Tag Archive: Carl Theodor Dreyer


ORDET: THE WORD OF A PROPHET OR LUNATIC?

Filed under: Atheism, Movies — Leave a comment
November 16, 2012

ORDET directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer (Denmark, 1955)

It gets harder and harder to keep an open mind about arts and culture but I can honestly say that I approached this movie with no preconceptions.(If you plan to see it in the same state of blissful ignorance, look away now as this post contains spoilers!)

The only thing I knew about it was that it had been placed 24th  in the BFI/Sight & Sound list of greatest films ever made. Regular readers of this blog (if such beings exist!) will know by now that I have set myself a goal of seeing all of the top 50 films on this list (I still have 14 to go!)

While I marvelled at  Dreyer’s Jeanne D’Arcy, I can’t say I was as thrilled by the Dane’s Ordet, a title which translates as ‘The Word’ as in ‘the word of God’. Continue reading →

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CARL DREYER AND THE FACES OF PASSION

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August 27, 2012

LA PASSION DE JEANNE D’ARC directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer (France, 1928)

Joan of ArcJeanne d’Arc is an object lesson to contemporary filmmakers that it is images, not words, that are forged in the memory.

Take any still frame from this remarkable silent movie and you will be assured of a memorable shot.

In the BFI / Sight & Sound list of the greatest movies of all time it was voted 9th and it’s hard to argue with this choice.

The breathtaking intensity of Maria (Renéee Jeanne) Falconetti’s performance in the title role must have been so emotionally and physically draining that it’s no real surprise to learn that she never made another film after this.

We see her interrogated, tortured and tricked into withdrawing her claim to be on a mission from God.

It’s no spoiler to reveal that after first confessing to doing the devil’s work, she later  recants and is burnt at the stake.

The film vividly shows how the weight of the religious establishment was thrown at this illiterate 19-year-old woman.

Dreyer primarily uses close-ups of the expressions of inquisitors and other onlookers. These reveal so much that nothing is lost by not being able to hear their words.

An excellent website devoted to Dreyer’s life and work is a treasure trove of information about this formidable Danish director.

The montage of screen captures from the movie is taken from One1more2times3’s weblog.

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