We finally finished watching Kristof’s Kieslowski’s Decalogue — a 10-part dramatic series based on the Ten Commandants that originally aired on Polish television. Although the series was highly enjoyable, it took us nearly a month to get through all ten episodes. The number one reason was the busy holiday season. Another was the fact that the series dragged a bit.
However, for anyone that enjoyed Kieslowski’s Three Colors Trilogy: Red, White, Blue, then the Decalogue is definitely a must-see. It has some cinematic elements that also exist in the Trilogy like the intermingling of characters from one episode to the next and the presence of voyeurs. But the Decalogue episodes are darker than the Trilogy and less artistic at times.
The most amusing part of watching the Decalogue is trying to determine which of the Commandments the episode is based on, which proved to be a difficult task at times as some are so broad and others focus on multiple Commandments. All in all, the Decalogue was worth it. Would I watch it again? Definitely!
Muscati,
I think you should give the Decalogue another chance. Yes some of the episodes dragged, but the whole series is really worth it. The last two ones were really good.
I love the Three Colors trilogy and I’ve seen Red at least 5 times. I got the Decalogue when it first came out on DVD like 4 or 5 years ago and though I’ve tried many times I couldn’t get past the third episode. I really ought to go dig it out from my storage and force myself to see it. I am sure I will love it if I only give it time though I doubt it will have the same magical effect on me that Red has.
I liked the idea of bringing in characters from previous “episodes” in later ones.
But I agree, the films are not for the casual freeze-my-balls-off-standing-in-line-to-get-in-for-the-opening-of-the-next-harry-potter movie goer.
The use of different cinematographers for all but two of the films was also a technique he later applied in the creation of the Three Colors Trilogy. He remarked that bringing this ‘new vision’ onto the set each time helped keep things fresh, different yet still connected. I could go on for hours about these films — their music, their narritive, their vision — but I’ll stop short and say that the Decalogue represents the initial sketching of his eventual masterpiece: the Three Colors Trilogy.
These stories do differ from the Trilogy but Kieslowski’s common thread — watching life progress in all its majesty and mystery — remains. He tells stories that can be tedious at times but they are so real and complete. Kieslowski was a documentary filmmaker prior to his work in narrative cinema. His attention to detail is breathtaking. These films, this 10-part treatise, has moments of dullness you could say, but only in that the minutiae of life are examined. And strangely, though we are all well familiar with many of these moments, their presence gives the story a tremendously ‘real’ quality.
Some stories, like ‘A short film about killing’ and the 9th and 10th episodes, have such a strong narrative that they will be tremendously appealing to most everyone. It must also be said that throughout each and every one of these is some truly stupendous acting; these actors are pitch perfect every time.
But those that have little tolerance for ‘art house’ or ‘European’ cinema might find themselves scratching their heads or wandering into another room at times. If a viewer can just slow down enough, however (difficult when Hollywood works so diligently to keep us hyper), what is revealed by the Decalogue is truly beautiful: Ten stories about the amazing complexities of life with a deliciously diffused religious subtext. This is explored by a group of characters unrelated but interconnected by a bleak Warsaw housing complex and its winter misery. Few of the stories could be described as upbeat, but somehow, they are life affirming.
As I said before, it’s not for those who prefer ‘film-lite,’ but for those who recognize real filmmaking genius, this series is fantastic. It’s a real eye-opener into understanding the real mastery on display in the Three Colors Trilogy and The Double Life of Veronique. BTW … This is my short take 😉