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TELEWlZJ A POLSKA
presents
PLAYlNG FOR HlGH STAKES
Brilliant Plan of Colonel Kraft
written by
music by
as Lieutenant Kloss
starring
photography
production manager
directed by
- You are late, Janek. - Yes.
- Do you have everything? - Almost everything.
And the information from Bialystok? lt's particularly important.
Joanna hasn't arrived yet.
The train must be late.
From Brzoza the data about the second move of the army Center squad.
From Zawisza-dislocation of the armored division Preussdeutschland.
Oh, yes. The courier has arrived from Lvov.
Staff changes in the police and SD in that area.
All right. l' l l write the report right away.
Listen Wojtek.. .
Joanna shouldn't travel by this route any more.
She must be transferred somewhere else.
Yes. l've already thought of that. lt's her last trip to Bialystok.
Will you have some tea? Or maybe something stronger?
Code and send it.
And Joanna should rest for some time.
l've got good sausage. Would you like some.
l've just been to the country. l thought l'd get nothing.
Cottages crowded like stores. Here you are.
Do you trade?
l have a friend who trades too, in saccharine.
No, saccharine doesn't sell wel l now.
Now you take needles and threads to the country. Farmers sew now.
l'm an expert in this field. l have my own customers and purvyeors.
With a bit of luck and gumption you can do pretty wel l.
l can see you enjoy trading.
So when the war is over you will go to a trade school .
No, l'd rather study medicine or something.
l've met... no doctors on this line.
There are hardly any doctors. But stil l l meet various people.
One man for example, a good actor by the way.. .
bought half a pig l had wanted to buy.
l didn't have that much money. He outbid my price and won.
Next, a doctor of Roman law.. .
took me to his place after we had escaped from a round-up.
His wife, professor of philosophy, was making moonshine.
And do you trade too?
What's happenned?
Nothing.
Please, take it to 1 1 Sliska street apartment 1 9a,
and say: l've been sent by Tadeusz, the tailor''.
But why?
Please, maybe everything is all right, maybe l am wrong.
lf it isn't true l' ll be waiting for you by the clock in front of the station.
Come quickly!
lt's her! Take her!
Get up!
Enter.
Come closer.
Closer.
What's your name?
Joanna Perkowska.
Repeat. Well , l can't hear you.
Perkowska.
The pass. ..
the permit to enter German-occupied Poland.. ..
al l stamps on the lD card...
on the labor card...
All the papers are in order.
Yes, it's a mistake. That man must have made a mistake.
You can show such papers to gendarmes but not to us.
Or maybe you don't know that you are at Gestapo, you idiot?
Maybe you don't know that all your papers are forged?
Our railwayman was right. He recognized you.
He says you kept him at a pistol point for a quarter of an hour.. .
when you ruffianly assaulted our train. lt was a few months ago.
But he recognized you.
l' m not surprised.
lt's a mistake. l don't know what you are talking about.
- Have you heard of colonel Kraft? - l suppose l've heard this name.
You've been assigned to his command.
lt's an honour. Kraft's school usually ends in promotion.
- You are sending me to school? - Wel l, not as a student.
l say: ''school'', but Kraft calls his college Oxford. ..
as it trains gantlemaen. Don't you understand yet?
The people we send...
l believe, not only to the homeland of gentlemen though certainly there too.
- What do you think of that? - l will try.
Have a good and successful service.
We should celebrate our farewell . lt was nice working with you.
Good-bye.
The meeting-point number 1 is blown.
We are going to Wojtek.
So, what's happened?
The conductor of the Bialystok train reported that a woman was arrested.
lt was Joanna.
What did she know?
She knew about Sliska street, about me, Tadek.
She may have known something about you. And she was carrying a coded message.
l told you to withdraw her from that route, didn't l?
lt's no use talking about it now. What shal l we do?
- l' l l try to find what Gestapo knows. - lt won't be easy.
lnform the headquarters. Suggest changing the code.
Can you organize the observation of the meeting-point at Sliska street?
We've got one more apartment nearby. l' ll have Tadek watch it.
Dangerous. The Germans may search the building.
Sure, they may.
Listen, isn't it possible to do somthing for Joanna?
Major Horst? lt's Kloss speaking.
