Wideoteka

***Wideoteka*** (Ditrovian: *Videotheque*) is a 1983 Zatranian science fiction neo-noir film written and directed by Michał Szempliński. Set in a dystopian future Wazada of 2036, the film stars Krystian Tarło as a government agent attempting to rescue his kidnapped wife, while unearthing a government conspiracy in the process.

The film first went into pre-production in 1976, but its production was halted by the administration of Leonid Strzałkowski due to its depiction of a tyrannical Zatranian government, which Szempliński later admitted was inspired by Strzałkowski and his government. Following Strzałkowski's death in 1979, and the subsequent liberalization of the Zatranian government under his son Roman Strzałkowski, the film reentered pre-production. With a budget of $18 million, it was the most expensive Zatranian film ever made at the time, with Szempliński having secured funding from his relationships with international production companies.

Upon its release in 1983, *Wideoteka* was a smash hit in Zatrania, with many critics citing it as a turning point in Zatranian cinema. With a box office gross of $94 million, it was a commercial success and the most-successful Zatranian film of the year. The film also performed well in foreign film markets internationally. *Wideoteka* received critical acclaim for its directing, writing, performances, cinematography, music, visuals, and universe-building both within Zatrania and internationally, with a number of critics citing it among the best films of the year. A corresponding soundtrack containing original songs performed by Szafir was released alongside the film, which went on to become a massive success within Zatrania.

Due to its success, a Ditrovian remake of the film was later released in 1987, directed by Harry Sedgwick. The remake went on to become a critical and commercial success as well, often being cited as one of the best films of the decade, and one of the best science fiction films ever made.

## Plot summary

In July 2036, Kino Królikowski is a junior agent serving with the Cyber Investigations Unit of the Zatranian Federal Investigative Authority, a secret police branch designated for investigating crimes involving emerging technologies and patrolling the cyber world. After receiving an anonymous tip regarding the usage of illegal black market *onerizers* – devices used to record the memories of others and allow users to "relive" them – at a local cyber brothel (known as a "videotheque"), Kino decides to investigate. Arriving at Nightingale Videotheque (*Wideoteka Słowika*) undercover, his cover is almost blown by a cyber prostitute (known as a "videogirl") named Saśa, until a separate law enforcement squad storms the building in a raid, and Kino is knocked unconscious in the chaos.

Awakening in his bedroom the next morning, Kino presumes that the previous night was simply a vivid dream. That morning, he discovers a handwritten letter from his wife Żana, a successful business executive, stating that following a family emergency, she had gone to stay with her sister in Brinsk for a few days, leaving early in the morning. Despite finding the note odd, Kino thinks nothing of it and opts to go along with his day. While at work, vivid images of the previous night replay in his head, including his conversation with Saśa, although his memory abruptly stops shortly after the raid begins. Suddenly, Kino receives a phone call from a hysterical Żana, begging Kino to rescue her, before the call is disconnected. Frantic, Kino returns to his home, only to find it has been ransacked. While searching his disheveled home for a clue, he discovers a onerizer, containing a pre-loaded memory of the brutal murder of a videogirl in a back alley. While disturbed, he recognizes the location of the murder, and decides to go there to investigate.

At the scene of the murder, Kino discovers that the alley is located behind Nightingale Videotheque, and after completing the reenactment of the memory, realizes that the murdered videogirl is Saśa. Now piecing together that his wife's kidnapping and his dream from the previous night are connected, Kino enters the videotheque, only to be greeted by Saśa, who is alive. Furious, Kino accuses Saśa of being behind his wife's kidnapping and planting the onerizer with a false memory to lead him to believe Żana is the victim of a serial killer. Saśa proclaims her innocence and explains to Kino that the onerizer was produced for a customer – oftentimes, videogirls create false memories in onerizers using illicit technology in order to satisfy customers' sexual desires that cannot be carried out in reality. Embarrassed and frustrated by his inability to find his wife, Kino is comforted by Saśa, which unlocks more memory from his dream the previous night, realizing that he escaped the videotheque with Saśa following the raid. In a moment of confusion, Kino kisses Saśa before she pulls away, confessing that she knows Żana. Before Saśa can explain, Kino falls unconscious again.

Awakening at his desk at work, Kino begins to realize that these are not dreams but incomplete memories that have since been deleted and distorted within his mind. He suddenly receives a call from an anonymous source, telling him that Żana is being held by her captor at Nightingale Videotheque. Arriving to the videotheque armed with a handgun, Kino fights his way into the videotheque's basement, only to discover Żana alive and well. Żana confesses to Kino that she was not kidnapped, but has been harvesting Kino's memories using a computer virus in order to package and sell onerizers loaded with his memories to consumers as a form of entertainment, in order to make billions of dollars off of the profits, while Saśa was a hired actress cast to play a major character in the storyline. Kino discovers that he is not a junior agent, but has led dozens of investigations over the past decade with the Cyber Investigations Unit, almost all of which have been harvested and deleted from his memory in order to create and sell a video game stealing his life, which the Cyber Investigations Unit is aware of. Żana's kidnapping was said to be the last memory the onerizer needed before it was ready for sale, and since Kino was made aware of the truth, he was set to be executed by the Zatranian government in order to hide the truth.

Before he can react, Żana is shot in the head and killed by Saśa. Saśa apologizes to Kino for her role in the plan, confessing that she was greedy and eager to leave behind her career as a videogirl, and did not understand what she was getting herself involved in. She tells Kino that she was the one who ransacked his house and planted the onerizer in order for him to possibly unlock his memories and uncover what was going on. The two escape from the videotheque in a shoot-out and drive off, now wanted as fugitives by the Cyber Investigations Unit together.

In an epilogue set in 2040, two teenage boys are seen at a cyber arcade using an onerizer to relive the memories of Kino in a video game, as Saśa watches them from afar.

## Cast

* Krystian Tarło as Kino Królikowski
* Regina Borowiecka as Saśa
* Ola Wątroba as Żana Królikowska
* Szafir as videotheque singers