To verdener

I will not judge this movie on anything else but artistic values... and the thoughts about the reasons why someone would make this are left behind.

All I can say is that this was beautifully crafted coming of age film about Sara and her family. Sara is a part of the Jehovah's Witnesses local group and she lives a normal life until few events start changing the steady faith into a whirlwind of doubts!

The screenplay was very realistic and engaging, and I loved the subtle touches of the director who knew how to go deeper without disturbing the feelings, except the last part, where the faith of the group was more judged than allowed to be expressed.

Acting was superb, and the young Rosalinde Mynster showed us the real talent in action - it could not be better! My deductions in score were made for the attitude of the film ... which, I guess, is to judge the "odd ones" and try to make them feel awkward! But, still, an excellent art work was created in that process, and I am acknowledging that writing this review.

Love these Danish films...such emotion, tackling religion this time. Unfortunately, religion can ask too much from us mere mortals. The fact that the movie was based on a true story, made it more relatable...not with the Jehovahs only, but with any paternalistic religion. Enough said...

Much of my family and friends are JW's and have no interest in seeing this film.Knowing their belief's I really understand their lack of interest in a film maybe about JW's made by non-JW's,it's a no brainer,stay away from it.The reviews only enforce the thought of avoidance.Good acting is good acting but using a movie drama for education on a religion doesn't make sense.In one of the Ben-Hur movies they try to pass it off as a Bible experience even though the Bible makes NO mention of a person named Ben-Hur.The makers of this film may of have thought the movies errors had less chance of upsetting JW's than another religion.Enjoy the acting but why formulate a religious opinion from a movie made by a non-member of that religion.

A rather well-documented drama, presenting the closed society of the Jehovah's Witnesses.

It shows that "something" that they don't tell you when they knock on your door, but this is not a hateful film. The main character, a young girl, is trapped between the love for her unbeliever boyfriend and the love for her JW-family. In the Jehovah's witnesses world, these two are mutually-exclusive.

The only reason I'm giving this picture just 9 stars is because 10 are for the titans of the genre, like "Schindler's list" or "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest". But these 9 stars are well deserved in my opinion.

I have come to set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law." (Saint Matthews ,10-35)

These are words by Christ who hinted at an upheaval in the society in which you had to "honor thy father and thy mother", in which slavery was a fait accompli ; loyalty to Christ might lead to severance from the milieu where you were nurtured .But Christ's tenet was not only that: the New Testament and the hard Old one are "worlds apart" ( that's the English title of the movie)

In this excellent movie,the petulant Jehovah brings this about : it's not a problem of Danemark ,I'm not Danish ,and I've heard several times the "pioneers" knock on my door to bring me "the good news" .

Jehovah is,in these people 's mind , demanding but rewarding and you've got to sacrifice everything ,even your own life (the friend's awful fate after her accident is considered a blessing ,because her abnegation opened up the pearly gates for her ) and your family :the one depicted in " to verdener" is split into two "camps" and even three if you count the son , who first left and who became excommunicated ,a pariah to his own family ; the mother is adamant ,ruthless ,and forgiveness is a word she does not know .

It's too bad the boyfriend's parents characters are not more developped : they are atheist ,well-balanced and happy and they do tell their son's squeeze is part of a sect ;on the other hand ,it's a good idea to introduce the boy -who just pretends - in their congregation .

Based on a true story , it's an important movie, because it shows what lies beneath those would be "good news" .