Grażyna Szapołowska

Acting

Grażyna Szapołowska

Born

1953-09-19 (73)

Place of birth

Bydgoszcz, Poland

Known for

Acting

Credits

74 titles

Grażyna Szapołowska (Polish pronunciation: [ɡraˈʐɨna ʂapɔˈwɔfska]; born 19 September 1953) is a Polish film and theatre actress. After passing the baccalauréat she joined at Wroclaw Theatre of Pantomime. In 1977 she graduated from The Theatre Art School in Warsaw. From 1977 until 1984 she was in the theatrical company of the National Theatre, Warsaw. She is best known for starring in A Short Film About Love (1988) by Polish film director Krzysztof Kieślowski, and in its earlier and shorter form the sixth episode of Dekalog. It was she who suggested to Kieslowski the different ending of the full-length version. She had previously starred in another Kieslowski film, Bez końca.

Known for

Film credits

2020s · 5 titles

2010s · 10 titles

Run Boy Run poster
7.1

A true story of Jurek, an eight-year-old boy, who escapes from the Warsaw ghetto, then manages to survive in the woods and working as a farmhand, disguising himself as a Polish orphan.

Run Boy Run

2014

Battle of Warsaw 1920 poster
4.5

Poland's winning battle against Soviet Russia as seen through the eyes of two young protagonists, Ola and Jan. She is a Warsaw cabaret dancer, while he is a cavalry officer and poet who believes in socialist ideals

Battle of Warsaw 1920

2011

Little Rose poster
6.9

Pressured by his superiors to disgrace public intellectual Warczewski, a professor and respected writer whom they believe to be a "camouflaged Zionist," rough security-services colonel Rozek enlists his sexy but naive girlfriend, Kamila, to insinuate herself into the distinguished older man's life and report on his every move. Not particularly interested in serving communism but eager to please her domineering lover, Kamila accepts the mission, reporting under the code name "Little Rose." As quick scenes contrast Kamila's crude pleasures with Rozek and her more refined experiences with Warczewski, it becomes clear that the more time the unschooled young woman spends with the professor, the more she comes to have true feelings for him.

Little Rose

2010

The Dogcatcher poster
NR

A man with OCD is paid to find dogs.

The Dogcatcher

2015

Battle of the Sexes poster
2.9

The story of an unemployed journalist who fights overweight and account shortages more effectively than Bridget Jones, and although she knows a lot about men, finding the right one will require a lot of effort. Especially that her adult daughter not only ruthlessly judges her actions, but also counts on her mother's advice in her love affairs.

Battle of the Sexes

2011

Trick poster
5.4

Kidnappers demand six million in ransom, but the United Nations does not negotiate with terrorist. One of the best counterfeiters is serving a lengthy prison term and the agent who arrested him needs his help.

Trick

2010

Polnische Ostern poster
7.0

Grumpy baker Grabosch can't bear the thought that his granddaughter, now that her mother has died, will live with her Polish father. He must get Mathilda back, by all means.

Polnische Ostern

2011

Botoxx poster
4.0

"Botoks" is intended to be a record of the authentic history of strong, determined and expressive physicians who struggle with life's decisions and problems: discrimination, maternity pressures, the pursuit of youth, the fight for the right to free choice and own views.

Botoxx

2017

Pokaż kotku, co masz w środku poster
4.8

The plot is a series of unfortunate events happening to unremarkable characters. The father of the main character, Sigismund, unexpectedly decides to marry an unknown, mysterious woman. Shortly after this event, he loses all his money, and his son, Andrew, decides to get it back by abducting a suspicious girl, with whom he immediately falls in love. In addition, Sigismund has to face his wife's relentless admirer, and the whole, already tense enough family situation is complicated by the affair of his adult daughter. In addition, the plot is enriched by Jan Frycz in the role of a doctor who is not indifferent to the charms of his sexy nurse, an attractive student with a head full of crazy ideas, the head of a gas station, whose refueling has become a habit, as well as many unusual characters.

Pokaż kotku, co masz w środku

2011

Fanciful poster
5.0

After her mother’s death, 15-year-old Roma falls ill with a strange disease. Previously distant and emotionally cold towards the teenager, now driven by fear for his daughter’s life, her father tries to rebuild their relationship.

