East of Paradise

East of Paradise (2005)

December 10th, 20051h 48min

Documentary
70%

Overview

Filmmaker Lech Kowalski explores his belief that struggle is "the epitome of living" in this documentary which compares the wildly different life experiences of himself and his mother. Kowalski's mother came of age in Poland during the early stages of World War II, and after failed attempts to outrun both Nazi and Russian forces she and her family were sent to a Soviet concentration camp, where inmates were tortured, mistreated, and starved to the point where some ate their own lice in a desperate struggle to survive. Kowalski also depicts his own self-inflicted season in hell during his years on the New York City punk rock scene as he wallowed in the sordid underbelly of drug addiction, pornography, prostitution, and streetwise decadence. On both stories, Kowalski finds a message of hope and strength in the midst of almost certain peril.


Make sure to check your pop-up blocker!!

Trailer

Similar Movies

In Memory of Sergo Ordzhonikidze

In Memory of Sergo Ordzhonikidze


Released on: 1937-12-25
Documentary

The film is about the life and work of Grigory Ordzhonikidze Konstantinoviche, an important personal...

Andrey Tarkovsky. A Cinema Prayer

Andrey Tarkovsky. A Cinema Prayer


Released on: 2019-10-17
Documentary

An account of the life and work of Russian filmmaker Andrey Tarkovsky (1932-86) in his own words: hi...

The Living

The Living


Released on: 2009-01-01
Documentary

Tells the story of the tragic events in Ukraine in 1932-33, the genocidal Great Famine or the Holodo...

Flying Supersonic

Flying Supersonic


Released on: 2018-05-17
Documentary, TV Movie, History

Thundering across the sky on elegant white wings, the Concorde was an instant legend. But behind the...

Leninland

Leninland


Released on: 2013-11-30
Documentary

At the peak of Perestroika, in 1987, in the village of Gorki, where Lenin spent his last years, afte...

The KGB Connections: An Investigation into Soviet Operations in North America

The KGB Connections: An Investigation into Soviet Operations in North America


Released on: 1981-06-08
Documentary

Documentary - This 1982 film explains the KGB infiltration of America. Who they are, what they are d...

Strip and War

Strip and War


Released on: 2019-04-12
Documentary

The film tells the story of a small family, consisting of a grandfather retired from the army, and h...

The Shaman

The Shaman


Released on: 1997-02-05
Documentary

"Shaman" was filmed on July the 16th, 1977 in the northernmost corner of Eurasia, on the Taymyr Pen...

Revolution: New Art for a New World

Revolution: New Art for a New World


Released on: 2017-03-08
Documentary

Drawing on the collections of major Russian institutions, contributions from contemporary artists, c...

Perpetuum mobile. Raimonds Pauls

Perpetuum mobile. Raimonds Pauls


Released on: 2021-01-08
Documentary, TV Movie

Raimonds Pauls is almost 85 years old, rehearses almost every day and performs at least once a week....

Children of Chernobyl

Children of Chernobyl


Released on: 1991-01-01
Documentary

Mothers and doctors speak out about the grim reality of life in the five years following the Chernob...

Rockin' Down The Curtain: The 60ies. Beginning

Rockin' Down The Curtain: The 60ies. Beginning


Released on: 2015-08-14
Documentary, History, Music

Choosing the fate of a rock musician was similar to being a dissident. From the 60s, the Soviet Unio...

Balancing Acts: A Jewish Theatre in The Soviet Union

Balancing Acts: A Jewish Theatre in The Soviet Union


Released on: 2008-11-09
Documentary, History

Moscow, January 1948. In the bitter cold, a large crowd attends the State Funeral of the Yiddish act...

Barbarossa: Hitler Turns East

Barbarossa: Hitler Turns East


Released on: 2007-08-06
Documentary, History

Hitler's invasion of Russia was one of the landmark events of World War II. This documentary reveals...

Northern Travelogues

Northern Travelogues


Released on: 2019-03-07
Documentary

In 1917 Finnish explorer Sakari Pälsi travelled to Northeastern Siberia carrying a cinematograph and...

Target... Earth?

Target... Earth?


Released on: 1980-07-28
Documentary, Science Fiction

Really strange documentary of Wheeler Dixon production quality on the Tunguska Event and the possibi...

Soviet Union: The Rise and Fall - Part 1

Soviet Union: The Rise and Fall - Part 1


Released on: 1996-02-20
Documentary

Historic Russian battles to repel invaders serve as prelude to the story of events that redrew the m...

Soviet Union: The Rise and Fall - Part 2

Soviet Union: The Rise and Fall - Part 2


Released on: 1996-02-20
Documentary

Historic Russian battles to repel invaders serve as prelude to the story of events that redrew the m...

The Soviet Union: A New Look

The Soviet Union: A New Look


Released on: 1978-01-01
Documentary

This film discusses conditions in the Soviet Union, including party activity and influence, the shor...

Chernobyl 30 Years On: Nuclear Heritage

Chernobyl 30 Years On: Nuclear Heritage


Released on: 2015-05-06
Documentary, History, TV Movie

Thirty years after the Chernobyl disaster, which occurred on the night of April 26, 1986, its causes...