Ida/Anna, played by Agata Trzebuchowska, in a scene from the 2013 Polish film just released in the U.S., “Ida.” (Courtesy of Music box Films)
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The first world we see in the remarkable film “Ida” is that of a young Polish novice living in a cloister in the early 1960s – a quiet, serene and seemingly timeless place.
Yet almost immediately, because of the film’s striking black-and-white photography and slightly off-kilter camera angles, the viewer comes to realize that there are other worlds (and shadows) lurking to command our attention – and the attention of Anna, the 18-year-old novitiate.
Few other films I have seen take seriously (and respect) the claims and beauty of the monastic experience while also not dismissing the pressures and tensions (and not to mention pleasures) of the world that abuts those who have embraced the monastic life.
Indeed, “Ida” – which has been playing in New York and is making the rounds of the independent movie circuit throughout the country, as well – is masterful in showing that these worlds are never really isolated from each other, ever.
