The Valley of the Bees

Set in 13th-century Europe, František Vláčil's visionary medieval epic chronicles the tale of a young boy forced to join the Order of the Teutonic Knights. Years later he abandons the Crusaders, only to be pursued by a fanatical comrade and pay a terrible price for his rejection of the Holy Order. With dazzling monochrome cinematography and vivid recreation of the period, The Valley of the Bees is a raw and haunting moral fable about the conflict between human nature and dogmatism - and just as powerful and engrossing a film as his more famous work, Marketa Lazarová. (Second Run)