With an exceptional talent Ewa Lachnit shows a sad, overly realistic picture of the world decaying under the burden of dishonesty and cynicism. Mikołaj, a social worker, can’t agree with this picture. He says: “There is still a lot of space between purity and disintegration or decay.” A significant element of “Those, Who Steal the Bread” is a letter from a mother of several kids who, in order to provide her family with basic articles, steals groceries from shops on a regular basis. Teresa has been living on the borderline between the reality of the well-off citizens and the one of the poor, pushed into the margin of life. Together with her former husband she used to be involved in a number of frauds. To purify the past sins she starts working in social services as a volunteer. Due to her connections and experience she is able to help many people. However, her actions are ambiguous. On the one hand, she is disillusioned with people, doesn’t even like them. On the other one, dealing with those in need is a therapy for her. The only person who seems to be close to her is Mikolaj. After his unexpected death she is left alone, with the crowd of grateful petitioners behind her door and the cunning, successful neighbour, a rising pop star who used to steal bread just like many mothers whose letters Teresa reads so often. Now these people become Teresa’s family. And also her fate.
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