Tara Thompson : Decalogue

Since we've started watching films this semester, The Decalogue has been the most enjoyable one for me, even though it made me cry... a lot. Through out the two episodes we watched there was a plethora of emotion and rawness that brought out deeper meanings than what was shown on the surface. In the first, Thou shall have no other Gods before me, Kieslowski created a cold atmosphere. Not only was it cold outside, but there always resided an empty, missing sense. I think in doing this, he was exemplifying the emptiness one may feel with out faith, as well as foreshadowing what was to come. However, the bigger picture seemed to suggest that relying on ration alone will never completely satisfy, even if you truly believe it will. Hence the son dying in the end even though his father had calculated his safety. Basically, the father had made calculations, and reason his god, and in doing so he had cast aside faith. The imagery of his actions is most definitely a form of visual midrash: At first, when he hears his son is "missing" he refuses to believe anything went wrong. He stays calm. However, as the night progresses, he slowly starts to lose his faith in reason alone. In the scene at the lake, when he looks over and notices the fire which has now gone out, it hits him: even the calculations by the most wise men will not always include the most unexpected factors. This seems to be the interpretation Kieslowski is giving, that in putting anything else before God you are setting yourself up for disaster.