Monday, May 03, 2010

Mother Joan of the Angels - Jerzy Kawalerowicz

A haunting tale of passion repressed by dogma. Excellent acting (as is the norm in Polish cinema), visuals and music.

Matka Joanna od aniołów is a film against dogma. That is the universal message of the film. It is a love story about a man and a woman who wear church clothes, and whose religion does not allow them to love each other. They often talk about and teach about love—how to love God, how to love each other—and yet they cannot have the love of a man and a woman because of their religion. This dogma is itself inhuman. The devils that possess these characters are the external manifestations of their repressed love. The devils are like sins, opposite to their human nature. It is like the devils give the man and woman an excuse for their human love. Because of that excuse, they are able to love.
- Jerzy Kawalerowicz, in an interview in Kinoeye

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