Absolute Beginners (2023)
EPISODE INFO
Lena becomes frustrated as she attempts to finish the film on time; ridden with guilt, Igor takes control of his future.
Genres: Drama, Romance, LGBTQ+
Network: Netflix
Air Date: Oct 25, 2023
Opening Shot: A rocky shoreline at dusk. A woman who’s yelping climbs down a rocky hill, a man going after her. They both spot a third person struggling in the water.
The Gist: Lena (Martyna Byczkowska) and Niko (Bartłomiej Deklewa) have been best friends for years, and they’ve spent the summer making a student film to submit to a film school they want to attend. With the help of Niko’s father Pawełek (Andrzej Konopka), they do a lot of by-the-seat-of-their pants shoots, like a romantic scene shot on a real departing train, without a permit, then speeding to the next stop so Niko can get on the train to shoot a different scene.
Their families are also close; they share a cabin near the beach, where they all gather after the train scenes are shot. Lena’s mother Tamara (Kasia Warnke) and stepfather Dawid (Piotr Witkowski) are planning to move to Milan to start a new business, but Niko’s mother Bogusia (Anna Krotoska) is concerned that the change will be too much for Lena, who is on the autism spectrum, especially if she doesn’t get into film school like she and Niko are counting on.
Lena is intent on filming a realistic love scene with Niko, to the point where she has storyboarded out every explicit move. He’s not sure such detail is needed, but it does seem that Lena’s reasons for making such a scene so explicit go way beyond just the movie they’re making.
In the meantime, Igor (Jan Sałasiński) is in summer training camp for the local high school basketball team. He’s the team’s captain, but he’s questioning his coach’s faith in him and doesn’t seem to want to set the example his coach wants him to set. He’d rather bum around the beach with the guys and have some casual sex with Malwina (Paulina Krzyżańska), who is also a friend of Niko’s.
In trying to shoot a cliffside scene, Igor, his buddies and Malwina interrupt the scene; Malwina wonders to Niko why he hasn’t gone for it with Lena, when it’s pretty obvious the two are attracted to each other.
Lena makes an attempt to “rehearse” the scene with Niko, but he just thinks the whole thing is a bad idea, because he doesn’t want things to change between them. “But what if it gets better?” she asks. When he turns down her advances, she sobs in Niko’s mother’s arms. Then, when she finds out that her parents want to sell their half of the cabin to fund their new business, the amount of change becomes overwhelming. She runs off, yelping and shaking her hands, with her mom yelling at her not to behave like that.
Igor, feeling misunderstood, tries to open up to Malwina, but she just wants to have sexy fun times with him. So he goes out for a swim; as he gets in trouble in the water, Niko and Lena manage to save his life; she also happens to film the scene, just in case they need it.
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