Directed by Jerzy Stuhr from a socked-away 1970s script by the late Krzysztof Kieslowski (Red, White, Blue), this fable-like tale finds a middle-aged couple in a rural Polish village the unlikely caretakers of a camel left behind by a circus. The pair easily bonds with the creature, adapting their lives for its comforts, but the townsfolk are not so accommodating, turning hostile and ostracizing. A comment on xenophobia and social obstinacy, The Big Animal is by turns poignant, sweet, darkly funny and gently provocative. Cinematographer Pawel Edelman shot in gorgeous black-and-white, and the lyricism of his visual compositions is one of the film's greatest pleasures. In Polish with subtitles. Starts Fri., Dec. 10, through Sun., Dec. 12. Melwood 
THE BIG ANIMAL
