I will not bother to describe the plot as it has been done other places. What I experienced as important in the movie was the changing dynamic between the monks as the drama progressed, from doubt and critical thinking about what the right decision is to religious, ambiguous, circular reasoning in the end, and how a norm for self-destruction emerged through their group interactions. Throughout the movie there is a heavy emphasis on religious texts and I miss more screen time for the monks' own thoughts and conversations, not just one psalm after another.
The scene that gripped me the most by far was a scene where the monks ate together and drank wine while they listened to classical music. In this scene they actually live in the moment instead of contemplating religious past or future and they come alive in a much more profound sense than earlier in the movie (except maybe for some of the scenes with Michael Lonsdale who does a very good job in the movie).
All in all an OK movie that shows how dangerous it can be not to question beliefs, this regarding both the Cistercians and the islamists.
The scene that gripped me the most by far was a scene where the monks ate together and drank wine while they listened to classical music. In this scene they actually live in the moment instead of contemplating religious past or future and they come alive in a much more profound sense than earlier in the movie (except maybe for some of the scenes with Michael Lonsdale who does a very good job in the movie).
All in all an OK movie that shows how dangerous it can be not to question beliefs, this regarding both the Cistercians and the islamists.