Ordet (1955)

How do we understand faith and prayer, and what of miracles? August 1925 on a Danish farm. Patriarch Borgen has three sons: Mikkel, a good-hearted agnostic whose wife Inger is pregnant, ... See full summary »

Director:

Carl Theodor Dreyer

Writer:

Kaj Munk (play)

Stars:

Hanne Agesen, Emil Hass Christensen, Preben Lerdorff Rye

Won 1 Golden Globe. Another 7 wins.

Cast

Uncredited cast:
Hanne Agesen	...	Karen, a Servant (uncredited)
Kirsten Andreasen	...	(uncredited)
Sylvia Eckhausen	...	Kirstin Petersen (uncredited)
Birgitte Federspiel	...	Inger, Mikkel's Wife (uncredited)
Ejner Federspiel	...	Peter Petersen (uncredited)
Ann Elisabeth Groth	...	Maren Borgen, Mikkel's Daughter (uncredited)
Emil Hass Christensen	...	Mikkel Borgen (uncredited)
Cay Kristiansen	...	Anders Borgen (uncredited)
Preben Lerdorff Rye	...	Johannes Borgen (uncredited)
Henrik Malberg	...	Morten Borgen (uncredited)
Gerda Nielsen	...	Anne Petersen (uncredited)
Ove Rud	...	Pastor (uncredited)
Susanne Rud	...	Lilleinger Borgen, Mikkel's Daughter (uncredited)
Henry Skjær	...	The Doctor (uncredited)
Edith Trane	...	Mette Maren (uncredited)

Storyline

How do we understand faith and prayer, and what of miracles? August 1925 on a Danish farm. Patriarch Borgen has three sons: Mikkel, a good-hearted agnostic whose wife Inger is pregnant, Johannes, who believes he is Jesus, and Anders, young, slight, in love with the tailor's daughter. The fundamentalist sect of the girl's father is anathema to Borgen's traditional Lutheranism; he opposes the marriage until the tailor forbids it, then Borgen's pride demands that it happen. Unexpectedly, Inger, who is the family's sweetness and light, has problems with her pregnancy. The rational doctor arrives, and a long night brings sharp focus to at least four views of faith.

---

Plot Keywords:

faith | august | prayer | doctor | patriarch | 

---

Genres:

Drama

---

Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

Denmark

Language:

Danish

Release Date:

10 January 1955 (Denmark)

Also Known As:

The Word

Company Credits

Production Co:

Palladium Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

126 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Birgitte Federspiel, who plays Inger, is daughter of Ejner Federspiel, who plays Peter Petersen.

---

Quotes

Morten Borgen: And the rest of us, all the rest of us, we go straight down to hell to eternal torments, don't we? Yes, that's what you think, isn't it?
Peter Petersen: Yes. Words, words, you have them all right.

---

Connections

Referenced in Notre musique (2004)

User Reviews

oh my goodness what a film

very strong early pictures, followed by a slow build up of the plot. introducing character after character. each one played very carefully without the slightest overacting. strong faces, intense voices. the visuals show a black and white with some soft sand tone in between, at least it seemed like that. wonderful cinematography, very careful and precise lights.

there is almost no editing. there are minute long scenes without a cut. the set is most of the time studio and the acting happens like in a play, wit the audience at the position of the camera. yet miraculously it never feels ... staged. very careful small pieces are set in between to illustrate characters, like the end, when the doctor slightly touches the arm of the priest, following their earlier conversation and contrasting their social position.

an amazing piece. very late i realized that most of it was without any music, building up the auditive experience by rhythm of words ... or of breath. as in the givingBirth sequence when the breathing of the woman is somehow intense, yet not loud at all, very different from more modern versions of givingBirth in movies. not necessarily realistic in sound, but totally in the intensity.

what a film. and i had never heard of it until a friend put the DVD in my hand ...