Fanciful

2015

2000s · 8 titles

Tomorrow, We're Going to the Movies poster
7.2

Three high school graduates prepare to start the next chapter of their lives, but the outbreak of World War II may derail their dreams forever.

Tomorrow, We're Going to the Movies

2007

Karol: A Man Who Became Pope poster
7.0

The life of the pope John-Paul II, from his youth as a writer, actor, and athlete in war-torn occupied Poland to his election as Pope at the age of 58.

Karol: A Man Who Became Pope

2005

Still Alive: A Film About Krzysztof Kieslowski poster
8.5

Maria Zmarz-Koczanowicz directed this insightful TV documentary (2005) tracing the Polish filmmaker's career. Former classmates reminisce about Kieslowski's happy beginnings at the Lodz film school and how his dissatisfaction with some of his early documentaries prompted the dramatic work and stylistic experimentation that led to his monumental series of films The Decalogue (1989). Wim Wenders, Agnieszka Holland, and Juliette Binoche are among the many admirers weighing in on his hard-driving work methods and preoccupation with the ephemeral. In Polish, French, and German with subtitles.

Still Alive: A Film About Krzysztof Kieslowski

2006

Nie kłam kochanie poster
4.9

Ania, a sensitive, shy green-architecture student, tends the gardens of an elegant building and finds herself falling for its handsome tenant, Marcin. Ambitious and adept at lying to charm women, Marcin faces a sudden financial crisis he can only escape if his wealthy aunt Nela believes he’s already married, so he must persuade Ania to pose as his wife.

Nie kłam kochanie

2008

Nachbarinnen poster
3.5

The single package-delivery woman Dora lives a somewhat reclusive life in a high-rise in Leipzig and gets through everyday life with her dry sense of humor. But her quiet, well-ordered life spins out of control when she has to hide her mysteriously fascinating Polish neighbor Jola – who believes to have accidentally killed someone. Dora is hesitant at first to take her in, but she cannot seem to shake her fascination with Jola. Dora's trust in the direct, impulsive woman grows – Jola seems to ask exactly those questions no one else dares to ask. When Dora finds out that the accusations against Jola have been lifted, she lies about the status of the police investigation in order to keep her Polish neighbor for herself.

Nachbarinnen

2005

Just Love Me poster
5.8

Modern-day Warsaw shines in this romantic comedy about the love life of a young, hip architect. In his break-out role, popular Polish television star Maciej Zakoscielny plays the handsome young professional, who is torn between two women.

Just Love Me

2006

Warszawa poster
5.3

On an ordinary winter's day, various people from outside Warsaw come to the Polish capital city for different reasons. They all have something to deal with, and their paths eventually intertwine.

Warszawa

2003

Angel in Love poster
5.7

Giordano, an angel assigned to an orphan in Krakow, is two years into the job when his celestial overseers, citing budget cuts, initiate "Phase Two" without telling him. Some changes are good - they send him a nanny, the enterprising Irena; some are bad - his phone number to Heaven no longer works nor do his special powers; and some dismay him - he grows a penis. His closest friend tells him to get a woman, and Irena advises him on hygiene. He visits a therapist, Roma, and falls in love with her. She tells him its transference. Meanwhile, Giordano's celestial friends conspire to rid Roma of her boyfriend, clearing the way for Giordano to be his naive and engaging self.

Angel in Love

2005

1990s · 10 titles

Three Colors: White poster
7.4

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.

Three Colors: White

1994

Kill Cruise poster
3.7

Two British beauties go to Barbados with a yacht captain who does not know what he's in for.

Kill Cruise

1990

The Last Days poster
5.5

Romance brings two warring families together in this historical drama. As citizens fight for independence in 1810s Lithuania, Tadeusz, the son of a murderer, and Zosia, a young woman, come together for a wedding against a backdrop of changing politics, ancient traditions, and the uncertain future of a country.

The Last Days

1999

Our God's Brother poster
5.6

In this adaptation of an historical play by Pope John Paul II, painter Albert Chmielowski decides to devote his life to helping the homeless.

Our God's Brother

1997

Abissinia poster
10.0

Antonio (Enrico Salimbeni) may not have been the most energetic waiter in the most popular restaurant in this unfashionable Adriatic tourist town, but that is no reason for his boss not to pay him. When he takes the wages that he is owed out of the till, not only does the owner throw him out, but he has him beaten up, to boot. Enzo (Mario Adorf), the owner of a restaurant so far off the beaten track it is widely known as Abissinia rather than being called by its true name, takes him in. The leisurely pace of everything that is done at the restaurant leaves Antonio with plenty of time to put together the story of its owner and the love of his life, and how he, too, fell from culinary glory to his present obscurity.