Sir, l'd like to invite you to dinner tomorrow. ..
Thank you, sir. Working with you was a pleasure for me too.. .
But of course. The girl is welcome too. By al l means.. .
l don't have one.. . Wel l, it can't be helped...
Yes, Hilda has lots of friends.. .
So maybe Gerda Lesche? She seems a nice girl.
- Lieutant Kloss? - Yes.
Colonel Kraft is awaiting you.
l've heard much about you.
Are you looking forward to our cooperation?
Yes, l am , sir.
- Do you know Polish? - Yes, l do.
- The folklore? - Too.
- And the anti-German jokes? - Some of them, sir.
Try to collect as many of them as possible.
l have a student here, whose education requires particular concern.
He used to be Polish for many years but now he is German.
- Do you understand? - Yes, sir.
l' m going to show him to you now. Have a good look at him. ..
...and next report about your impressions to me.
Come in!
Gentlemen, let me introduce you to each other.
This Eric Gotting, about whom l've told you so much.
He has helped us a lot ever since he understood he is German to the core.
Wait for a moment. l' ll be right back.
- Where are you going? - To a girlfriend.
- You're kidding. - Sure l am.
But honestly, where are you going?
A very good tailor lives here.
l'm having a tailcoat sewn.
- When will you grow up? - When l've put on a tailcoat.
Crazy.
Really, it's nothing serious.
Wel l, did it take long?
To be col lected the day after tomorrow.
No, thanks. You could have asked first.
But why not? Thank you.
- Will you come here again? - l don't know.
But it's real ly nothing serious.
This is Eric Gotting, colonel Kraft's student and agent.
l don't know this girl .
The elderly man by the tenants' list is an Abwehr employee.
This means.. .
that they know our adrress at Sliska street.
Joanna ratted.
Apparently. ..
Yet not everything is clear to me. Practically, nothing is clear to me.
l don't understand why they didn't search the place. ..
why they didn't lay an ambush.. .
why that boy came with a girlfriend and why that guy from Abwehr fol lowed him.
Guard.
Maybe.. .
Eric is probably supposed to be a spotter. They want to penetrate us.
Or maybe. ..
Maybe what?
Colonel Kraft didn't assign me any particular task.
He only showed Gotting to me.
Now it seems to me he real ly meant to show me to Gotting.
- Do you think they got our track? - l know nothing.
They know about Sliska street.
And what about the message Joanna was carrying?
- We have to warn the headquarters. - l've already reported that.
The haedquarters are interested in the Abwehr school.
- They suspect something. - Yes, that's clear.
Maybe.. .
- you should disappear for a while? - lt's not that easy.
l' ll have the girl and Gotting watched and then we shal l see what next.
So you are sure it's him?
No doubt about it. lt's the same face.
- Pachlavi harbor. - The place of loading and transit.
The loading of rock-oil usual ly takes place in Abadan and Bandarmashur.
The main pipeline from Patsaran runs through Hurramabant.
The psedonym of the man that helped you? Faster!
... Lieutenant Jelen.
You must be always ready for a change of subject.
- The results of the training? - Very good, sir.
You have very little time, and time is of great value now.
Yes, sir.
- So you are at last. - We are.
- Did he flirt with you? - How prying you are.
- Did you flirt with me? - Maybe. ..
Lieutant was one of my most handsome officers. Cheers, Kloss.
- Tired? - No, l'm not.
- Let's dance. - Let's sit a while longer.
But we shall not talk about Gestapo any more, shal l we?
But if you wish we can talk even about that.
What are you interested in?
- l'm interested in you, Gerda. - That's good.
Will you have a drink?
Gentlemen...
- Lieutenant Kloss. - Dehne.
Pour out for me.
- lt's good l see you, Gerda. - Why? What's up, Johan?
Nothing special . A woman cut her veins.
So we will probably never learn what her real name was.
Would you like to dance?
- Were they leaving? - No, they weren't.
lf the girl leaves alone, you follow her.
O.K.
- lf l don't turn up before the curfew. - Why? Are you leaving?
l want to help Kryska cut out a coat and if l linger l' l l stay overnight.
- Are you crazy? - She asked me.
l wonder if that girl was also going to her friend.
What girl?
Just like you : young and pretty. They took her.
