Leaves From Satan's Book

For one of his earliest films, Danish director, Carl Theodore Dreyer, takes a note from D.W. Griffith's masterpiece, Intolerance, but instead of showing intolerance throughout the ages, he tells a story of temptation throughout the ages. Interestingly enough, the main character of the film is Satan himself who has been banished from Heaven. God's punishment to Satan is that he must do evil and tempt people -- for every soul who gives into his temptations, 100 years is added to his sentence; however, for every soul that resists his temptation, 1000 years is subtracted. Satan becomes an almost tragic figure who desires to be redeemed to God, but in order to do this, he must do evil and is constantly hoping that people will resist his temptation. He is used as an instrument of God to test the faith of men in times of crisis as they all struggle for redemption.

The story is told in four parts, the first being the final days of Christ on earth (a much superior portrayal than Griffith's lacking attempt in Intolerance). Satan takes the guise of a pharisee who tempts Judas to betray his master -- Judas, who has begun to question his faith. The second takes place during the Spanish Inquisition, where Satan is the Grand Inquisitor who tempts a young monk who must make judgement on an accused heretic whose daughter he is in love with. There is a beautiful moment in this sequence where the monk stares at a statue of a saint, and the statue becomes the girl he loves. The third takes place during the French Revolution where promises and loyalties are testing. The final section takes place during the Russian Revolution where he takes the form of a Russian monk who forces a young wife to choose to save the life of her husband by fighting for the enemy. The film is a profound portrayal of temptation and the testing of one's faith. It is not a great film, though it is one that is undeniably made by a great filmmaker.