. A young homeless couple squatting in an unoccupied Balaton dacha is caught by the elderly ex-communist official who now runs a Budapest nightclub—and agrees to keep silent about their trespass in exchange for forcing them into a public “wedding night” performance for his patrons.
NapoleonNapoleon · 1991
Napoleon
★ 9.01991
SeriesDrama
The miniseries charts Napoleon Bonaparte’s career from his return after the Egyptian campaign to his downfall and exile on Elba, portraying his political maneuvering, military ambition, and complex relationships with key figures such as Talleyrand, Fouché, Murat, Tsar Alexander, Joséphine de Beauharnais, and Countess Marie Walewska.
Mała matura 1947Mała matura 1947 · 2013
Mała matura 1947
★ 9.02013
SeriesDrama
Królowa BonaKrólowa Bona · 1980
Królowa Bona
★ 8.51980
SeriesDrama
I Am Burning!I Am Burning! · 1968
I Am Burning!
★ 7.91968
MovieComedyTV Movie
Ja gorę! tells the story of a Pogorzelski nobleman who settles in a ruined castle in Samsonów, determined to restore it, only to be haunted by the ghost of its former owner. A parody of gothic horror literature and cinema, the short is based on a tale by Henryk Rzewuski and was produced as part of the Polish television series Opowieści niezwykłe (1967–1968).
Night TrainNight Train · 1959
Night Train
★ 7.61959
MovieDrama
Two strangers, Jerzy and Marta, accidentally end up holding tickets for the same sleeping chamber on an overnight train to the Baltic Sea coast. Also on board is Marta's spurned lover, who will not leave her alone. When the police enter the train in search of a murderer on the lam, rumors fly and everything seems to point toward one of the main characters as the culprit.
The LodgerThe Lodger · 1967
The Lodger
★ 7.51967
MovieComedy
A pleasant, open-faced young man comes to live in a boarding house with three peculiar women.
Hotel PacificHotel Pacific · 1975
Hotel Pacific
★ 7.31975
MovieDramaHistory
Set in the early 1930s, a young man finds a job as a dishwasher in a hotel and quickly works his way up the ladder. Loosely based on the novel by Henryk Worcell.
The Black DressThe Black Dress · 1967
The Black Dress
★ 7.01967
MovieDramaTV Movie
A stark, two-character chamber drama about Joanna, a middle-aged woman who returns from the camps after World War II. Seeking out her deceased husband’s mother, she cannot bring herself to reveal the truth about his fate. Instead, she invents a story to spare the grieving woman further pain. What begins as a compassionate lie soon entangles Joanna in an ever-growing web of deception, as more people who know the truth become drawn into her fragile fiction.
Devilish EducationDevilish Education · 1995
Devilish Education
★ 6.41995
MovieDramaFantasy
In a rural Catholic village, young Gosia tends cattle and lives an innocent, sheltered life. One summer day, while bathing in the river, she is unknowingly observed by a mysterious painter. When he later reveals his portrait of her, Gosia’s initial shame gives way to curiosity, drawing her into an awakening of desire and a confrontation with temptation.
Lokis: A Manuscript of Professor WittembachLokis: A Manuscript of Professor Wittembach · 1970
Lokis: A Manuscript of Professor Wittembach
★ 6.41970
MovieFantasyHorror
A pastor and ethnographer visits a remote corner of 19th-century Lithuania where folk customs associated with the area's pagan past still have a hold on the population.
Deserter's GoldDeserter's Gold · 1998
Deserter's Gold
★ 6.11998
MovieComedyHistory
"Deserter's Gold", the sequel to the very popular "The Deserters", is a rich war comedy, skipping humorously around the more serious dangers of a war. Deserters Gold takes place during World War II, while the first film happened during WWI. The heroes' mission is to rob a Nazi-run bank in Poland for gold that will buy military supplies for the Polish Underground.
Eccentrics, the Sunny Side of the StreetEccentrics, the Sunny Side of the Street · 2016
Eccentrics, the Sunny Side of the Street
★ 6.12016
MovieComedyMusic
In late 1950s Poland, jazzman Fabian returns from England and forms a swing big band that quickly rises to fame. Their glamorous new singer, the enigmatic Modesta, becomes both the group’s star and Fabian’s love interest. As their success begins to resemble a Hollywood musical, the authorities take a growing interest in their world of music and romance.
First PavilionFirst Pavilion · 1968
First Pavilion
★ 6.01968
MovieScience FictionTV Movie
A young scientist is kidnapped and taken to a house where his former mentor, a professor, is conducting experiments on shrinking humans.
The Moonlit RoadThe Moonlit Road · 1973
The Moonlit Road
★ 6.01973
MovieHorrorRomance
Julian, a young man who came back home after years of studying abroad finds his life in turmoil after falling for his stepmother, while his dead mother's spirit haunts the family house, intent on revenge.
Capital, or How to Make Money in PolandCapital, or How to Make Money in Poland · 1990
Capital, or How to Make Money in Poland
★ 5.91990
MovieComedy
A sociologist nearing middle-aged returns to Poland after several years of giving lectures abroad. The changing economy of the country and business successes of the people around him inspire him to venture out into the deep and unpredictable world of capitalism himself.

