Carl Theodor Dreyer’s transcendental drama Ordet (meaning The Word) studies a rural Danish family fractured by religious differences. Devout widower and patriarch, Morten (Henrik Malberg), has three sons: the agnostic eldest, Mikkel (Emil Hass Christensen), whose pious wife Inger (Birgitte Federspiel) is pregnant with their third child; the middle son Johannes (Preben Lerdorff Rye) studied Søren Kierkegaard and now believes he is Jesus Christ; and Anders (Cay Kristiansen), the youngest, has fallen head over heals for the daughter of a fundamentalist. Nothing can prepare the family for the tragedy and mystery yet that will yet befall them.

Winner of the Golden Lion at Venice and almost always featured in your favourite critics’ and directors’ top ten lists, Dreyer’s expertly staged adaptation of the play by Kaj Munk is a brilliantly performed domestic affair that slowly builds to one of cinema's most extraordinary conclusions. Believe the hype and don’t look it up – it really is that good; but only if you let go and give yourself to the film. As well as being a masterclass in single-take shooting with meticulous blocking and breathtaking lighting, Ordet is also a key progenitor to what we’ve come to call slow cinema or transcendental style – once you see this, everything that has come after will suddenly click.