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Conflict of gods and men STEFAN KUSSY THE BIG SCREEN
A
lthough Of Gods and Men is set in an impoverished village, Tibhirine, in Algeria during the civil war between the ruling government and Islamist forces in that country in the 1990s, the film touches on the universal concerns of faith, trust, hope, belief and humanity.
If a film can navigate across an immense spectrum of meaning and contemplation, Of Gods and Men does a reasonable job of it. It encapsulates the universal to the microcosmic. A group of Trappist monks, led by Brother Christian (Lambert Wilson), a name that resonates significantly considering the belief systems at the centre of the civil war, follow a routine of prayer, growing food and dispensing medical care as they negotiate their lives. They are cocooned by their faith and belief in the worth of their assistance to the sick and poor residents of the village. They are frail men committed to their god but in the secular world they have very little food and no immediate family apart from their brotherhood. They rejoice in the taste of wine, grow what they can and are devoted to providing what help they can to the villagers. Being Christian monks in a Muslim country has not been a huge issue until the monks are confronted by the brutality of the Islamist rebels, who slaughter Serbian workers at the monastery. This act immediately confronts the monks with the option of whether to stay and continue their work or
Contemplation: Michael Lonsdale plays Luc and Sabrina Ouazani plays Rabbia in Of Gods and Men. abandon the local community to assure their own safety.
externally is of any true consequence. He is at peace.
As men of god and caring human beings they would like to help any in need with the meagre supplies they have but they are pressured from both sides.
The Islamist rebels’ values are different to the Monks, yet they are just as passionate about their beliefs, both political and faith based.
Christian refuses to accept the protection of the military, which causes consternation among the monks. They are divided as to whether they should stay or go. They are forced to delve into their souls to uncover their essential beliefs and why they do what they do. It cuts to the heart of who they are.
There is no right and wrong in this situation. It depends behind which set of values you stand as to whether you are right and the others are misguided. Despite this, the monks and the rebels, led by Ali Fayattia (Farid Larbi), have reached equilibrium in their acceptance of each other.
Their sense of faith is also challenged as they meditate. Only one monk, Brother Luc (Michael Lonsdale), the medic, realises he is a free man, spiritually and physically, and nothing imposed upon him
The scales, however, are made of sharpened steel and could have disastrous effects once the equilibrium is disturbed. Eventually all the monks reach the same decision. They stay. This decision has major consequences
because neither the government, military nor rebels supports the monks wholeheartedly. It is more a matter of tolerance. However, at some stage, we realise that all parties in the conflict will act and react to the plight of the monks. The conflict impacts on the solidity of the monks’ isolated lives in their small community. Their decision imparts a sense of power and control to the monks while at the same moment instilling a feeling of helplessness. Externally, the monks’ true support comes from the residents of the community in which they live and work while internally their belief in their faith carries them, although they are practical and realise there is a strong chance they will end up with their throats slit. The monks have developed a
sense of community with the villagers through ministering to the villagers’ ill health. Through their isolation from family and fellow French countrymen, the monks are challenged to decide individually and as a collective, the worth of what they are doing.
Of Gods and Men is as much a meditation upon universal values as an account of the real life fate of seven monks in conflict torn Algeria in the 1990s. Of Gods and Men shows that peace and freedom can be allusive and challenged by the flight of a bullet or the blade of a knife slicing your artery. Of Gods and Men (French dialogue with English subtitles), rated MA 15+, screens at Greater Union Manuka.
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