Listen. Are you sure it's worth getting yourself into trouble.
You may be caught in a round-up too.
But you may just as wel l break your leg on an even path.
Why don't you let sleeping dogs lie.
Stop biting fingers.
You've carried enough of these news-sheets. Let others take the risks.
Others. There are such people who only want to survive.
Yes, it's true. l want to survive. And you wish l were some damned hero!
- Wacek! - l' m sorry.
l didn't ask you why you went to Sliska street, did l .
- But that's something different. - You see.
Here you are.
Hello, Wojtek.
What about Joanna?
Won't have some beer?
Report. What do you know about the girl?
An orphan. Her name is Barbara Borzemska.
The janitor doesn't know much about her family.
- The boy has moved in quite recently. - Connections?
She's visited Ewa Wojtowicz in Marszalkowska street.
As l was standing by the entrance l saw young boys enter the same apartment.
Wojtek, what about Joanna?
Wel l, so she may be in conspiracy. We have to make it clear.
lf she is in conspiracy she must be already aware of that.
l don't quite understand.
lf he is such a sly agent, as Janek says, then the girl .. .
Either knows nothing or is under his command.
Listen, Wojtek.
What about Joanna?
Joanna is dead.
Please, be seated.
We shall finish in a minute.
Every single detail is important. They will be examining you even at night.
- Your address? - 6 Benedyktynska street.
Why did you leave her?
l didn't leave her. She was arrested by the authorities in occupation.
Wrong! No Pole would say: authorities in occupation.
- l understand. By the Germans. - Huns. ..Hitlerites.. .
Simply: they arrested her.
- l understand. - Her pseudonym?
But that hasn't been mantioned.
Reflection again. You are supposed to know her pseudonym.
lf there is a gap in the information, you have to fill the gap yourself.
You are to take risks. And now speak warmly about her.
l loved her very much.
You should emphasise her beauty, say that she cared for you...
that she was a patriot.
Well, that's enough for today. You are free now.
How do you like our charge?
- l don't know him wel l enough yet, sir. - You like to hurry, don't you?
No, l don't. But l like to know what is expected of me.
Waiting, lieutenant Kloss. ..
is often the most difficult task for an intelligence service officer.
l know, sir.
You enjoy working, don't you.
Wel l, then first you wil l talk to Eric about the Polish relations.
Next you will test his knowledge of the Polish reality.
What do you think of practical training, sir?
What do you mean?
l don't even know if you let Gotting walk out in the city, sir.
Do others get any passes or perhaps. .. are assigned any tasks?
Why are you asking, Kloss?
Because it seems to me, sir, that l saw him in the street.
But slightly differently dressed.
- You are already here! - l am still here.
Can you imagine.. .
Kraft was by no means astonished to hear that l had seen Gotting in the street.
He wasn't even surprised.
lt seems to me that my assignment to the Abwehr school.. .
is your last assignment in the German army?
l told Tadek about Joanna's death.
Do you know how she behaved during the examination?
l learned nothing from Gerda.
What are the results of the reconnaissance?
The guy whose name, as you say, is Eric Gotting. ..
was in Sliska street again today.
After that he stayed at his girl-friend's al l day.
What?!
Tel l your men that if they have a serious task...
Oh, you... !
l saw Eric Gotting in the Abwehr school this afternoon.
Even an idiot knows that one man can't be at two different places at one time.
Stefan is standing sentry at the gate. Shall l cal l him?
Do it.
- l don't believe our men failed us. - You don't believe that?
They claim they spent the whole day in Benedyktynska street?
And l saw him at Kraft's. Do you understand? l saw him !
Did you leave your post today?
Janek! l swear to God l stood in front of that girl's apartment-house al l day.
lt's not my firstjob.
Are you sure he didn't leave the place?
l swear.
- Go back to your post. - Yes, sir.
Tel l me how it was possible,
that one guy was at two different places at the same time.
Or that Stefan. ..
- Or. .. - What do you mean?
So far - nothing.
There is also another possibility.
What's up?
l want to report that at present. ..
both the girl and the boy are in the apartment in Benedyktynska street.
The janitor claims, the guy's name is Waclaw Slowikowski.
Listen.
