this movie is not for the faint of heart. i saw an edited version and closed my eyes for a fair portion. even the trailer makes me cringe. and yet some things belong in the collective memory of the world, and the massacre at Katyn is one of those things. i can't close my eyes on history, and i hope that the awareness i gained from this movie regarding the cruelty we are capable of inflicting on each other makes me a better, kinder person.
this movie is beautiful, both in exposition and cinematography. i left the theater a changed person.
some of the things i learned from Katyn:
people (and, by extension, countries) can change in significant and fundamental ways.
people need time to mourn and the freedom to inhabit their memories.
stories that aren't told are forgotten.
love is stronger than cruelty, even if it doesn't look like it in the short term.
my courage hasn't yet and may some day be tested in extreme ways. i hope i will be ready.
6 comments:
I didn't know a film was made about this, the Poles still have a hard time with it. I'll have to check it out sometime. I liked your note about wanting to have the courage, or having your courage ready. I hope I never have to deal with something so horrific, but if I did, I'd hope I'd have the courage to handle it. (Whether to heal or to fight. Whatever the circumstance.) Thanks for posting.
lauren, i thought of you while i was watching this movie and i'd like to talk to you more about it. the language is so beautiful!
i told my students to go see the film, but i didn't get a chance to go. i'm real sad.
first, i really liked that song you posted a couple times ago.
second, i like reading your blog. i also miss the rain, but not the rain here. i miss the swiss rain.
third, how is it that you find time to watch this movie, but you didn't watch the movie i brought to your house that sat on your t.v. for a week?
p.s. i want to go to africa so badly.
wow. I've never heard of this before - either the movie or the event. no words.
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