Knights of the Teutonic Order aka Black Cross aka Knights of the Black Cross

^director Aleksander Ford
^screenplay (based on the novel of the same name by Henryk Sienkiewicz) Jerzy Stefan Stawiński, Aleksander Ford
^{director of photography} Mieczysław Jahoda
^music Kazimierz Serocki
^with Urszula Modrzyńska, Grażyna Staniszewska, Andrzej Szalawski, Henryk Borowski, Aleksander Fogiel, Mieczysław Kalenik
^awards
 1st Class Award of the Ministry of Culture and Art for Aleksander Ford and Mieczysław Jahoda, 1962
 ’Film’ magazine Readers Award, Golden Duck (Złota Kaczka), 1960

CZESŁAW MICHALSKI, A GREAT WORK OF OUR FILM INDUSTRY. ARTISTIC VISION OF THE PAST AND ITS TOPICAL CONTENTS [WIELKIE DZIEŁO NASZEJ KINEMATOGRAFII. ARTYSTYCZNA WIZJA PRZESZŁOŚCI I JEJ AKTUALNE TREŚCI], ‘KURIER LUBELSKI’, 1960, NO. 243-244

In the screen version of ‘The Teutonic Knights’ the issues of 550 years ago appear familiar and close to us. For [the Battle of] Grunwald (…) is a day of glory for us and a reminder of a military defeat of the inheritors of the Teutonic Order, now again trying to raise their heads in West Germany.

JJS [JAN JÓZEF SZCZEPAŃSKI], KNIGHTS OF THE TEUTONIC ORDER [KRZYŻACY], TYGODNIK POWSZECHNY, 1960, NO. 40

Record queues at the box-offices (…) are irrefutable proof of the flying start of ‘The Teutonic Knights’. As a popular historical spectacle ‘Knights of the Teutonic Order’ (…) surely responds to the requirements of public demand (…). Yet, in my opinion, an attempt to deepen the Sienkiewicz story by enhancing it with a more accurate historical context did not yield the intended effects. (…) But luckily enough, as an artistic vision, as the organisation of a spectacle, the film is something very impressive, something unprecedented in our film industry. Ford (…) has deserved applause for staging the Grunwald battle with a stupendous temperament and virtuosity. The applause is due in the same measure to Jahoda for his excellent cinematography, masterly composed and replete with dynamism and atmosphere.