Tomorrow we open the meeting-point at 1 1 Sliska street.
l've been sent by Tadeusz, the tailor.
- Al l right. - l was to deliver this.
One moment if you don't mind.
- Who did you get it from? - From a girl l met in a train.
They arrested her. She asked me to deliver it here so here l am.
l don't want to have anything to do with it.
How was the girl arressted?
Gendarmes dragged her out of the compartment.
Some German railwayman pointed at her.
And she managed to give you this note?
Wel l, yes.
- l'd better be going. - This way, please.
Wel l, Eric Gotting.. .
l must admit that you played your role perfectly.
l'm not Eric..
- l'm not Gotting. - Let's finish this piece of acting.
You don't have to act in my presence.
l haven't noticed anything.
The boy seems to have come here alone.
Nothing is certain yet.
Watch the apartment 1 9. lf you see anyone wanting to enter it...
- Give a signal to the guards. - Yes, sir.
And watch the window of that apartment. lf you see the window is curtained.. .
the boy is to be done away with. Not here, of course.
And the girl?
There is no decision yet.
So you claim that you are not German and that Gotting is not your name?
l do.
So you are in col lusion with the Polish bandits.
- Who sent you here? - l ...don't know anything.
But we know everything. What did the girl look like?
l don't know. lt was dark in the train. l didn't even see her face.
l advise you to think it over.
The only rescue for you.. . is to tell the truth.
- You say your name is Slowikowski? - Wacek.
And what is your girl-friend's name?
- You don't want to talk, do you? - l don't know anything.
The operation is cal led off.
Tadek, follow him.
l've got something for you.
Some sausage from Danka.
Shall l make tea for you?
Why are you standing like that?
Where have you been?
You've been to Sliska street again.
Zosia asked us to visit her in the country. Shal l we go there?
- What's wrong with you? - Nothing.
What do you mean: nothing. Something is wrong.
- l can't tel l you that. - Then do as you wish.
Bacha, you wouldn't understand it anyhow.
- What if l told you they had found me? - lndeed l don't understand anything.
l know that you always want to stand aloof. You never get involved.
l hoped they had lost any trce of me, that they had forgotten about me.
l was happy.
l knew it wouldn't work.
And why can't you buy any pork for coupons?
Because the last swine got registerd on the Volksdeutscher list.
This is not the way you tell jokes. lt should be amusing, shouldn't it, Kloss?
- Of course. - Well, suggest something more.
- What does a real Nordic look like? - Fair-haired like Hitler. ..
slim like Goring. .. tall like Goebbels.
That's enough. You may leave.
You've been waiting for a seroius assignment. You will get it today.
- l' m listening. - But first, maybe a few details.
Eric Gotting signed the Volksdeutscher list already in 1 939.
He comes from Ostrow Wielkopolski. His mother was Polish. ..
and his father German. Anyway they are both dead already.
Eric has only a brother, a twin brother who refused to sign the list.
He ran away and is hiding from us.
He is hiding! Obviously we found him easily.
Now his name is Waclaw Slowikowski. lt's his mother's maiden name.
He is living here now with a girl named Barbara Borzemska.. .
who is probably in conspiracy.
The boy has no definite connections but is said to be a good Pole.
A brilliant idea came to my mind.
We will substitute our Eric Gotting for the honest Pole, Slowikowski.
They are as like as two peas in a pod.
Great. And what next?
A good question.
The information l am going to reveal to you now, is top secret.
We've received no satisfactory reports from Syria and Palestine for some weeks.
l 've decided to send Eric Gotting as Slowikowski there.
Do you understand?
Let the allied intelligence check on him.
Brilliant. How do you want to do that?
And this is the assignment for you.
Just have these two young men exchange their roles.
Only Eric Gotting wil l become Slowikowski. ..
- and Slowikowski. .. - That's clear.
What does Eric think of that? lt's his brother after all .
l promised Eric that his brother would survive the war.
And you wil l keep your promise, won't you.
l have not the slightest intention of doing that.
l hope, lieutenant, that you've been in the intelligence service long enough...
not to sentimentalize.
We have to do everything to secure our object.
l' m of the same opinion, sir.
lnvestigate this, please... and then report to me.
What has happened?
l know everything now.
l've assigned Kloss a particularly responsible task.
