Operation Hyacinth (film)
Operation Hyacinth () is a 2021 Polish film directed by Piotr Domalewski, written by Marcin Ciaston and starring Tomasz Ziętek, Hubert Miłkowski, and Marek Kalita. The drama is based on the Operation Hyacinth (Polish: Akcja "Hiacynt"), which was a secret mass operation of the Polish communist police, carried out in the years 1985–87. Its purpose was to create a national database of all Polish homosexuals and people who were in touch with them. The film was well received by critics. Plot 
Robert is in his mid-twenties and new to the Citizens' Militia (MO). His father Edward holds a senior position and is keen for his son to follow in his footsteps. Robert and his partner, Wojtek, investigate a case in which a serial murderer has been targeting gay men in Warsaw. Robert befrieds a German-language student Arek in order to infiltrate the local gay scene for the investiagtion. As he does so, he discovers a tangle of lies, blackmail, and cover-ups. Production

Direction and screenplay 
Director Piotr Domalewski was born in 1983 and grew up in Łomża. After completing his secondary education, he enrolled at the Aleksander-Zelwerowicz Academy for Drama in Białystok and began his study of puppet shows. After his exams, he continued his education until 2009 at the Faculty for Drama at the AST National Academy of Theatre Arts in Kraków. As an actor, he appeared in the Wybrzeże Theatre and worked with directors such as Anna Augustynowicz, Grzegorz Wiśniewski and Ewelina Marciniak. At this time he shot the short film Stranger, an adaptation of Robert Musil's The Man Without Qualities. His feature film debut Silent Night () received multiple awards including best film at the Gdynia Film Festival. Domalewski's second feature film I Never Cry () premiered in September 2020. Marcin Ciastoń drew inspiration for the screenplay from Operation Hyacinth, an action undertaken by the Polish secret services in the 1980s. The operation targeted the country's gay community, and the material gathered was used to extort men and to enforce their cooperation. Launched under the pretext of tackling the AIDS epidemic and prostitution, Operation Hyacinth saw a significant number of homosexuals imprisoned, arrested, or otherwise persecuted. Cast 
 Tomasz Ziętek as Robert Mrozowski
 Hubert Miłkowski as Arek
 Marek Kalita as Edward Mrozowski
 Adrianna Chlebicka as Halinka
 Tomasz Schuchardt as Wojtek
 Sebastian Stankiewicz as Maciek
 Jacek Poniedziałek as Dignitary
 Piotr Trojan as Kamil
 Agnieszka Suchora as Ewa Mrozowska
 Tomasz Włosok as Tadek
 Mirosław Zbrojewicz as Commander
 Andrzej Klak as Agent with a scar
 Adam Cywka as Professor Mettler
 Jakub Wieczorek as Sleuth

Reception

Accolades

See also
Cinema of Poland
List of LGBT-related films

References

External links 
 
 

2021 films
2021 crime drama films
Polish-language films
Polish-language Netflix original films
Polish drama films
Polish crime drama films
Polish LGBT-related films
Gay-related films
Films set in the 1980s
Films set in Warsaw