X
- 2011
- R
- Sony Pictures Classics
- 2 h 2 m
- 2011
- R
- Sony Pictures Classics
- 2 h 2 m
Summary Eight French Christian monks live in harmony with their Muslim brothers in a monastery perched in the mountains of North Africa in the 1990s. When a crew of foreign workers is massacred by an Islamic fundamentalist group, fear sweeps though the region. The army offers them protection, but the monks refuse. Should they leave? Despite the ...
Directed By: Xavier Beauvois
Written By: Etienne Comar, Xavier Beauvois
- 2011
- R
- Sony Pictures Classics
- 2 h 2 m
- 2011
- R
- Sony Pictures Classics
- 2 h 2 m
Of Gods and Men
6.8
Where to Watch
Summary Eight French Christian monks live in harmony with their Muslim brothers in a monastery perched in the mountains of North Africa in the 1990s. When a crew of foreign workers is massacred by an Islamic fundamentalist group, fear sweeps though the region. The army offers them protection, but the monks refuse. Should they leave? Despite the ...
Directed By: Xavier Beauvois
Written By: Etienne Comar, Xavier Beauvois
Where to Watch
Top Cast
Metascore
Universal Acclaim
Based on 29 Critic Reviews
86
93% Positive
27 Reviews
27 Reviews
7% Mixed
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Metascore
Universal Acclaim
Based on 29 Critic Reviews
86
93% Positive
27 Reviews
27 Reviews
7% Mixed
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
I can't recall the last film that so wholly, honestly and movingly explained what it means to be a Christian.
Of Gods and Men is supple and suspenseful, appropriately austere without being overly harsh, and without forgoing the customary pleasures of cinema. The performances are strong, the narrative gathers momentum as it progresses, and the camera is alive to the beauty of the Algerian countryside.
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 45 User Ratings
6.8
71% Positive
32 Ratings
32 Ratings
13% Mixed
6 Ratings
6 Ratings
16% Negative
7 Ratings
7 Ratings
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 45 User Ratings
6.8
71% Positive
32 Ratings
32 Ratings
13% Mixed
6 Ratings
6 Ratings
16% Negative
7 Ratings
7 Ratings
Of Gods and Men explores a variety of complex religious themes and ideas through the re-telling of a true story **** of French monks caught up in the Algerian civil war. The film is not a simplistic showcase of good versus evil but is instead a deeply human tale of tolerance, fear and strength. No character falls into the trap of caricature, even the terrorists have depth and motive. The believability of the characters creates a realness that makes the film a more powerful emotional experience.
The film begins by introducing us to the monks. The monastery in which they live is a quiet place and their routines consist of tending to the gardens, reading, praying and interacting with the Muslim townsfolk. Importantly one of the monks, Luc (Michael Lonsdale) acts as the town doctor. The relationship between the monks and the townsfolk is one of mutual respect and friendship. The cinematography is gorgeous, capturing the natural beauty of the landscape and the simplistic beauty of the monastery.
The monk’s peaceful existence is shaken when word reaches the town that Islamist militants are taking over the countryside. The slow pace of the opening half is so calming that when violence breaks out the audience shares the peoples shock and worry.
It becomes immediately apparent that the monk’s lives are in danger. The monk’s world slowly comes crumbling down around their epicentre which is the monastery. The French government and Algerian officials urge them to escape while the town’s people plead for them not to abandon them. The group of monks is dividend on what decision to make. Difficult questions cause repressed raw emotions to bubble to the surface. Is it okay to accept help from a corrupt government? When is it acceptable for the Sheppard to leave his flock? What good does martyrdom do?
The group is rightly afraid and sometimes the fear takes control. Lambert Wilson (playing Christian) delivers a fine performance as a man struggling with leadership in a harrowing situation. The first confrontation scene is truly terrific, with trembling Christian putting on a brave face, a combination of fear and determination.
It is hard not to be emotional for the second half of the film. The monk’s moral presence is felt ubiquitously. In every act of violence or cruelty, whether on screen or off, the monk’s sadness permeates from the screen. The honesty of the characters naturally draws the audience’s empathy. There is a specific scene which I will not reveal in which the worldly combines with the spiritual that results in one of the most powerful emotional climaxes I have ever seen.
I highly recommend viewing this film regardless of one’s religious beliefs or background. The film shows both the good that can be achieved through belief as well as the bad. Luc quotes Pascal to remind us that “Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from religious conviction”. The message the film preaches transcends any specific faith as it is one of love, peace, acceptance and harmony.
