Into Great Silence

I just saw the movie Into Great Silence this weekend. It is a documentary filmed inside the Grande Chartreuse, a monastery for Carthusian monks in the French Alps. Nearly all of the 2 hour and 45 minute film is recorded in silence. It is a profound and in many ways moving film and one whose impact is hard to articulate.

The movie follows the lives of the monks in the monastery recorded over a many months and gives no history of the monastery or the order of the monks, but instead gives a detailed and mesmerizing glimpse into the rhythm of their day to day lives. Throughout the movie, the entire audience watched in total silence. There are touches of humor, seriousness, and above the story of the pursuit of God. Towards the end of the film, a blind monk gives one of the best articulations of Christian Hedonism I have ever heard. The monks view their lifestyle not as a burden, but as a joy.

I recommend the film highly.

Read a New York Times review of the movie.

Here is a trailer giving a glimpse into what the film is like.