Into Great Silence

Bruno of Cologne founded La Grande Chartreuse, home to the Carthusian monastic order, in the French Alps in 1084, and on the evidence of Philip Groening's remarkable documentary, life there hasn't changed much over the centuries (the rule is a combination of eremitic and cenobitic monasticism, with the monks living in silence in individual cells but meeting occasionally for services, meals, and conversation). Into Great Silence eschews conventional documentary techniques (no historical background or testimony from the monks—except for one elder monk near the end—is offered, and the film contains no music, aside from the chants of the community) in favor of a modified cinéma vérité approach that employs repetition to reflect the tempo of the monks' life (most notably in title cards that repeat the same scriptural passages and monastic epigrams) while we watch the monks performing daily activities—praying, of course, but also tending to the garden, preparing meals in the kitchen, and cutting their confreres' hair. The result is a wonderfully quiet, serene portrait accurately reflecting the rhythm of the monastic regimen over its two-and-a-half hour span, giving viewers a strong sense of Carthusian practice and the deep spirituality underlying it. Highly recommended. Editor's Choice. [Note: DVD extras on this two-disc “special edition” include four additional scenes (59 min.), a 53-minute “Night Office” excerpt of the monks' nightly rituals, an eight-minute video statement by Cardinal Poupard (president of the Pontifical Council for Culture at the Vatican), a six-minute “making-of” dossier (including the shooting diary, behind-the-scenes footage, and handwritten notes from the monks), audio and photo galleries of the Grande Chartreuse, “The Carthusians” (an extensive text guide to the history, rules, architecture, and paintings of the monasteries worldwide), and trailers. Bottom line: an excellent extras package for an excellent documentary.] (F. Swietek)