This is my favorite of Kieslowski’s Decalogue films. It contains the most evocative of metaphors for the referenced Commandment (“Thou shalt have no other gods before me”).
It is at its foundation the age-old story of faith versus reason.
A young university professor father teaches his young son, Pavel, the computer skills and math necessary to calculate the thickness of ice. Pavel’s father represents man’s belief and reliance on what is seen, what is known, and in what can be reasoned. Beyond this there is nothing else.
Pavel’s aunt is a woman of active faith who responds to Pavel’s question, “Who is God?” with a hug and then asks him, “What do you feel?” Pavel replies that he loves her. His aunt says that that’s exactly where God is…
A tragedy later occurs that is truly heart-wrenching and dramatically earned. Science fails Pavel’s father and it ultimately fails Pavel.
The acting in all of the films of the Decalogue is stupendous and this is no exception.
The visuals provide artistic insight to the soul like none of the other films in the series: the church, the dead dog, the curdled milk, the photo of John Paul II, the “mystery man”, the ink blot, the church vigil, the wax tears dripping on Mary’s cheek, and the irony of the holy water turned to ice. Everything represents something in and of itself yet they all hint at the mystery much deeper.
Even if you don’t have time to view all ten in this series, I highly urge you to set aside one hour of your life to watch this artistic gem at least once… and then again… and again…
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I will leave you with some words from Kieslowski himself…
- “When I think of God, it’s more often the God of the Old Testament… a demanding, cruel God.”
- “Our idea was very simple, Kieslowski said. “The Decalogue is one of the ethical foundations of our society. Everyone is more or less familiar with the Ten Commandments, and agrees with them, but no one really observes them. Everyone seems to accept the Ten Commandments as a kind of moral basis,” Kieslowski continued, “and everyone breaks them daily. Just the attempt to respect them is already a major achievement.”
- To tell you the truth, in my work, love is always in opposition to the elements. It creates dilemmas. It brings us suffering. We can’t live with it, and we can’t live without it. You’ll rarely find a happy ending in my work.”
