Knife in the Water

Knife in the Water, motion picture about a quarrelsome couple who pick up a handsome young hitchhiker and bring him along on their boat trip. Released in 1962, this Polish film marked Roman Polanski’s directorial debut. Leon Niemczyk plays Andrezej, a successful sportswriter who patronizes the younger man to offset his jealousy. The stranger owns a switchblade knife, and the two men play dangerous games with it to impress Christine, Andrezej’s wife. The games lead to a scuffle and the young man, a non-swimmer, falls overboard. When Andrezej dives in to find him, the boy appears on the other side of the deck and reveals to Christine that he tricked Andrezej so he could seduce her.

Alternate Title

• Noz w Wodzie

Director

• Roman Polanski

Cast

• Leon Niemczyk (Andrzej)
• Jolanta Umecka (Christine)
• Zygmunt Malanowicz (The young man)