In order to comprehend and interpret The Decalogue more accurately and intricately, one needs to understand the background and environment from which it was created. It is obvious that Kieslowski is most interested in telling a universal tale, of delving into the ethics of humanity rather than pigeon-hole the films by narrowing the focus on Poland or even Eastern Europe. He wants to resonate on a global scale, invoking conversation and theorizing from wherever humans strive for philosophical, moral, and theological realization. His goals are to portray the Ten Commandments as they relate to a generation more than a particular society. That being said, it is impossible to un-marry The Decalogue from the perspective from which it was told. Therefore, a careful analysis of the culture of late 1980’s Poland should provide further insight into these films; in turn, there is also much to be ascertained about Polish culture from the films.
In his excellent article “Decalogue: Poland’s Cinema of Collision” Reni Celeste writes about how The Decalogue came at an important moment for Polish art. He writes that the films were made “one year after the 1987 Film Law abolished state censorship and relinquished state control over film production” and one year before the fall of Communism. Therefore, the films represent the ending of an era and the ushering in of another. Therefore, it can be posited that The Decalogue has its roots in Cold War-era Communist oppression while looking forward to a once-idealized, now-realized freedom. Kieslowski is rarely interested in politics, however, focusing much more on ethics and emotion. But more to the point of politics is the nature of the struggle and turmoil within Poland at the time. Oftentimes great art comes from strife and such is the case here.
Poland is a conglomeration of many different ethnicities that have differing politics, cultural practices and tendencies, and religions. There is no unified, predominant point-of-view. Additionally, Poland’s geography facilitates conflict. It is an open field, basically, without a natural barrier to protect it. Thus, it has often served as the point of “collision between the competing Eastern and Western European civilizations” (Celeste). Poland has served not only as a battlefield, but also as a place of concentration camps and other historic tragedies. Through it all, however, Poland has stood for a remarkable 1000 years. The conflict in 1988 was perhaps between a people fighting for freedom and a government desperate to maintain control. Kieslowski stands between the two in this regard, earning his stripes working for the state-controlled cinema while trying to communicate his message with society. The dissolving of state-censored cinema surely freed Kieslowski to unabashedly tell the story that burned from within instead of the story that could rest inside the parameters and imagination of the censors.
It is interesting, then, to see how Kieslowski treats the Law of God and the conflict of the people called to maintain it. Celeste describes: “The law emerges in a realm of duplicity and multiplicity and insists on singularity” (Celeste). There is a subtlety that he employs that gives an impression of impartiality, but the truth is ever-boiling under the surface. He broaches each law as though it were a philosophical and ethical treatise instead of a black-or-white penal code. But he also does not preach or reduce the films into parables. He understands the complexity and mystery found in the Word and therefore does not pretend to impossibly have resolute answers, pious judgment, or divine knowledge. But he does tackle what he can; in particular, we glimpse an actor who possibly conveys God, but we do not receive insight into his perspective or thoughts. Celeste writes that Kieslowski successfully shows the confluence of a sinful people and a righteous law: “It is… here that tragedy and ethics reveal their complicity when action and its consequences expose the horror of freedom and responsibility” (Celeste). As a viewer and a part of creation, we witness the grand drama of God as it unfolds on a people who are by nature in direct opposition to his Truth. Kieslowski ultimately incorporates his experience of struggle and tragedy to tell a story that resonates on a deep level of humanity with all who experience The Decalogue. He bears witness to the tragedy found in rebellion to the Law of God.
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