Ordet and Nashville are my two favorite films. Why? Well I’ve thought a lot about it, and the reason is that they are both incredibly kind films. The scene where Peter the Tailor realizes he must ask for forgiveness from Morten Borgen at the end of Ordet is the only film sequence that has ever almost made me cry just thinking about it. The beauty of the sequence and the beauty of Dreyer in general (God Bless his soul, in heaven now, playing chess with Chesterton) is in the understanding of what the action means for the person performing it. The fullness of the idea of Christian charity, of love, forgiveness and peace (as well as human weakness) is at the heart of the sequence and the film. Dreyer knows how profound this is for the Christian who truly means it, who truly feels it, and Ordet is an evocation of the people who believe in the Love of God sincerely and attempt to emulate it.
Nashville is the opposite in style from Ordet, but equally Christian in its view of life. Fundamentally, the film is the celebration of its characters and by extension, of people in general. Nashville is one of the most joyous films ever made, a constant exultation of the wonderful variety and interest that human beings provide. It captures the feeling of loving people, of loving your friends, of the excitement that meeting people brings more than any other film I’ve seen. Maybe the best film review I’ve ever read, as far as understanding what a movie means, is Pauline Kael’s review of Nashville. While so many others viewed it as a work of cynicism, disparaging in its view of life and of the flaws of its characters, she understood that it was ultimately uplifting. The sin of the characters is the sin of all human beings, and Altman’s approach is to capture the dignity that we all possess, despite these waves of confusion. In her amazingly perceptive analogy to Joyce’s Ulysses, Kael states that in the way the film is constructed, we don’t shy away from the sadness we are shown, it’s not repugnant as it often is in other movies, we accept it as a piece of the day. This view of the world, with an awareness of the sadness inherent in all life, but with an understanding and dedication to the deeper delight that informs all creation is what Nashville is about.
Nashville is the opposite in style from Ordet, but equally Christian in its view of life. Fundamentally, the film is the celebration of its characters and by extension, of people in general. Nashville is one of the most joyous films ever made, a constant exultation of the wonderful variety and interest that human beings provide. It captures the feeling of loving people, of loving your friends, of the excitement that meeting people brings more than any other film I’ve seen. Maybe the best film review I’ve ever read, as far as understanding what a movie means, is Pauline Kael’s review of Nashville. While so many others viewed it as a work of cynicism, disparaging in its view of life and of the flaws of its characters, she understood that it was ultimately uplifting. The sin of the characters is the sin of all human beings, and Altman’s approach is to capture the dignity that we all possess, despite these waves of confusion. In her amazingly perceptive analogy to Joyce’s Ulysses, Kael states that in the way the film is constructed, we don’t shy away from the sadness we are shown, it’s not repugnant as it often is in other movies, we accept it as a piece of the day. This view of the world, with an awareness of the sadness inherent in all life, but with an understanding and dedication to the deeper delight that informs all creation is what Nashville is about.
…Have another look at the church sequence from the film if you get a chance.
