Set in a bleak post-war Poland in 1962, the story follows a young girl, Anna (nee Ida), who joins a convent after she’s orphaned.
Just as she’s about to take her vows, her Jewish heritage comes to light and she’s sent to her only known relative; a Devil-may-care aunt.
Keen to find out what happened to her parents, Ida and her aunt set off on a road trip. And so begins a great Odyssey through pain masqueraded as nonchalance, with themes of suffering, resistance and anti-Semitic sentiment raising the roof of this stunning piece de resistance.
Aunt Wanda steals the show
Ida, for her part, was fantastically portrayed by Agata Trzebuchowska, who was apparently discovered at a cafeteria in Poland.
But for me, it was all about Aunt Wanda. I was wholly captivated by this woman and her on-screen display of bravado. To summarise her in a single word: gumption. She could make blokey Polish blokes cripple before her. And she was antithetical to the convent and everything Ida believed a woman should be.
Bold. Daring. Free.
In her words “Jesus loved people like me” with a tongue-in-cheek reference to the controversial figure of Mary Magdalene.
But as the film wears on, and certain hidden truths are exposed, dents appear in that steely facade. And when the mask finally falls off towards act three, we see a broken woman who had never really come to terms with the tragic death of her son and her sister, having thrown herself into vice and work.
In the end, she could avoid it no longer. She had to look it right in the eye, even though it cost her her life.
Ida’s choice; the moment everything came together
When Ida refused to take her vows, it seemed as though she’d escaped being confined in a cage for the rest of her life under the watchful glare of Mother Superior.
She decides to follow in her aunt’s footsteps, partaking in every vice she’d been exposed to (including Cole Porter), before the moment of truth.
In bed with her lover, Ida asks what’s next. The young man – a jazz musician they happened to pick up along the way – tells Ida of his plans to marry her and have children.
To my utter shock and surprise, Ida chooses to take her vows after all, preferring the safety of the convent and Mother Superior to being chained to this jazz musician for life.
Was it the right decision?
It depends on who you ask. Back in 2008, after school, I was preparing to join a monastery. I was ready to take my vows and renounce material possessions for the life of a monk.
But then our family’s head priest turned me down. He told me that wasn’t my path. That I had to go out into the world and forge my own.
In a way, I’m glad he said that. I couldn’t imagine committing myself to a lifetime of austerity, missing out on all the little pleasures that the material world has to offer. Most importantly, my wife and son.
In the end, we must all make our choices. Some choose to brave the world, as twisted and messed up as it can be. While others prefer to hide behind the walls of a monastery or convent, turning a blind eye to all things that have no relevance in their little sanctity of (ignorant) bliss.
Here are some of the moments I captured on my phone’s camera:
Just Me Lakhani 