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Gertrud (Carl Theodor Dreyer) 1965
**** - Masterpiece
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Not exactly entertaining, but quite compelling and incisive in its themes, Gertrud
is a lesser film than Dreyer's earlier Ordet, though not by much. Like Ordet,
the film's characters are archetypes, but somehow transcend them. I think
Dreyer's sound films are amazingly adept at establishing an "at the speed
of life" pacing that lulls us into thinking we're watching real people with
real concerns as the themes leap into universal territory. Gertrud's character
is one of the most interesting pre-feminist women I've seen in cinema and I
think Dreyer's refusal to judge her in any way saves the film from being the
bore that many seem to find it.
The film's stylistically bold, though it's not in any way garish. Rather than
use close-ups, cuts, and an overabundance of score, Dreyer lets light and
methodical camera movements make his world come alive. I would imagine that many
would find it unwatchable, or would incorrectly deem it uncinematic, but it
understands the language of cinema better than nearly any film that I've seen.
Every cut, every pan, every zoom matters.