Day of Wrath
Day of Wrath
The young wife of an aging priest falls in love with his son amidst the horror of a merciless witch hunt in 17th-century Denmark.
Mike reviewedOctober 11, 2024
Day of Wrath shows us how the ethics of religion can conflict with the moral values of an individual, and how this can manifest itself into a moral dilemma.
"I'm seeing you through tears, but nobody is coming to wipe them away."
Carl Theodore Dreyer, the director of the film, is known for the religious themes in his films—with The Passion of Joan of Arc being his most well-known. Day of Wrath is the more subtle of the two, whereas The Passion of Joan of Arc is more direct in asking the moral questions.
Just like most other religious films, Day of Wrath asks the same moral questions: Right vs wrong... good vs evil. Is Anne wrong for falling in love with Absalon's son? Is Martin wrong for falling in love with his father's wife? Is Absalon wrong for sparing Anne's mother to get with Anne? Is Absalon's mother wrong for hating Anne? These are questions that can not be answered with a simple yes or no, and we are made aware of this through the characters—throughout the film we see how much all the characters are in conflict with their morals.
There is a specific scene where Absalon tells Anne that her mother admitted she had the power of calling—That she could call the living and the dead, and they had to come. If she wishes someone dead, they died.
Anne says something very important to Absalon regarding these strange powers her mother had...
"To think that a human being can possess such power."
To think a human being can possess the power to wish someone dead, and they actually die. The thing religion accuses women to be a witch for, is the same thing they are punishing them with—they wish death on the so-called witches by burning them at the stake.
Anne asks Absalon if it is true that he spared her mother to get her, to which he never gives a direct answer—showing us that he is in conflict with his morals. Absalon says he has a lot to discuss with God... As if he hopes that he will solve his moral dilemma with the ethics of religion. He feels conflicted because he realizes that he, not only, has the power to wish someone dead, but also has the power to wish someone alive. So, not only does he have the same power as the so-called witches, he also has the power to make his own decisions—decisions that were always influenced by the ethics of religion. And now that Absalon becomes more and more aware that he can make his own decisions, and that his morals do not always align with the ethics of his religion, does this mean he will lose faith in his religion? Is this how his faith is being tested?
There is one shot of a text being written on paper that beautifully shows how the powerful ethics of religion can conflict with your morals:
"On this day, which was exceptionally fine, Herlof Marte was burnt, happily."
Read full review at Letterboxd: Mike_v_E