Abissinia

1993

The Conviction poster
5.5

A girl and her art professor get trapped inside a castle-museum after it closes at night. After a little resistance she agrees to have sex with him, but then she sues the professor for rape. The professor will have to prove his innocence.

The Conviction

1991

Goodbye Stranger poster
10.0

Set on the deserted North Sea island of Langeness, a lonely woman begins an affair with a stranger; only after he is identified as a political fugitive and deported does she begin to learn about his true identity and his past.

Goodbye Stranger

1991

Beautiful Stranger poster
8.0

Strangers on a train. Late in 1916, a brave and idealistic Russian officer in his 20s comes to his superiors' attention when he stands up to Rasputin at a nightclub. He's asked to carry important papers from Petersburg to Stockholm by train in the dead of winter, a dangerous mission. The first-class carriage may be full of spies, and soon after the train embarks, the man in the next compartment searches Obozow's luggage. A beautiful stranger approaches him, a woman older than he, on a concert tour; a game of cat and mouse ensues with patriotism and emotion sometimes on opposite sides. Can Obozow consummate the affair, reach Stockholm, and maintain his ideals?

Beautiful Stranger

1993

Seychelles poster
6.5

A small-time racketeer Stefek evades mob bosses by passing himself off as a mentally unstable cleptomaniac and laying low in an asylum. The racketeer and his closest devotee escape from the asylum and find work at the opera. Stefek becomes stage-doorman and soon discovers that the opera doubles as a brothel.

Seychelles

1991

No artwork available
9.0

The protagonist of the film is a 12-year-old boy - Witek, the son of a small-town miller, a former entrepreneur who, after the war, holed up in a small town as a craftsman. The boy's mother is a beautiful and subtle woman, raising children and raising a home. Through the house of Witek's parents there is a gallery of picturesque characters who are perceived by the child warmly and with humor.

Home Chronicles

1998

1980s · 25 titles

A Short Film About Love poster
7.8

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...

A Short Film About Love

1988

Taboo poster
5.9

Story of a tragic love triangle that develops between a mother daugther and a farmhand. A good-looking widow lives alone on a farm with her teenage daughter. Their neighbor occasionally helps them in the farmwork. He would have eventually married the mother, but the daughter tries to seduce him at all costs. He becomes the lover of both women, but eventually runs away leaving the mother shattered and the daughter pregnant.

Taboo

1988

No End poster
7.0

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.

No End

1985

Hanussen poster
6.5

A man's story parallels Hitler's rise. Austrian Klaus Schneider, wounded in World War I, recovers in the care of Dr. Emil Bettleheim. Bettleheim discovers that Schneider possesses powers of empathy and of clairvoyance, such that could aid suicidal patients. After the war, with one friend as his manager and another as his lover, Schneider changes his name to Eric Jan Hanussen and goes to Berlin, as a hypnotist and clairvoyant performing in halls and theaters. He always speaks the truth, which brings him to the attention of powerful Nazis. He predicts their rise (good propaganda for them) and their violence (not so good). He's in pain and at risk. What is Hanussen's future?

Hanussen

1988

Medium poster
5.6

Story of four people in Sopot in 1933, mysteriously brought together to an old villa to reenact a murder ritual that took place 36 years earlier.

Medium

1985

Big Shar poster
6.7

Fresh out of prison, a seasoned poker hustler finds himself teaching the trade to a young cab driver chasing his first big win.

Big Shar

1983

In an Old Manor House or The Independence of Triangles poster
7.0

In a country house at the turn of a century live a family of eccentrics. Anastasia, the beautiful mistress of the manor, enjoys the amorous attentions of her stepson Blarney so openly that her husband Diapanasius takes out his shotgun and shoots her. The rest of the family accepts her end as a matter-of-fact, and soon - her return as a voyeuristic ghost who interferes with their love lifes. Anastasia has a posthumous son Tadeusz, "born" by clambering out of the tree trunk. Anastasia seduces him too, and drives another men so crazy that they kill her another couple of times. Finally, Tadeusz, the arch-rebel, leads a mob on a raid of the old manor.