Report
I've heard that of Gods and Men is a boring movie, especially in reference to certain interminable scenes of rituals of daily monastic life. Psychological rituals are things you do again and again to reduce anxiety. Anthropological rituals are means of creating cohesive groups. Are we getting closer to the meaning of life? A Zen quote: "A finger pointing to the moon is not the moon". The rituals in this film are potentially signs pointing to the far more complex signified of the daily ritual enacted between the french Monastary and the Algerian town surrounding. The townspeople rely on the monastary for medical care, and more abstractly, just to be there. Holy men are supposed to keep what is holy holy. When the mujahadeen come, the head monk Christian says they are not allowed into the monastery. When they demand medicine, he says there is no medicine for them. There are no guns allowed in the monastary, and the medicine is for the townspeople. What is holy must be kept holy. But they'll be back. The monks have to decide if the ritual is holy enough to die for. There's a vote; it's split between monks who want to stay and those who want to leave. Christian is undecided. "We are like birds on a branch," says one monk to a townsperson birds who don't know if they will fly away or stay". The townsperson responds: "We are the birds; you are the branch. If you leave, we lose our footing." Falling birds: the unholiness of it is intolerable. Christian decides to stay, and tries to persuade the rest of the monks to do the same. You do not know if he is doing the right thing. Ambiguity is usually not cinematic. In this movie, it is. amm ****
Report
Alternately harrowing and humbling, this is a story of ordinary men whose compassion is tested in the cruelest, most profound fashion.
Like the best spiritual movies, of whatever faith, "Of Gods and Men" moves us toward a union with the infinite, and when we come to the monks' last supper, the moment is staggeringly powerful.
A quietly compelling if not particularly emotional and sober-minded treatment of an infamous incident.
Be prepared to exercise the same patience and forbearing as the Trappists, because the pacing here is all Grecian urn – so much "silence and slow time."
There are eight individual decisions to be made here, yet Beauvois never humanizes any of his monks. The film instead consumes itself with songs, communal prayers and nightly meals.
The most spiritual and uplifting movie in quite a while. And if you don't like spiritual then how about charity and duty to one's fellow man. It's probably too slow paced for many young people but not for those who are wondering about their souls. Eight Trappist monks have to face up to the probability that their lives are in mortal danger if they stay in their monastery in Algeria, which is being ripped apart by a civil war between a secular Muslim government and extremists. How they come individually to their decisions is explored steadily over the movie's length. We see how they live and most importantly how they interweave almost seamlessly with their Arab neighbors. As they abjure from proselytizing and offer medical, farming, and other social needs they are respected. But they are Christians and they are foreigners and the extremists view them with at least a very jaundiced eye, and at most with evil intent. This is not a movie about terrorists, nor a movie about Frenchmen, but about faith and a deep sense of duty to that faith. It's not a movie just for Christians or even Catholics, it's a movie for all faiths and creeds as it speaks to the fundamental question of our role on earth: what is our purpose?
Report
The conflict is explained and there is a sense of tension. But the film falls way short. There is no backdrop or depth to why the Villagers would support these Monks as the film basically eliminates the core of their interaction. The performances are quite good, which is what redeems the film, but the film itself lacks a great deal. If all we are too see is this external conflict, which is minimal by the way; with Government forces and extremists one would think the script would paint a back drop as to why these men were so valuable to their community. The film just doesn't do that. Could have been a great movie but ended up rather mediocre
Report
Shallow & cheap emotional appeals. Ignores French colonization & all the scholarship critical of monasteries, the Roman Catholic Church, and French colonization of the 18th to 20th centuries. Overly simplistic movie that ignores the real political issues. Conservative Catholics & French nationalists probably love this movie. A better plot would've been if they all went back to France and had to think about their own motivations for wanting to be monks given scholarship and history, and questioning the institutions & their own psychological reasons for wanting to be a monk in the 1990s. Huge numbers of priests & monks abandoned all of this in the 1960s to 80s, so a question I have is why these people still wanted to join, even after the smarter people all jumped ship decades prior. These men aren't saints, at best they were ignorant & misguided, at worst they are the last remnants of French colonization holding people back from self determination. In the 1960s and 70s you had Jesuits worldwide coming to terms with their own history of genocide, yet these monks somehow weren't doing that. Why do you need Christian monks handing out medicine, rather than large institutions who are better equipped?
Report
i have no idea what the critics are talking about. this movie is for people who enjoyed the passion of the christ. it is horribly slow and uninteresting. and to top it off it's depressing too. really no need to watch this unless you're super christian and into boring movies.
Report
Production Company
Why Not Productions,
Armada Films,
France 3 Cinéma,
France Télévisions,
Canal+,
CinéCinéma,
Centre national du cinéma et de l'image animée (CNC),
Cinémage 4,
Cofinova 6,
Soficinéma 6
Release Date Feb 25, 2011
Duration 2 h 2 m
Rating R
Tagline In the face of terror, their greatest weapon was faith.
Awards
César Awards, France
• 3 Wins & 11 Nominations
Cannes Film Festival
• 3 Wins & 4 Nominations
International Cinephile Society Awards
• 1 Win & 3 Nominations
