Lindsay Conrad, Decalogue: No other Gods

The Decalogue is a very interesting portrayal of the 10 Commandments. The first one we watched, Thou Shalt Have No Other Gods Before Me, was very easily seen as Midrash. The "God" character is the homeless man by the lake. He is always with a fire and he is seen often in the movie. This is an interpretation of God a s ever-present and a kind of light to people - even those who don't understand Him or think they don't need Him.
In the film, the computer is the idol, which relates back to Exodus when the Bible talks about the people making golden calves to worship instead of God who was bringing them through the wilderness. The computer says "I am ready" but the readiness is just giving the man power to put empower the computer. So many idols are just the things that we let have power over us. Relationships, role models, homework, alcohol, all these things are just idols that we give power to, and the more power we give to them, the more destructive they can get.
Feelings are also shown in a very interesting manner. At first, a lack of feeling was shown when the dog had died. This emptiness the boy seemed to feel was touching because most humans will become soft-hearted at the sight of a dead dog, but the boy felt nothing but confusion. Later, when he is talking to his aunt, God and love was explained to him through a hug. expressing feelings through commonly-felt emotions are significant ways to bring forth the message the producer is trying to make.
The interesting point in the movie was the showing that life does happen, tragedies occur, but the God that the movie producer has encountered is a God that is always there, despite the losing of one's faith. When the calculations didn't work, and when all was lost, the god-figure in the movie was experiencing grief with the mom, the aunt, and the dad. There is a song in contemporary Christian music by Stephen Curtis Chapman that is titled "I Have Been There" and it talks about God knowing the pain and the troubles of life due to the life of his Son and sacrifice, and it very much parallels the goings on of this film.