In an Old Manor House or The Independence of Triangles

1985

The Young Magician poster
6.3

A 12-year boy feels left out by his classmates because he has no interest in athletics. He finally discovers his calling when his parents take him to a magic show. Picked by the magician to be his helper during a trick he is drawn into the world of magic and wants to learn more. He becomes proficient in tricks and also discovers his telekinetic powers. Unfortunately that further alienates him from his peers and his parents are afraid of his powers. Things change when a national emergency arises and the government asks him to help. After success he becomes a hero and is accepted by all. Written by Polish Cinema Database.

The Young Magician

1987

Lava poster
5.6

On the eve of the Day of the Dead, among mysterious old rituals of the Vilnius region, ghosts of the past and present start to appear.

Lava

1989

Break Away poster
8.0

A doctor working on finding a substance that would inhibit the growth of certain types of cancer learns that he has cancer. He decides to try an unproven drug on himself.

Break Away

1980

First Encounter - Last Encounter poster
5.7

The story concerns the events in Saint Petersburg on the eve of the First World War. Private detective Petya Chukhontsev, a law student who has not completed his studies, investigates the case of the murdered inventor Kuklin. He was murdered exactly as he predicted during a New Year's visit to Chukhontsev. While investigating the Kuklin case, Petya soon realizes that the central figure in this case is the German Scholz, the owner, who cheaply buys up the inventions of Russian craftsmen and hands them over to the spy Siegfried Gay, an advisor to the German embassy. . However, Petya will soon understand that it is better to mind his own business...

First Encounter - Last Encounter

1987

Another Way poster
5.5

Political and sexual repression in Hungary, just after the revolution of 1956. Passionate and determined, Eva gets a job as a journalist. There, she meets Livia and is attracted to her. Livia feels much the same, but as a married woman, has doubts and hesitations. In their work, they (and Eva in particular) bang up against the limits of telling political truths; in private, they confront the limits of living out sexual and emotional truth.

Another Way

1982

Decalogue VI poster
8.0

A teenage postal worker, Tomek, routinely spies on his older neighbor Magda, a sexually liberated artist who lives in the apartment across the courtyard from his. As their private worlds merge, fascination turns to obsession, and the line between love and curiosity becomes violently blurred.

Decalogue VI

1989

Visiting Van Gogh poster
3.0

In the 22nd Century, antiquities command huge prices. A woman uses a time machine to travel back the the 19th Century in order to buy paintings from Vincent Van Gogh before he was famous. Will she be wealthy upon her return?

Visiting Van Gogh

1985

The Sinful Life of Franciszek Buła poster
5.1

The end of the 1930s. Wilek Lizoń, a true-blue Silesian, together with his troupe of actors and circus performers, stages a play in the courtyards of miners' tenement houses. The main character is Franciszek Buła, a figure from folk tales. Buła's story begins during the Silesian Uprisings. The courtyard artists present vivid images of Frank's school years, his work in the mine, his communist activities, his imprisonment, and his constant poverty. Fantasy mixes with reality.

The Sinful Life of Franciszek Buła

1980

The Twenties, the Thirties poster
6.3

On the way to Warsaw after a crude oil fraud in southern Poland, conman Adam Deren meets singer Liza. He decides to invest his money in a venture deemed to be a failure - a small cabaret where Liza could perform.

The Twenties, the Thirties

1984

Ivy poster
10.0

Kinga, a divorced woman raising her daughter Emilka, decides to change her professional life and start writing a book. Personal matters and problems with finding common ground with her child, however, throw her off balance.

Ivy

1984

Custody poster
4.5

A story of a young woman arrested by police on the day of her wedding for embezzlement, and promptly sentenced to life. She is already pregnant and has her baby in prison. Immediately after birth they are separated and only later Klara finds out that the child had a spine injury in an orphanage. After the years her sentence is shortened and she is released from prison on parole after 12 years.

Custody

1985

The Magnate poster
5.2

This Polish historical drama film traces the fascinating saga of a wealthy, princely Polish dynasty in years 1900-1935.

The Magnate

1987

Przez dotyk poster
8.0

Two women meet in the hospital.

