Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Divorce’ on Netflix, a Polish Comedy That Gently Pokes a Sharp Elbow in the Ribs of Religion

Divorce (now on Netflix) needs at least a sliver of context: It’s a comedy set in Poland, where the Roman Catholic church consumes roughly 70 percent of the populace. Which is to say, religion is a big deal there, and there are blasphemy laws and everything. Against that backdrop, director Michal Chacinski (co-writing with Lukasz Swiatowiec) crafts a lightly absurdist satire of religion that, in theory, should have something strong to say about the institution. But does it? Let’s find out.

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The Gist: Malgosia (Magdalena Poplawska) and Jacek (Wojciech Mecwaldowski) were a coupla damn fool 20-year-old kids who went and got themselves pregnant and then went and got themselves married. Then seven years later, they went and got themselves divorced. As the guy said, it happens. Now, their daughter is 23, and they get along fine. Malgosia is a music instructor, happily married to Adrzej (Tomasz Schuchardt), and happy that their teenage daughter Ala (Oliwia Drabik) is a clarinetist in her class. And Jacek met Monika (Michalina Labacz) and they’re ready to wed. Everything is great! Perfect. Wouldn’t change a thing.

But! This is a movie here and movies present characters who face conflicts. And in this instance, Jacek wants to marry Monika in the church, but he and Malgosia have yet to finalize their divorce with the holy body. Jacek asks Malgosia to jump through the hoops with him and she complies. It’s the kind thing to do. But the church is a shark that bites and hangs on and hangs on and hangs on, possibly until you bleed out. Malgosia fills out the paperwork and gets to a question that reads “how often did you perform your marital duties,” and that’s just the beginning of the byzantine religious bureaucracy these poor normal average people who just want to get on with their lives must endure.

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The process requires multiple meetings with stern priests in ecclesiastical court. The first collared dude they meet compels them to rethink their marriage, even though they split 17 years ago and are amicable and have perfectly fine lives away from each other now, and she remarried in the eyes of the law, but not in the unblinking omnipresent intrusive buttinsky eyes of the deity on high. They have to trot out witnesses and make a “declaration of nullity” and other absurd shit that isn’t connected to reality of any kind except that of decrepit institutions populated with people who like to control other people.

Meanwhile, life trucks on. Malgosia and Ala aren’t getting along because the kid wants to quit her mother’s orchestral band, which plays lame music for lame events, e.g., openings of railway stations that have been open for so long that they close for a minute so they can celebrate a reopening. That and the divorce labyrinth, which finds Malgosia and Jacek getting sentimental about the good and bad of their past together, puts some strain on Malgosia’s marriage. Things are piling up on her a bit. Will the divorce ever be recognized by the Man Upstairs and his many men down here, or will poor Malgosia and Jacek be forever trapped in a living purgatory? NO SPOILERS.

What Movies Will It Remind You Of?: Divorce is a weird marriage of religious satires like Honk if You Love Jesus or Dogma , crossed with busted-relationship sagas a la Marriage Story or The Break-Up .

Performance Worth Watching: The narrative focus is on Malgosia, and Poplawska shows a fine balance of breeziness and substance that makes the character endearing.

Memorable Dialogue: Malgosia and Jacek meet with a “canon law lawyer” hoping to get some help:

Lawyer: There are so many divorces now. If all sacraments could be declared null just like that, what would they be worth? Why would we need the church?

Malgosia: That’s a good question.

Sex and Skin: None.

Our Take: Divorce makes a trifle look like a poof. It’s subtle in its comedy and gentle in its drama. And that’s what makes it endearing, in its off-kilter approach to heavy topics like divorce and religion, and specifically, where religion fits into people’s lives. This story feels distinctly Polish in its point-of-view; it might not get much traction if it was set in countries where the church isn’t as omnipresent and bent on retaining its power and influence. The best joke here, that reasonably happy people in good current lawful relationships should reconsider their choices and rekindle their marriage, is deeply absurdist to modern sensibilities, and understated because it has to be. A more heavy-handed approach would be preachy and potentially angry, and Chacinski is uninterested in unleashing a screed, instead lightly jabbing a pointy elbow into the ribs of an institution and tradition that’s losing its relevance as society evolves.

These are heady notions, spinning out of a featherweight narrative, and that odd contrast is in itself amusing. Not much happens here – Jacek and Malgosia’s daughter brings her new boyfriend to visit, Ardzej doesn’t get the grant he needs for whatever work he does, the band is late for its big concert. The screenplay allows its characters to interact in amusing and relatable ways, and to reflect upon how people have and haven’t changed as they’ve aged. It’s sometimes so light, the characters all but float away – until they’re brought earthbound by grim satires of church officials and dignitaries. Consider that irony, and tell me it doesn’t make one side of your face curl up in a knowing little grin.

Our Call: STREAM IT. There are far worse things than being bemused at the expense of the church.

John Serba is a freelance writer and film critic based in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

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