Elämä lyhyt, kuolema pitkä

I was fortunate enough to view this film [and to participate in a Q&A with Mr. Zanussi] at the Chicago International Film Festival in October, 2000 and it profoundly moved me. The basic theme is hardly original: that there is more to life than what one can see and that it is not limited to our time on earth. However, as Mr Zanussi pointed out at the Festival, having been born in Poland in 1939 he has a more than passing familiarity with death, and in this film explores its significance. This he does with visual eloquence, grace and occasional wit in this film set in Poland and France.