'Professor Wilczur', the adaptation by Jerzy Hoffman of a beloved literary best—seller, is a clever Polish melodrama about a hugely talented surgeon who becomes an amnesiac and, under the name Antoni Kosiba, wanders through rural Poland in search of jobs. At last he settles with an Orthodox family and cures the son of the host by performing an orthopedic intervention. Then Antoni passes from orthopedics to neurosurgery.The script is, like the novel, replete with the devices of a melodrama. The cinematography is delicious; the cast seems mostly average, except for the hot blonde widow who tempts, unsuccessfully, poor Antoni.

I never saw this film when it was in the Soviet Union in the 1983-84. Only this year could I get a DVD and watch it. What a pleasure! What a serious, deep, moving and touching work of ever excellent Jerzy Hoffman! The story is quite thrilling - a famous surgeon is beaten by drunken bullies, loses his memory and cannot recollect who he was before. he gets to a village, lives in a not so well to do family and becomes the Quack - he slowly regains his talent for medicine and saves the lives of several village patients. The film is warm, sweet and rich in details, the colors are impeccable and the play of the main actor just excellent. He looks so frail, although he is very strong both physically and mentally. He behaves so modestly but then he is the victor both over death and the fate. This is a bit slow, but very serious film, very thoughtful and very romantic - tears are on eyes not once or twice during the watching. Very good work - highly recommended!

This film is excellent for its plot and message but an even better version of it is a black and white oldie made before the WWII!! This version follows the original plot which is what is so good about the movie and it keeps the viewer interested in how the story will unfold and who will win in the end; however, the black and white version is better because it is far more dramatic. Besides the timing, of filming the movie, being closer to a time when such a story could have taken place, the very format of old film-making gives it this strange old feel that this could have really happened. The black and white colors suits this story very well and the acting is excellent. I saw this film first when I was 10, then 12 and now at 27 I still love it.

An excellent story about a talented surgeon who is abandoned by his wife with a young daughter. Stricken with grief he gets drunk, is robbed and badly beaten. As a result he suffers from amnesia and for years wonders from settlement to settlement working as a laborer. Finally he gets a job in a mill and driven by an impulse helps mill-owner's son to walk again after an accident. Gradually people start crowding to see the famous 'quack'. In the meantime, in the neighboring town a young lady who works as a shop assistant is courted by a son of local count, who opposes his son's choice. The lady and the young count get badly hurt in a motorcycle accident and the quack saves their lives. Arrested for practicing medicine without qualifications he gets rescued by the grateful patients. During the court hearings he regains his memory and realizes that the young lady he saved is his daughter. Well acted, good script - well worth watching. One can only hope that one day it will released on a DVD with English subtitles.