Director Carl Theodor Dreyer spent his career perfecting and rewriting his main themes in every film that he produced. He was a perfectionist and spent a great deal of time planning his films and saving the money needed to film them the way he wanted.
Set in the 17-Century, the film follows a Puritan reverend named Absalon Pedersson (Thorkild Roose, THE BLACK CHANCELLOR), who is involved in the persecution of witches. He has married a woman much younger than him named Anne (Lisbeth Movin, BABETTE'S FEAST). What we come to learn as the church puts the elderly Herlofs Marte (Anna Svierkier, only film performance) on trial for witchcraft is that Anne’s mother was also charged with witchcraft and Absalon married her to shelter her. Absalon’s mother Meret (Sigrid Neiiendam, LIFE ON THE HEGN FARM) hates Anne and is always skeptical of her every move. Then Absalon’s grown son Martin (Preben Lerdorff Rye, THE RED EARTH) comes home and quickly becomes smitten with his father’s young bride.
I’m sure this melodramatic tale turned some heads in its day. What amazed me about the story was how frank it was about its torrid affair. It wasn’t heightened dramatically in the least. Dreyer let his skilled performers bring the characters naturally to life and gave them reasonable internal issues to deal with.
The film investigates themes of guilt, common sins, passion – both religious and sexual, intolerance, ignorance and superstition. I’d have to say that guilt is the main issue. The actions of the three main characters are driven mainly by guilt with a hint of intolerance. I loved how little sins from one person lead to bigger sins from others later.
Another key factor in the story is the setting, which is dark, gloomy and cold. The Pedersson home is oppressive and joyless, much like the society they live in. Dreyer does an amazing job of contrasting the look of the house with the bright sunny scenes outdoors with Martin and Anne. All the performances are intense and real. I was particularly impressed with the performance of Svierkier. Her unfair fate is part of what kick starts the entire story and the outcome of her fate is visually shocking. It’s a shot I will never forget. This film is a powerful look at faith and religion that is challenging and very truthful.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
