Polish Prayers

The tenth edition of Polish Pride parades a colorful trail of rainbow flags through the streets of Warsaw. Along the route, Antek and his friends line up to warn of the “pink threat” in prayer and edifying hymns. As traditional Catholics, he and his Brotherhood hold deeply conservative views: sex before marriage is out of the question, homosexuality can be cured, abortion is a great evil and Poland is for the Poles. His sister thinks his homophobic ranting is pointless, because in a few years the planet will be destroyed anyway as nobody is doing anything about climate change.

For a long time, as this observational portrait follows him in measured chapters from church visits to demonstrations, festivities and Brotherhood meetings, Antek seems completely in his element in his right-wing Catholic world. Around him, couples get married young to start procreating. But when Antek himself falls in love, doubts begin to set in—first about the prohibition of premarital sex, and ultimately about the existence of God.