Between its reputation as a masterpiece, the fact that it's a ten-hour Polish miniseries, and that it's all based on the Ten Commandments, I can forgive anyone for not wanting to take on The Decalogue. And yet, for all of those points, I wasn't expecting what I got, which is far richer, more complex, more engaging, and far more accessible than any of its reputation might lead you to expect. For one thing, while the films are undoubtedly inspired by the Commandments, it's a far more of a conceptual link than a hard-and-fast rule. Some of the episodes, like number 5 (which revolves around a murder and the execution of the murderer), are very obviously connected to a single commandment; others are far more general, leading you to ponder the exact moral question at the heart of the film and how it connects to the overall theme. Indeed, such moral questions are at the heart of every episode, which takes human drama but spins it into complex, thoughtful philosophical questions without ever becoming too direct or preachy. (As Stanley Kubrick famously said about the series, it's the rare series that manages to dramatize its ideas instead of talking about them.) And these are complex issues, make no mistake. A doctor ponders how to answer the question about a patient's chances, knowing that an unborn child's life hangs in the balance. A mother kidnaps her own daughter from the relative who's been caring for her; can we say that taking your own child is still stealing? And it's not just questions like this; there are meditations on lust, false witness, excessive worship of science, and more, all made more universal and far less focused on simple religious dogma. In fact, one of the many compelling aspects of the series is how often these questions are addressed outside of the religious framework and left without answers, leaving us debating for ourselves who was right and wrong. (The only exception is the aforementioned fifth episode, which makes Kieslowski's feelings about the death penalty crystal clear in a way the other films do not.) What results is gripping drama, but not something so pretentious or dense with meaning that it forbids a more casual viewer from enjoying the films. At their core, these are stories about people and their relationships to each other, but done in such a way that grapple with difficult choices and moral beliefs that we hold dear. What results is a different kind of masterpiece, one whose reputation arises from the thoughts and questions it inspires rather than the beliefs it conveys, and whose scope becomes something far more complex and involving than any single film could ever accomplish. It's a truly remarkable accomplishment, and a masterful piece of filmmaking. Whether you call it 10 episodes of a TV series or a single film in 10 segments, it's an astonishing and powerful work, one that's left me debating its nuances ever since I started the first episode.
- Josh Mauthe
- Josh Mauthe
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