So, the Golden Globes came and went, and on the whole my predictions were quite accurate (in other words, the awards were extremely predictable). Burlesque is now the Golden Globe-winning Burlesque, Paul Giamatti did in fact trump Johnny Depp (much to my relieved surprise), and The Social Network remains the front-runner going into the Oscars.
Perhaps a bit of an upset was the victory of the little-known Danish film In A Better World, which beat out the more popular Biutiful and I Am Love. But one film which wasn’t nominated (I hope for eligibility reasons) and which also, unbelievably, has been omitted from the nine-film Oscar shortlist, is the French drama Of Gods and Men. Just to recap, that was a shortlist of NINE films – not even the final shortlist of 5 – that OGAM didn’t make it into. Well, after seeing it today, I can only say that I am shocked. If there are truly nine better foreign films this year, I will eat my, and anybody else’s, hat.
It’s a remarkably moving, quiet and artful drama about a group of French monks living in Algeria, who, upon facing the threat of radical Islamic extremists, are forced to question their situation in the country, and ultimately their faith itself. Based on a true story (one which, fortunately for the film’s ending, I knew nothing about beforehand), it’s a powerful tale of courage and spiritual belief, and a real-life unsolved mystery which certainly merits further research.
Among the many exceptional scenes in the film, there’s one towards the end that is one of the most extraordinary things I’ve seen for a while. The monks are sitting around a table, having made their decision whether to stay or leave, and one of them puts a cassette of Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake on a little tape player. While this swirls and cascades from the soundtrack, the camera proceeds to move gracefully around the table from face to face in a series of ever-tightening close-ups. And boy, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a bunch of more fascinating faces. All the cast are incredibly natural and authentic, and in this scene you can see their full realisation of their choices, their acceptance of fate, their love for each other and for God, and it’s really a tremendous scene.
Up until that point the film had been very deliberately paced, very methodical and quite cold and rational, in a way that reminded me of Robert Bresson’s Diary of a Country Priest. Some shots of the monks against a barren, desolate landscape, set to their beautiful hymns, achieved a spiritual significance that really quite moved me, despite my lack of religious beliefs. (That’s a striking point about the film – it doesn’t require a theological interest or any particular faith, and you get the feeling the director doesn’t have any pro-Christian intentions either, just a deep humanist love.) But the Last Supper sequence blew me away, and made me forget the film’s tendency to drag somewhat.
In short, you really ought to watch Of Gods and Men. It’s not a typical film in any way, and even if you think you know the story, it might not be what you expect in terms of how it deals with the emotional impact of the monks’ dilemma. But it’s really beautifully shot, acted and directed, with some unforgettable moments. Shame on you, Oscars: this must surely be the best foreign film of the year.
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