The Longing

Impressive, assured, beautifully performed study of the apparently mousey wife of an oppressively dour, disciplinarian priest in a gossip-ridden South German village. Subjecting herself to her husband's demands and to the insults of his embittered, ailing sister, Lena finds comfort in the company of a local mechanic. Adding a subplot about a murder may have been unnecessary; the depiction of Lena's living death is powerful enough without recourse to melodrama. There's a welcome touch of Dreyer here, and the faces are especially expressive.