Curation  /  Films  /  Dekalog I

Dir. Krzysztof Kieślowski

🌎 Poland

🗓️ 1988

⌚️ 53 minutes

🔊 Polish

First Watched: Jan 30, 2017

The Polish television series "Dekalog" revolves around the theme of the First Commandment, "I am the Lord thy God; thou shalt have no other gods before me". The characters grapple with their beliefs and the role of technology in their lives. The story explores the importance of spirituality and the search for meaning in a world dominated by technology and rational thought.

Review

I wrote this short review for the first episode. All of them are good, especially the fifth one, later made into a theatrical movie called “A Short Film About Killing”.

This was made for television? Damn, who knew the Polish had such great TV to watch. That aside, what a beginning. And what I mean is, what a deep and emotional journey this was. I had watched “The Double Life of Veronique” and the Colors trilogy last year, and knew I was in for a treat. And a box of tissues.

The score: Just like his later films, the score is minimalistic. That flute-pitched tone is memorable. It plays a large part of the emotion just as the actors. This is no exception.

Watch Now

This movie is not currently streaming, but you can buy the box set from the Criterion Collection.