Into Great Silence directed by Philip Gröning (2005)
It took German filmmaker Philip Gröning over 21 years to make this documentary. Sixteen of those were spent waiting for the Carthusian Order to agree to his proposal. Two years were spent in preparation and two more years on editing the footage. This patient effort seems appropriate given the subject matter.
This religious order of the Grande Chartreuse monastery in the French Alps don’t believe in rushing things. Their life is devoted to rituals of silent prayer and study with the monks renouncing all the trappings of modern life.
The documentary is not intended as a case study about those who choose this austere way of life; Gröning explains : “I wanted this not to be a film about information……you’re not supposed to learn about a monastery, you’re supposed to learn about yourself.” .
The result is poetic movie that gives a heightened sense of the surroundings and the passing seasons that comes when life is so free of distractions. Continue reading
