In Hiding Movie Review

『Between Love and Obsession in Times of War – In Hiding』

🎥 Movie Overview

🎬 Title: In Hiding (Original title: W ukryciu, 2013)
🌍 Country: 🇵🇱 Poland
🎞️ Genre: Drama / Psychological / Queer
📢 Director: Jan Kidawa-Błoński

👩‍💼 Cast: Magdalena Boczarska as Janka
Julia Pogrebinska as Estera

🧩 In-Depth Story Exploration (Spoilers)

🤝 Compassion, Distance, and Observation

In the early stages of W ukryciu (In Hiding), the relationship between Janka and Estera is characterized by tension, emotional distance, and an underlying imbalance of power.

• Estera’s existence is defined by her desperate situation as a Jewish woman hiding in the basement of Janka’s home, under the protection of Janka’s father to escape persecution. This act of hiding becomes the foundation of their relationship, and at the same time, it grants Janka immense authority over Estera’s life.

• Janka’s attitude toward Estera at first is complex and contradictory. Initially, she reluctantly cooperates with her father’s decision to shelter a Jew, displaying resentment and emotional distance. Over time, however, Janka’s curiosity about this stranger deepens—particularly toward Estera’s vivacity and sensual freedom as a former ballerina. Through Estera, Janka begins to project her own longing for a passionate life—something she has been denied within her own repressed existence.

Against this backdrop, the power dynamics between them are profoundly unequal. On the surface, Janka becomes the “master” and potential aggressor, holding the power of life and death over Estera. Meanwhile, Estera exists as a dependent victim, trapped in a confined space and forced to rely entirely on the goodwill of Janka and her father. This imbalance sets the stage for the eventual breakdown of their relationship as Janka’s affection mutates into obsession and madness.

🔥 Isolation, Sexual Awakening, and Complicity

After Janka’s father is arrested, the two women are left alone, and their relationship undergoes radical psychological and physical transformations.

• The paradox of loneliness and intimacy: The absolute isolation from the outside world and the terror of war force the two women to depend entirely on each other. This loneliness blurs emotional boundaries, while Janka’s repressed homoerotic desire becomes intensely projected onto Estera.
• Sexual tension and exchange: Janka begins to crave emotional and physical intimacy with Estera. Estera, aware of Janka’s desire, recognizes and manipulates it for her own survival. Their connection shifts from one of protection and dependency to one charged with sexual tension. (Some critics interpret this as a form of traumatic bonding or a dynamic similar to Stockholm syndrome.)
• Complicity: When Janka kills a neighbor in order to protect Estera, their relationship passes a point of no return. The murder becomes both a manifestation of Janka’s obsessive love and a means by which the two women are bound together as accomplices in crime, creating a twisted sense of shared guilt and dependency.

⛓️ Obsession, Imprisonment, and the Collapse of Desire

The postwar events expose the fact that Janka’s feelings were never pure love but a distorted form of possession.

• Refusal to release: Even after the war ends, Janka keeps Estera hidden in the basement, concealing the truth of liberation to retain her as a possession. This reveals that Janka’s attachment to Estera was not about saving her life but about fulfilling her own desire for control and emotional dependence.
• Reversal of roles: At this stage, Janka becomes the clear captor and perpetrator. Although Estera is now free to leave her physical “hiding place,” she remains trapped—both physically and psychologically—by Janka’s pathological obsession.
• The Medean parallel: As the director noted, Janka’s behavior echoes the madness of Medea, committing the worst sins in the name of love. Her obsession prioritizes her loneliness and possessiveness over Estera’s freedom and happiness, posing a disturbing question: How far can moral corruption go when it disguises itself as love?

The relationship between Janka and Estera serves as a chilling psychological case study of how extreme circumstances can erode moral boundaries and how repressed desire can devolve into madness and domination.

🔐 The Psychological Cruelty of War

W ukryciu (In Hiding) uses the familiar backdrop of World War II to examine the forbidden lesbian desire and madness that unfold between “the one who hides” and “the one who is hidden.” It portrays how the terror of war distorts human ethics and love itself, creating a deeply uncomfortable yet fascinating psychological thriller.

🎯 Personal Rating

💕 Love Scene Intensity: ♥♥♥♥
⭐ Overall Rating: ★★★★