You've given a very good opinion about Kloss. Do you still uphold it?
Yes, l do.
Al l right then.
l have nothing against him. ..
but he is.. .
. ..too perceptive.
lncidentally, he met a man he should have known nothing about up to this day.
So that's the thing.
- They know nothing about Sliska street. - Probably not.
You see, Kraft is a very dangerous partner.
He is a man from the old school of Abwehr.
- What are you planning? - l don't know yet.
According to Kraft's plan, Slowikowski is to be killed.
And l have orders to arrest his girl-friend.
What shall we do with the girl?
We have to do something about it. She is in the Home Army, isn't she?
Probably.
But you know that al l contacts with her commanding staff.. .
Yes, l do.
Send her to the woods.
- How? - How, how!
Let Tadek take her to some transfer-point.
And you have to talk to Slowikowski. Explain everything to him.
Do you think he will agree to it?
He has to agree. The stake is high.
We have a chance of penetrating the German spy ring in the Near East.
- lt's here. - When will you be back?
Late. We will have to wait for the new issue.
- l worry about you. - Silly boy.
When everything is over you wil l stop worrying.
Go now.
- What are you doing here? - Easy, boy. You will learn soon.
- Do you have tea? - Yes, l do.
l've brought some sugar. Make some tea.
l' l l wait here.
- Have you chosen the operation site? - Yes, sir.
A three-storeied tenant-house in the suburbs, 1 0 S zewska street.
Perfect. And now the first part of our plan. ..
Come in!
Sit down !
You will write a letter to your brother.
''l do have to see you.
My life is at stake.
Meet me at 4 p.m. tomorrow. .. at 1 0 S zewska street.. .
apartment...''
Twenty two.
''Apartment 22.''
Yes. This wil l do.
Thank you.
l don't need to worry about my brother, do l?
l don't like such questions. My word should suffice.
- ls it a big apartment? - There are four rooms.
The guard, as we said, will remain downstairs.
- Wil l you manage, Kloss? - Yes, l wil l, sir.
l wouldn't like to be in your position if the operation is not a success.
Eric Gotting has to leave that place as Waclaw Slowikowski.
Waclaw Slowikowski.
Basia. ..here is a letter from Wacek to you.
- What's happened to him? - He's been given a new assignment.
Where is he now?
l' l l take you to a place where you will be able to wait for him.
But l. ..have to. ..
Your apartment is blown. You can't go there.
You have to do nothing. You wil l go with me.
You are punctual.
- So Wacek is already here. - Yes, he is.
- Shall l see him? - lt's not necessary. Come in.
Sit down, Gotting. Let's talk a bit.
- How are we going carry out our plan? - lt's very simple.
You will change into your brother's clothes and leave as Waclaw Slowikowski.
And then you wil l start playing your part.
l understand.
What are we waiting for?
l like such cynical young men.
You know, of course, what will happen to your brother?
- Yes, l do. He wil l survive the war. - You are wrong.
Your brother wil l be liquidated.
- What did you say? - What you heard.
- But colonel Kraft promised. .. - Kraft?
Do you stil l trust that old swine? Don't you know yet what the rules are?
And who gave the gymnasium organization away to the local Gestapo in Chojnice?
l wil l tell everything to colonel Kraft.
Do you think so? Try! A louse like you doesn't care much.. .
about his brother's death. Your conscience is guilty enough.
You are a traitor! l' ll hold up the operation !
You stil l have some time. You can still change something in your life.
You traitor!
That was inevitable. But we didn't shoot him.
Colonel Kraft's plan was simple.
You were to leave this place in his uniform and be shot as Eric Gotting.
- What shall l do now? - Calm down.
Now you are a German agent FG-89.
So that would be al l for now, Eric. You can leave in two days.
One more thing. The meeting-points and the password l told you.. .
are top secret. Don't breathe a word of this.
Neither to the school instructors nor to lieutenant Kloss.
Yes, sir.
You haven't asked me about your brother. lt's good you haven't.
l know everything. l've seen the notices.
He was kil led by the Polish bandits.
Yes, exactly. He was kil led by the Polish bandits.
And we wanted him to survive. .. And one more thing.
That girl slipped away. How was that possible?
- l don't understand. - l don't understand either.