Gertrud

Denmark at the turn of the century: one by one, the upper middle-class Gertrude ends things with her overly busy husband, her childhood friend who has just returned from abroad and the young lover she met recently. None of the three men is willing to put their love for her above their careers. Yet for Gertrud, life is all about love. She formulates her credo in absolute, non-negotiable terms and chooses solitude and her own world with a similar rigor and lack of compromise. By opting for a heavily pared-down aesthetic, Dreyer finds a corresponding form for her radical decision. (mg)