At the start of Justice, Tadeusz Gadacz had suspicions about who carried out the horrific bank robbery, but without motive or disproving the solid alibi, he could not nail the case. By the movie’s end, he discovered the motive of the three friends, Kacper Surmiak, Bartek Sawczuk, and Marek Nowak.
The Motive
After gathering plenty of information with his partner cop, Janicka Aleksandra, Gadacz discovers that Kacper Surmiak wanted the money to get his sister out of the orphanage. There are other motives, of course; Bartek wants to find a way to operate his store financially, but Kacper’s motive is the underlying reason everything unraveled at the bank.
Kacper’s motive is not rational; he believes more money means a better way of life for his sister. But the social worker dealing with his sister’s case made it abundantly clear that his circumstances do not change anything.
However, despite Tadeusz Gadacz knowing the motive, he cannot disprove the alibi, which Kacper taunts him for, telling the inspector he has nothing on him. (This was clearly unwise from Kacper, highlighting how unhinged he is).
Casualties At The Bank Were Not Part Of The Plan
Near the end of the movie, a series of flashbacks show what happened on the day of the bank robbery. Kacper Surmiak, Bartek Sawczuk, and Marek Nowak expected to find more money in the bank and were furious when there was barely anything; they mistimed their robbery.
Casualties were not part of the plan, as bank colleagues came down to the vault earlier than anticipated.
Another flashback shows how the bank robbery fell apart when one of the boys accidentally called out the name “Kacper,” giving one of their identities away. In a tragic moment, Kacper Surmiak proceeded to shoot two of the women in cold blood while another was strangled.
(Horrible scenes that are hard to watch as the women are cruelly distressed).
Gadacz Focuses On A Weak Link
Gadacz’s unconventional methods even make his partner, Janicka Aleksandra, question them ethically and morally. However, with time running out, Gadacz finds out the weakest link in the bank robbers. The weakest link is Bartek, who is suffering from immense guilt from the robbery.
To heighten his guilt, Gadacz cruelly sends Bartek a photo of one of the murdered women from the bank robbery.
Bartek intends to confess, but Kacper stops him on the way to the police station and strangles him to death. He makes it look like suicide.
(This is all part of Gadacz’s plan to isolate Kacper, even if it means collateral damage).
Next, Kacper visits Marek, but his friend is dismayed that he killed Bartek and turns on him. He tells Kacper that his sister does not need him and that she deserves a normal life. Kacper kills Marek and then claims it was in self-defense, continuing playing games with the police. He also claims that Bartek and Marek used him.
Jedrzej Hycnar as Kacper Surmiak in ‘Justice’ (Credit – Netflix)
Where Did The Gun Come From?
Gadacz continues his aggressive approach and visits Henio from the army base. Henio is the friend of Kacper, Marek, and Bartek and served as their alibi as they attended his swearing-in oath in the army.
Gadacz is determined to find out where the gun used in the bank robbery came from. He holds a meeting with the colonel and Henio. A shaken Henio, knowing his career is on the life, breaks down, and admits he lost his gun after the swear-in oath party, but he later found it in the bushes by the tower nearby, and a few rounds were missing.
It was the same gun used in the bank robbery.
A Solved Case Leads To A Tragic Ending for Justice
As we reach the end of Justice, Kacper has run out of alibis, and there is too much evidence against him. It’s a solved case, and Gadacz has him where he wants him.
Knowing his time is up, Kacper goes to the orphanage to see his sister one last time before he is arrested. Gadacz asks the police officers surrounding the building to give Kacper space as he heads inside to arrest him.
I was not expecting to feel so upset when I saw Kacper spend time with his sister one last time. It does not help that the sister is heartbroken when she realizes what is happening, but seeing Gadacz show humanity for the first time in the movie is significant.
Kacper does not resist and offers to be arrested outside. However, as he heads outside, he pretends to reach for a gun so the police shoot him to death. He was holding a jigsaw puzzle piece he was helping his sister with.
(It feels irrelevant, but the ending confirms that the large banks can merge after the case is solved; this felt like a secondary point to an emotional storyline.)
As Justice ends, Gadacz is back to being a civilian with a “dirty past.” In a unique moment, he opens up to Janicka Aleksandra about his past, which is mainly implied throughout the movie; he explains how he was a bad husband and father and let down his mother when she was dying. He does not care about promotions or materialistic things—he’s just good at his job.
He explains that he’s good at his job because he can see through people’s masks, as he’s as much a liar as everybody else.
This is a stark confession from the retired cop; for the first time, he reveals who he truly is and that, in a reflective sense, he believes he’s as bad as the criminals he catches.
In the last scene, he receives a call from a young girl. Is it his daughter or granddaughter? It’s not clear, but it was clearly someone important in his life.
What I loved about the ending is that Gadacz’s confession about his life also affirmed Janicka’s perspective; throughout the film, she appears dismayed by his actions, but her partner’s admission confirmed her view that there’s a better way of being a police officer.
