Don’t worry—no joking around this time. Silliness is a hallmark of my 30-second reviews so far (most notably yesterday’s The Social Network), but this film is different. Of Gods and Men—read my full-length review—is one of the most sublime films I’ve ever seen. This is a sincere tribute not only to Xavier Beauvois’ film, but to the monks of the Tibhirine monastery itself—and while I do use rhyming verse, it’s quite different from my usual approach. For Ash Wednesday, Of Gods and Men in 30 seconds (additional comments below):
I’ve seen the film twice now; on Sunday I went again with a friend from church, two of his kids and two of mine, and my cousin. What a magnificent preparation for Lent. This coming weekend I hope to watch my usual “into the desert” Lenten film, Into Great Silence; additionally, sometime in the next week I hope to catch the new 35mm print of Robert Bresson’s Diary of a Country Priest playing at New York’s Film Forum.
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I’m late commenting here, but this one is really good. The way I know it’s really good is that it’s been playing intermittently in my head for several days…and I haven’t minded, which would definitely not have been the case for the one on The Social Network.
I just rewatched Into Great Silence. After an experience like that, anything that actually tries to tell a story seems like stagey, shallow spectacle. Nevertheless, this one obviously deserves a chance.
I saw this film yesterday and my only negative comment is that in spite of the situation into which those wonderful men found themselves, it was impossible to project onto the screen the joy that must have been theirs. “Joy!” Not something that can be easily faked, so I understand why the film was stiflingly serious.
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