Following my review of Ulrich Seidl's Paradise: Faith, this week's Hidden Treasures article looks at films exploring (to a larger or lesser extent) themes of christian faith.
THE KING (2005) - JAMES MARSH
James Marsh's The King was ignored by audiences when released in 2006. The British director, now best known for his documentaries including Oscar-winning Man on Wire and Project Nim, had made an undeniably uncommercial film, an indictment of the effects of Bible Belt fervour on real people, both directly and indirectly. It also failed to impress many critics, though, which is a damn shame. It's a riveting, incredible film, with one of the strongest American ensemble casts in recent years.
REQUIEM (2006) - HANS-CHRISTIAN SCHMID
Requiem will make you forget about all the other exorcism films you've seen. It's not a horror film, but it is positively horrifying. Hans-Christian Schmid doesn't attempt to sensationalise an already sensational true story, and his measured style excellently compliments the terrific performances of the cast. Lead Sandra Huller won the Best Actress prize at Berlin, and should have beaten Helen Mirren to the Best Actress Oscar. See this film, and I think you might agree.
THIRST (2009) - PARK CHAN WOOK
But if you want a real horror film, check out Thirst. Not that it's terribly scary, though. It's just terribly good fun. Park Chan Wook indulges himself here, choosing not to apply his talents to a genre project, like many of his other films. He just delves deep into his imagination, and pulls out whatever fantastic ideas and imagery he finds there. And he has every right to. There are few directors working today as dynamic as Park. Thirst is rarely regarded as one of his strongest films, but I don't care. That's what I think of it. It's heart-pounding stuff from beginning to end.
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