Stephen Mason - Decalogue

               The Decalogue series that we watched addresses the Ten Commandments and attempts to portray the penalties that one must face through acting against them. The two segments that we watched, “Thou shalt not kill” and “Thou shall have no other Gods before me” both have main characters that suffer the consequences because of not following these commandments. Although the stories are presented rather simply, the situations that the characters in these stories find themselves in can lead one to question not only their actions, but the status-quo of society as a whole.

               In the first commandment that we watched, “Thou shall have no gods before me”, the son of a university lecturer dies by falling through the ice of a lake that had frozen over. Teaching the concept of artificial intelligence and technological advancements that can be attained through science, the man believed that everything can be measured and that scientific facts were the most important thing. The main issue that is addressed in this story is this over reliance on technology and the promotion of the computer to a god-like status within our society. The father had fully relied on the computer to tell him that the ice was solid enough to be skated on, but in the end the ice did not support his son. The idolatry of the computer is what led to the death of his son and supports the commandment that you should have nothing before God.

               The second commandment that is addressed is “Thou shalt not kill” and follows the life of a young man who is put to death because of the murder of a cab driver. One thing that stuck out to me in this story was the brutality of the murder of the cab driver and how the same brutality was translated in the speed and cruelty found in the scene with the state putting the kid to death. This brings up the central idea that if “Thou shall not kill”, is the state also to be held to the same standard. I believe that this movie argues that they should, and argues that the state putting the young man to death is no better than the original act of murder that is being condemned.