Into Great Silence

"A meditation on life. A contemplation of time. Silence. Repetition. Rhythm."

2005 2h 42m DE

👍

7.0

SOLID

★7.0TMDB · 41

Documentary

Synopsis

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An intimate portrayal of the everyday lives of Carthusian monks of the Grande Chartreuse, high in the French Alps (Chartreuse Mountains). The idea for the film was proposed to the monks in 1984, but the Carthusians said they wanted time to think about it. The Carthusians finally contacted Gröning 16 years later to say they were now willing to permit Gröning to shoot the movie, if he was still interested.

“A meditation on life. A contemplation of time. Silence. Repetition. Rhythm.”

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Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Philip Gröning
Writers: Philip Gröning
Languages: French, Latin
Countries: Germany, Switzerland, France

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

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Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

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Clocks in at 162 minutes — on the longer side of feature-length cinema.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

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Released 21 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

WORLD

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Dialogue crosses 2 languages: French, Latin.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 3 countries: Germany, Switzerland, France.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

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Directed by Philip Gröning, shot by Philip Gröning. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Philip Gröning. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Philip Gröning shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Philip Gröning directs. Philip Gröning behind the camera. Philip Gröning scores. Philip Gröning cuts. A long sit — settle in. Produced in Germany, Switzerland, France. Dialogue in French, Latin.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Clocks in at 162 minutes — on the longer side of feature-length cinema.
2Released 21 years ago.
3Dialogue crosses 2 languages: French, Latin.
4International production across 3 countries: Germany, Switzerland, France.
5Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.
6Directed by Philip Gröning, shot by Philip Gröning. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
7Original score by Philip Gröning. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
8Editor Philip Gröning shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
9Marketing tagline: "A meditation on life. A contemplation of time. Silence. Repetition. Rhythm.".
10IMDB entry: tt0478160 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
11Only 41 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.
12Classified under 13 themes, including "meditation", "season", "faith", "christianity".