The Discovery Of Heaven
A re-release of the film adaptation of Harry Mulisch’s magnum opus, about two angels who are tasked by God with retrieving the Ten Commandments. To this end, they manipulate the lives of a number of people.
The angels make good use of the fact that the friends Onno and Max both fall in love with Ada. This results in a complex love triangle. Ada gives birth to a son who will play a crucial role in carrying out the divine mission.
The heavenly and earthly storylines ultimately converge in this at times solemn but above all impressive cinematic drama. Stephen Fry provides the necessary light-heartedness with his lively and humorous portrayal of Onno. With this grand-scale production, which navigates between adventure film, philosophical reflection and religious fantasy, Jeroen Krabbé succeeded 25 years ago in convincingly adapting Mulisch’s novel – considered unfilmable – for the cinema. The re-release now offers the chance to (re)discover heaven on the silver screen.
Written by MS