Jonathan Hughes-Decalogue

The Decalogue is a Polish series of short films made for television, that examines the Ten Commandments given to Moses by God, through artistic interpretation. I personally had a difficult time connecting the stories themselves to the Ten Commandments, but I did appreciate the films from an artistic point of view. The director, Krzysztof Kieslowski, who is known for his work in documentary film making, allows his talentes as a filmaker to shine through in this series. The first short film we watched was based on the first commandment, Thou shall no other gods before me. I can losely see the connection to the story, which feature a man who bases his whole life on reason and logic, but when if fails he is faced with a harsh reality. In this short story I assume that the other god which the man is putting before God is technoloy and reason. He relys on them to determine his actions, instead of God. The next short story we watch was based on the fifth commandent, Thou shall not kill. In this film a murder takes place with no motive or purpose. I see the connection here with the commandment, which is fairly self explanatory, dont kill. Overall I thought that this was an intresting series. I certainly appreciate the symbolism used to represent the Ten Commandments. I also think that this series is great for religious studies because the Ten Commandments are not guidelines for Christianity alone, but work within all societies and religions.