It’s common for films to provoke controversy when they are released, but it’s uncommon for them to incite such strong feelings that they never even reach theaters.
However, this was precisely the case with a film from the 1970s that was being directed by Andrzej Zulawski, a Polish filmmaker best renowned for his work on films such as Fidelity (2000) and Possession (1981).
In addition to being set in space, Zulawski’s project was in the works at the same time as the original Star Wars film. It was based on a trilogy of novels known as the Lunar Trilogy.
Unfortunately, the Polish government censored his proposal, preventing it from becoming one of the most famous and adored films ever, like Star Wars.
Zulawski’s film, On The Silver Globe, starring Andrzej Seweryn, Jerzy Trela, and Grazyna Dylag, narrated the tale of a group of astronauts who establish a community after reaching the moon.
As the crew starts to populate the moon, they discover that children born there mature far more quickly than those born on Earth. He sends video of his time on the planet back to Earth before the last of the original astronauts passes away, and a scientist named Marek discovers it.
Marek decides to experience life on the planet for himself after his wife recently left him. The moon people greet him like a messiah when he gets there.
I regret to inform you that if this sounds like the kind of movie you want to see, it has never been released in its entirety.
The Polish government at the time is thought to have been the largest obstacle to the film’s production, as they were reportedly unhappy with some of its themes being critical of the communist establishment. The movie is known to have had some budgetary problems.
As a result, some of the negatives made during filming were lost, and work on On The Silver Globe was halted before it was completed.
Speaking to Vice about the decision, actor Seweryn said: “The order of our minister of culture was the order for everybody. [Poland] didn’t have private cinema, it was a cinema of the state so stop meant stop. We tried to protest, to sign a letter, but it was without any result.”
As a result of the disruption, we will never be able to see what On the Silver Globe might have been, even though we can watch parts of it.
But Zulawski filled in some of the gaps in his film with images of ordinary Polish life in 1988 in an attempt to ensure that the world saw some of his work.
He gave a live narrative of the events that were supposed to occur during those sequences when he exhibited the film at the 1988 Cannes Film Festival.
Those who have watched what is left of On the Silver Globe have applauded the film for its uniqueness, even if Zulawski was unable to complete the film he had envisioned. The film has an excellent score of 100 percent on Rotten Tomatoes.
A critic stated: “Even out of time, even incomplete, even now that its director is gone for good, “On The Silver Globe” endures and its beautiful power will never dim.”