Ope, Kurwa! (1998)
| Ope, Kurwa! | |
|---|---|
 Midwestern theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Nicholas Johnson |
Release dates | December 4th, 1998 |
Ope, Kurwa! (1998) is an action film written by Nicholas Johnson set in a near-future 2015, about a Polish descendant Midwestern soldier and a Polish soldier being 2 of 5 survivors in a helicopter crash with a subplot of them discovering shared heritage. The movie is renowned internationally for its creative use of language. Johnson claims he came up with the idea for the film in 1993 while playing with his dog. Production began in the fall of 1994, posters released in the spring of 1998, and it released on December 4th, 1998.
The film uses code-mixing in character dialogue, multiple languages being used in conversation, such as instead of goodnight being used, the protagonists would say "Dobranoc." meaning the same thing.
Production
Plot
Setting
The film is set in 2015, where a unstated western country, speaking an english-sounding language, has invaded the Midwest Union on June 4th a year prior, and the rest of the Warsaw Pact comes to its aid.
Story
Reception
Many drew comparisons of the unnamed western country to the Western States of America, and the film being an allegory for the WSA's constant threat of expansion to sovereign states.
International audiences appreciated the use of multiple languages, while English dialogue was translated, Polish, Russian, and Western-Gibberish were all kept for international release. During release in Slavic countries, the Polish and Russian slang was replaced with English slang, flip flopping the code-mixing. Poland and the Soviet Union officially commented on it as a "heart warming story, showing the goodness in knowing where you come from, and connecting with those who share that."