Johnny is a Polish-language biopic based on the life of Father Jan Kaczkowski who started the Puck Hospice in Poland for terminally ill patients.
Based on the life of Jan Adam Kaczkowski, Johnny follows Patryk, a young delinquent, whose interactions with a Roman Catholic Priest, Father Jan, paved the way for a life-altering experience. The cast of the Polish-language film includes Dawid Ogrodnik, Piotr Trojan, Beata Zygarlicka, Maria Pakulnis, and Grazyna Bulka. The film is directed by Daniel Jaroszek.
Johnny Story Summary
Father Jan “Johnny” Kaczkowski (Dawid Ogrodnik) is a priest who’s not the most popular among the locals. But despite being ignored by most, he tries his best to do good in whatever way he can. He’s inspired by his hero, Jerzy Popiełuszko, to continue on the path of goodness.
One fine day, Father Jan comes up with the idea of building a hospice. Even though he faces resistance from the Archbishop, he decides to take a loan, buy land and build his dream hospice. However, his plans are hampered when he’s diagnosed with cancer and given half a year to survive.
Still unhappy with Father Jan’s decision to start a hospice, the Archbishop pays him a visit to express his displeasure. Much to the Archbishop’s dismay, Father Jan makes it clear that the church should stay away from the hospice as it is his personal business.
Patryk Galewski (Piotr Trojan) finds himself crossing paths with the kind-hearted Father Jan when he’s tasked with three hundred sixty hours of community service for breaking into a house. Patryk is assigned to work at Father Jan’s hospice as part of his community service. Unfortunately for poor Patryk, the delinquent does not end up making the best impression on the local priest.
Patryk Struggles At The Puck Hospice
A rough first day at work forces Patryk to resort to drugs and alcohol at night. Moreover, he must also pay back the money he owns to a man named Pablo. The next day, Patryk returns to the hospice to fool around and complete his community service without tiring his muscles.
During his time at the hospice, Patryk helps the nurses and the patients with their daily chores. On one such day, he helps a patient, a young mother named Agnieszka, record a video for her 4-year-old son for his 18th birthday. While doing so, Patryk realizes that Agnieszka may not live long.
Meanwhile, Father Jan plans to sell his book to cover the expenses of running the hospice as he wants the hospice to run smoothly once he’s gone. At the same time, Patryk continues to serve the patients diligently. While some of the patients, such as Mr. Roman, doubt Patryk’s honesty, Father Jan remains confident that Patryk can be redeemed. Not hearing from Pablo for some time, Patryk also finds some relief. On the other hand, Father Jan’s flock also starts growing.
Patryk Finds Friends in Father Jan And Hania
Soon, Patryk finds company in Hania, an old lady who was initially a bit defensive against Patryk. But slowly, Hania and Patryk end up becoming good friends. Their conversations mostly revolved around Hania and her life with her lover, Peter. Before breathing her last, Hania hands Patryk a ring that was given to her by her lover and asks Patryk to give the ring to the girl he will decide to spend his life with. Hania’s death leaves a deep impact on Patryk, but Father Jan plays his part by explaining that it was time for Hania to finally depart.
Father Jan motivates Patryk to start working in the kitchen as Patryk’s passion lies in cooking – something that he discovered while spending time with Hania. The priest helps Patryk in going to Krokowa to train as a chef in a high-end restaurant. Father Jan’s growing popularity definitely helps his cause, even though the Archbishop remains miffed by his conflicting views. Around the same time, Patryk befriends Żaneta, a volunteer at the hospice.
Johnny Ending Explained
Father Jan decides to take Patryk with him on his travels as he starts making television appearances to spread his message of peace, love, and care. In the midst of all, Father Jan’s health keeps getting worse with the medical test results not showing any signs of hope.
Patryk’s good luck hits a roadblock as Pablo and court’s red-stamped letters finally catch up to him. Out of money and shy to ask money from Father Jan, Patryk has been delaying the payment of his fines. At the court, Father Jan and the rest of the workers of the hospice come to Patryk’s defense, validating his character as a changed man who acted morally at a place abundant with human tragedy – at a hospice frequented by terminally ill patients.
Does Patryk End Up In Prison?
Unfortunately, Father Jan’s attempts fail and Patryk is sentenced to three years in prison as the court remains unconvinced about Patryk’s rehabilitation. In the court, Father Jan passes on words of courage to Patryk to help him survive the years in prison.
The night before being taken to prison, Patryk proposes Żaneta who gets surprised at first at being proposed one day before Patrick goes to prison. But later, she agrees to the proposal. During a visit to the prison, Father Jan informs Patryk that he’s been trying to get his sentence reduced. And so it happens that Patryk returns to the hospice after completing his reduced sentence.
Back to a reformed life at the hospice, Patryk finds out that Pablo’s mother was also admitted to the hospice and the two finally make amends. More good news follows Patryk as he finds out that he and Żaneta are going to be parents.
Meanwhile, Father Jan tries to convince Mr. Roman’s son to pay the dying man a last visit. But Father Jan meets failure as the son refuses to give his father a second chance. When Father Jan arranges for a job interview for Patryk at San Marco, the best restaurant in town, Patryk risks the interview to forcefully bring Mr. Roman’s son to meet his father. The plan doesn’t go as Patrick presumes and he ends up missing the interview, resulting in an argument between Father Jan and Patryk. Father Jan guides Patryk that he will have to be his best version for Żaneta and his future child.
Father Jan “Johnny” Kaczkowski Changed Patryk Galewski’s Life
Surprisingly, Mr. Roman’s son finally comes to the hospice to meet his father, but unfortunately, he comes to know that his father died the previous night. Patryk was with Żaneta at his home when he comes to know about Father Jan’s canceled interview on the radio. When Patryk fails to connect with Father Jan over the phone, he rushes to the hospice to find Father Jan unconscious on the ground.
In the end, Patryk comes to visit Father Jan to inform him that he is going to be the father of a son although he only receives silence from the other end as Father Jan lay breathing heavily in front of him. Soon after, in the presence of his family, Father Jan passed away. But before passing away, Father Jan had impacted the lives of many. Most importantly, he changed Patryk’s life forever, guiding him on a path on which he discovered himself.
While Father Jan helped Patryk find his passion and become a chef at a top restaurant in town, he made everybody around him understand how important it is to live life when we still can. The true pleasure of life is in living as your best version!
Johnny is available to stream on Netflix.
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