PFF24: Irena's Vow

A moving Polish-Canadian war drama directed by Louise Archambault and filmed in Warsaw and Lublin. Premiering in the Centrepiece program of the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival, it won the Audience Award at the Vancouver International Film Festival and Windsor International Film Festival. Through the eyes of a strong-willed woman comes the remarkable true story of Polish nurse Irena Gut Opdyke and her unfathomable courage as she risked her own life to save a dozen Jewish workers in the basement of a Nazi officer's house. With Germany invading Poland in 1939, Irena's life takes a perilous turn when the hospital where she worked is bombed and the 19-year-old is coerced into working for the enemy in a sewing factory. Despite being witness to unspeakable atrocities, Irena's spirit remains unbroken. She makes a silent vow to protect her Jewish factory colleagues from certain death. Recruited to serve as housekeeper to the highly respected Nazi officer Major Edward Rugemter, she hides them under his nose in the basement of his house. Over the course of two harrowing years, risking her own safety, Irena's vow is tested as she navigates the treacherous landscape of German-occupied Poland. Her stanch determination, courage and wit enable her to conceal her Jewish friends despite blackmail, denunciations and even the birth of a child, earning her the title of Righteous Among the Nations, awarded to her after the war.