Pawlikowski's "Ojczyzna" opens in US cinemas with Oscars in its sights

Paweł Pawlikowski's "Ojczyzna" opened in American cinemas over the weekend before 26 October 2026. According to WP Film, the Polish production was released in the United States not only to earn some money, but above all so that it can compete for awards from the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Box office

In its opening weekend the film showed in only four US cinemas. Even so, it achieved the second-highest per-location average takings of the week, above $20,000.

The road to the Oscars

A month earlier, the Polish Oscar committee chose "Ojczyzna" as the country's entry in the best international feature category. WP Film says the drama could also make a splash in other categories.

Pawlikowski won the best director award for the film at the Cannes festival. He already has an Oscar for "Ida" (2015, best foreign-language film) and a nomination for "Cold War" (2019).

The author also names Sandra Hüller as a strong contender. She was nominated two years ago for her role in "Anatomy of a Fall". He also mentions cinematographer Łukasz Żal, who has already been nominated twice, for "Ida" and "Cold War".

Reviews

On Rotten Tomatoes the film has 91% positive reviews. Owen Gleiberman of Variety described it as a perceptive drama about the torn soul of post-war Germany. He praised the care taken in its making and called it elegant, polished and fascinating.

What the film is about

The story is set in Germany in 1949. The writer and Nobel laureate Thomas Mann (Hanns Zischler) returns to his homeland for the first time since fleeing to the US. With his daughter Erika (Sandra Hüller) he travels in a black Buick from Frankfurt, controlled by the Americans, to Weimar, which lies in the Soviet sphere of influence. Joanna Kulig also appears in the film, as a jazz band vocalist.