The Queen and the Smokehouse

In a seaside town in Poland that is a highly popular tourist destination, a woman known as the local “Queen” has presided over her smokehouse - a community landmark - for 40 years. Yet when her health issues eventually force her to step back, the elderly woman will have to redefine her life’s priorities. Visually arresting with exquisite cinematography, a narrative structure of excellent craftsmanship, quick pacing, humor, and a sincere commitment to dismantling stereotypes, The Queen and the Smokehouse balances between muted melancholy and subtle satire, offering a critique on the phenomenon of converting a small community into a tourist park catering exclusively to visitors. At the same time, it tenderly crafts the portrait of a distinctive person, through whom it illuminates the complex anthropogeography of a place that seems familiar in a manner that is most bittersweet.