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From: Anne Marie . . .
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Subject: Fwd: CultureWatch Update: 1 July 2011
I thought you would like the article on Of Gods and men.
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Welcome to this week's Culturewatch update, where we have three new articles for you. - The first, written by Richard Blakely before he finished his internship, looks at the Oscar-nominated thriller 127 Hours. Visceral, inventive, and with a gruesome climax that's not easy to sit through, the film explores the human will to survive. What is it that really makes life worth living?
- New culturewatch intern Hannah Bottom has written about Of Gods and Men, a critically-acclaimed independent film which focuses on a group of Cistercian monks in Algeria. When violence rocks the country, they face a decision: will they stay or leave? Hannah's article looks into questions of community and sacrifice.
- Finally, we have something a bit different - an article by Stuart Goddard on disgraced fashion designer John Galliano, who was suspended from Dior in February for alleged xenophobic outbursts.
In our usual podcasts, you can hear me and Tony talking about the latest DVD and cinema releases, from tearjerking dramaNever Let Me Go to noisy sci-fi sequel Transformers: Dark of the Moon. Don't forget that The First Grader is still in cinemas, and Damaris' free resources are still available to help you think through the issues it raises. Sophie Lister |
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Of Gods and Men - An article by Hannah Bottom on the drama about Cisterian monks in Algeria.Death and freedom
Author: Hannah Bottom
Keywords: Life, death, martyrdom, sacrifice, community, religion, brotherhoodFilm title: Des Hommes et des Dieux (Of Gods And Men)
Director: Xavier Beauvois
Screenplay: Etienne Comar, Xavier Beauvois
Starring: Lambert Wilson, Michael Lonsdale, Olivier Rabourdin, Phillippe Laudenbach
Distributor: Artificial Eye (UK); Sony Pictures Classics (USA)
Cinema Release Date: 3 December 2010 (UK); 25 February 2011 (USA)
Certificate: R (USA); 15 (UK) Contains infrequent strong violence
Note: This article contains plot spoilers.
Xavier Beauvois’s film Of Gods and Men is, perhaps, embodied by one moment. Having adjusted the handle of the gun on his shoulder, the leader of a group of Islamic extremists thrusts his hand out in front of the prior of a Cistercian monastery. It hangs, solidly, under the electric light. Christian, the prior, looks from the hand to the man’s face, returning his gaze to the hand. And takes it. It is just a handshake, yet that moment of contact between these two worlds demonstrates something of the very core of this captivating film.
- Set in a beautifully hazy landscape in North Africa, the film weaves its way around the humble lives of Cistercian monks as they enact their daily routine of prayer, meditation, singing and working. Led by Christian (Lambert Wilson), they plough the land, wash-up, make and sell honey. And whilst their religion may distinguish them from the locals, they are, in fact, an integral part of the community. Luc (Michael Lonsdale), the doctor, offers medical treatment, relationship advice and clothing; all the monks are invited to a local boy’s circumcision party, and several attend. It is a quiet, simple existence. The film stunningly amplifies this by silence: the only sound is often the gentle hum of people around the monks, or the bristling and brushing of objects as they work. Encircling them, however, is political turmoil. Loosely based on events in Algeria during the 1990s, radical Islamist groups are fighting to prise power from the government in an increasingly bloody war.[1] When they order all foreigners to leave the country, they make their threat frighteningly clear by killing a group of Catholic Croatian workers. The Cistercian Monks are faced with a decision: to remain or leave. It is the question on which the film hangs, a silent threat that presses in as it overshadows and begins to stifle the monks’ lives. However, whilst this provides the essential crux of the plot, in Of Gods and Men this simple question of physical movement is translated into an eloquent questioning of faith, humanity and community.