Przez dotyk

1986

Flowers of Reverie poster
5.8

The seeming hopelessness of combatting an all-powerful government that will not tolerate political dissension is the focus of this excellent historical drama set in the mid-19th century in Hungary. In the opening scenes, Hungary has just lost its bid for independence from Austria and a Magyar officer, unable to bear the tragedy of defeat and what it means, says an affectionate good-bye to his beloved horse and then shoots the animal and himself. Two years later, Ferenc (Gyorgy Cserhalmi) is trying to eke out a living for his wife and her family -- and at the same time avoid any hint of sympathy for Hungarian independence because the Secret Police are everywhere. Just as life seems to be going well, Ferenc's former commanding officer (Lajos Oze) arrives and begins discussing revolution again -- a futile pursuit at this point in time. The next day, Ferenc is thrown into an insane asylum and everyone else is arrested as well.

Flowers of Reverie

1985

Komediantka poster
6.3

A young woman runs away from her home to the big city, gets a job in theatre and gets involved with shady characters.

Komediantka

1987

The Big Picnic poster
6.8

Rysiek is an escapee from a reform school. Julek escapes the anger of a fire brigade in a small town from which he embezzled. In search for food Rysiek breaks into a villa and discovers a bundle of cash in the freezer. They team together in Warsaw and decide to go on a rampage through the city.

The Big Picnic

1981

Enclosure poster
5.5

In one of the developing countries, local and Soviet geologists discovered a tantalum ore deposit. Having learned about this, the CIA now intends to draw the country into the American sphere of influence: to incite discontent among religious communities, organize student unrest and provoke a severance of diplomatic ties with the USSR...

Enclosure

1988

Fort 13 poster
6.5

A captain and lieutenant of the Russian army are buried in the basement of the Przemysl Fortress during the First World War.

Fort 13

1984

Series credits

The Crown of the Kings poster
6.8

Piasts' reign is coming to end on Casimir the Great, who have no sons. Polish throne comes to Anjous. Thanks to the marriage of Saint Jadwiga of Poland with Lithuanian Grand Duke Jogaila, an alliance is made and a new dynasty - Jagiellons, who rule Poland for next two hundred years

The Crown of the Kings

2018

Dekalog poster
8.3

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.

Dekalog

1989

Pan Mama poster
7.3

No synopsis available yet.

Pan Mama

2025

The Green Glove Gang poster
7.2

When their latest heist goes wrong, three older female burglars evade officials by hiding out in a nursing home — where they uncover a sinister secret.

The Green Glove Gang

2022

Zdrada poster
6.5

No synopsis available yet.

Zdrada

2024

Calling 07 poster
7.5

The series centres around the investigations of Police Lieutenant Sławomir Borewicz. Each episode features a different case being solved by Borewicz.

Calling 07

1976

My Agent poster
7.0

No synopsis available yet.

My Agent

2022

Con Artist Parade poster
8.0

A gripping cycle of Polish crime thrillers featuring a stellar cast. Each episode presents a sophisticated story of con artists from different parts of the world. The series is known for its suspenseful action and unexpected endings.

Con Artist Parade

1977

Biała wizytówka poster
8.0

The series evokes the events of 1900-35 - from the reign of Emperor Wilhelm II, through World War I, the birth of the Independent Poland, the Silesian Uprisings, to the increasingly turbulent period of the rising tide of fascism. The action takes place mainly in the palace of the Dukes of Pszczyna, where the last great descendant of the von Teuss family resides. Prince Hans Fredrich marries the beautiful Englishwoman, Princess Daisy, and has three sons with her. Their fate, the choice of completely different life paths and even different nationalities reflect the enormously complicated mutual relations between the Polish and German elements in the border areas.

Biała wizytówka

1989

Karol: A Man Who Became Pope poster
6.0

A biography of Karol Wojtyła, later known as Pope John Paul II, beginning in 1939 when Karol was only 19 years old and ending at the Papal conclave, October 1978 that made him Pope.

Karol: A Man Who Became Pope

2005

No artwork available
NR

No synopsis available yet.

Cudowne lata

2024

Układ Warszawski poster
6.5

Marek Oporny, who is a police analyst, is transferred to the police station in Czerniaków as a punishment. His new colleagues are not favorable to him. Marek will have to get along with new colleagues. "Criminal old stagers”: Kosa, Sikorek and his commissioner partner Zuza Szarek.

Układ Warszawski

2011

Magda gotuje internet poster
NR

No synopsis available yet.

Magda gotuje internet

2025

No artwork available
7.0

Italian miniseries.

Piazza di Spagna

1992