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The Ninth Day By David DiCerto Catholic News Service NEW YORK (CNS) -- A pious Catholic priest finds himself faced with having to choose between physical or spiritual survival in the quietly compelling Nazi-era drama, "The Ninth Day" (Kino International), a powerful film that deserves recognition at Oscar time. Loosely based on the prison diaries of real-life Luxembourg priest, Father Jean Bernard, and directed by Jesuit-educated German filmmaker Volker Schlondorff, the picture is an intelligent and emotionally forceful meditation on faith, redemption and the cost of true discipleship. In May 1941, Father Bernard was arrested for denouncing the Nazis and imprisoned in Germany in Dachau's infamous "Priest Block," a barracks that housed more than 3,000 clergymen of various denominations (the vast majority being Roman Catholic priests). In Schlondorff's fictionalized version, Father Bernard's name has been changed to Father Henri Kremer (Ulrich Matthes), and it opens with him already interned in the concentration camp. Without explanation, he is released and given passage home to his native Luxembourg. Upon his arrival, a young SS officer named Gebhardt (August Diehl) informs Father Kremer that his "reprieve" is, in fact, only a nine-day furlough. It was granted so the priest might use his influence to convince his staunchly anti-Nazi bishop (Hilmar Thate) -- who has cloistered himself in protest of the occupation -- to sign a letter pledging his support to the Reich. The intended goal is to create a politically advantageous rift between the church in Luxembourg and the Vatican. If Father Kremer refuses, he will be sent back to the labor camp and certain death. If he tries to escape while on leave, every Luxembourg priest in Dachau will be executed. Also weighing heavily on Father Kremer is the safety of his surviving family, including his industrialist brother, Roger (Germain Wagner), his pregnant sister, Marie (Bibiana Beglau), and her husband, Raymond (Jean-Paul Raths). Throughout, Father Kremer is haunted by nightmarish memories of Dachau, tormented by an act of selfishness that may have led to a fellow inmate's suicide. Under pressure from his Gestapo superiors, Gebhardt first tries "friendly" persuasion and veiled coercion. When that doesn't work, he resorts to outright threats. Gebhardt was once a seminarian, and uses religious reasoning to twist the cross into a swastika and rationalize his anti-Semitism. And while his perversion of Christianity is repellent, his philosophic bent not only makes him a much more interesting character than most Hollywood storm troopers, but provides for more textured theological exchanges with Father Kremer. "The Ninth Day" has a strong moral dilemma which echoes that of "A Man for All Seasons." Both films involve questions of conscience in which the protagonist wrestles with what German theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer -- himself executed by the Nazis -- called "costly grace." The acting is top-notch across the board; this is especially true of Diehl, whose layered performance makes him all the more malevolent. But the film is carried by Matthes, whose gaunt face and hunched gait register both defiance and defeat. His hollow expression conveys a man clinging to the last shred of his sanity and humanity, a man who has seen hell but still believes in heaven. And though dialogue-heavy, the film has a life-and-death urgency. It should be stated that the visual look of the movie is intentionally bleak and includes graphic scenes of prison camp horrors, including a grim sequence where a Polish priest is crucified (complete with a barbed-wire crown of thorns). Conversely, "The Ninth Day" also contains one of the most beautiful depictions of the priesthood ever filmed in which a group of cadaverous priests concelebrate Mass in the Dachau block using hidden crusts of bread. The issues raised -- including the Catholic hierarchy's response to Nazi atrocities -- are complex, and Schlondorff resists the temptation to oversimplify them. Instead, he navigates the narrative's potential minefield with sensitivity and evenhandedness, especially in his nuanced portrayal of the church authorities: The bishop acts with moral integrity; his Nazi-collaborating secretary (Gotz Burger) does not. Father Kremer, despite his human weaknesses, exhibits quiet courage in the face of evil. The scene in which Father Kremer and the bishop debate the Vatican's chosen course of opposing the Nazis is among the film's best. The "real" Father Kremer, Father Bernard, survived Dachau. He was made bishop of Luxembourg in 1955 and served as head of the International Catholic Organization for Cinema and Audiovisuals. "The Ninth Day" is a thoughtful reminder of the inviolability of the human soul, the loss of which is not worth the whole world, let alone Luxembourg. Subtitles. The film contains several images of sadistic violence, including a crucifixion, as well as some crude language. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-III -- adults. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association of America. - - - DiCerto is on the staff of the Office for Film & Broadcasting of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. END Copyright (c) 2005 Catholic News Service/USCCB. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed. CNS · 3211 Fourth St NE · Washington DC 20017 · 202.541.3250 |
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