More Like This

The Man Who Would Be KingThe Man Who Would Be King · 1975
The Man Who Would Be King
★ 7.51975
MovieAdventureDrama
Tired of life as soldiers, Peachy Carnehan and Danny Dravot travel to the isolated land of Kafiristan, where they are ultimately embraced by the people and revered as rulers. After a series of misunderstandings, the natives come to believe that Dravot is a god, but he and Carnehan can't keep up their deception forever.
Dead ManDead Man · 1995
Dead Man
★ 7.31995
MovieDramaFantasy
On the run after committing murder, an accountant encounters a strange Native American man who prepares him for his journey into the spiritual world.
The PianoThe Piano · 1993
The Piano
★ 7.41993
MovieDramaRomance
When an arranged marriage brings Ada and her spirited pre-teen daughter Flora to the wilderness of 19th-century New Zealand, she finds herself locked in a battle of wills with both her controlling husband and a rugged frontiersman to whom she develops a forbidden attraction.
Moulin Rouge!Moulin Rouge! · 2001
Moulin Rouge!
★ 7.52001
MovieDramaRomance
A celebration of love and creative inspiration takes place in the infamous, gaudy and glamorous Parisian nightclub, at the cusp of the 20th century. A young poet, who is plunged into the heady world of Moulin Rouge, begins a passionate affair with the club's most notorious and beautiful star.
Dances with WolvesDances with Wolves · 1990
Dances with Wolves
★ 7.81990
MovieAdventureDrama
Wounded Civil War soldier John Dunbar tries to commit suicide—and becomes a hero instead. As a reward, he's assigned to his dream post, a remote junction on the Western frontier, and soon makes unlikely friends with the local Sioux tribe.
The Last SamuraiThe Last Samurai · 2003
The Last Samurai
★ 7.62003
MovieDramaAction
Nathan Algren is an American hired to instruct the Japanese army in the ways of modern warfare, which finds him learning to respect the samurai and the honorable principles that rule them. Pressed to destroy the samurai's way of life in the name of modernization and open trade, Algren decides to become an ultimate warrior himself and to fight for their right to exist.
The Birth of a NationThe Birth of a Nation · 1915
The Birth of a Nation
★ 5.91915
MovieDramaHistory
Two families, abolitionist Northerners the Stonemans and Southern landowners the Camerons, intertwine. When Confederate colonel Ben Cameron is captured in battle, nurse Elsie Stoneman petitions for his pardon. In Reconstruction-era South Carolina, Cameron founds the Ku Klux Klan, battling Elsie's congressman father and his African-American protégé, Silas Lynch.
Interview with the VampireInterview with the Vampire · 1994
Interview with the Vampire
★ 7.41994
MovieHorrorDrama
A vampire relates his epic life story of love, betrayal, loneliness, and dark hunger to an over-curious reporter.
The Man Who Invented ChristmasThe Man Who Invented Christmas · 2017
The Man Who Invented Christmas
★ 6.82017
MovieDramaHistory
In 1843, despite the fact that Dickens is a successful writer, the failure of his latest book puts his career at a crossroads, until the moment when, struggling with inspiration and confronting reality with his childhood memories, a new character is born in the depths of his troubled mind; an old, lonely, embittered man, so vivid, so human, that a whole world grows around him, a story so inspiring that changed the meaning of Christmas forever.
Van HelsingVan Helsing · 2004
Van Helsing
★ 6.42004
MovieHorrorAdventure
Famed monster slayer Gabriel Van Helsing is dispatched to Transylvania to assist the last of the Valerious bloodline in defeating Count Dracula. Anna Valerious reveals that Dracula has formed an unholy alliance with Dr. Frankenstein's monster and is hell-bent on exacting a centuries-old curse on her family.
There Will Be BloodThere Will Be Blood · 2007
There Will Be Blood
★ 8.12007
MovieDrama
Ruthless silver miner, turned oil prospector, Daniel Plainview, moves to oil-rich California. Using his son to project a trustworthy, family-man image, Plainview cons local landowners into selling him their valuable properties for a pittance. However, local preacher Eli Sunday suspects Plainview's motives and intentions, starting a slow-burning feud that threatens both their lives.
Van GoghVan Gogh · 1991
Van Gogh
★ 6.71991
MovieDramaHistory
After leaving the asylum, Vincent van Gogh settles in the home of Doctor Gachet, where he keeps painting amidst the torments of his failing mental health. He begins an affair with his host’s daughter, however, she soon realizes that he doesn’t love her and that his heart beats only for art.
The BuccaneerThe Buccaneer · 1958
The Buccaneer
★ 6.51958
MovieAdventureDrama
During the War of 1812 against Britain: General Andrew Jackson has only 1,200 men left to defend New Orleans when he learns that a British fleet will arrive with 60 ships and 16,000 men to take the city. In this situation an island near the city becomes strategically important to both parties, but it's inhabited by the last big buccaneer: Jean Lafitte. Although Lafitte never attacks American ships, the governor hates him for selling merchandise without taxes - and is loved by the citizens for the same reason. When the big fight gets nearer, Lafitte is drawn between the fronts. His heart belongs to America, but his people urge him to join the party that's more likely to win.
Moby DickMoby Dick · 1956
Moby Dick
★ 7.11956
MovieAdventureDrama
In 1841, young Ishmael signs up for service aboard the Pequod, a whaler sailing out of New Bedford. The ship is under the command of Captain Ahab, a strict disciplinarian who exhorts his men to find Moby Dick, the great white whale. Ahab lost his leg to that creature and is desperate for revenge. As the crew soon learns, he will stop at nothing to gain satisfaction.

Rate this film

Your ratings make Midnight smarter