He Leadeth Me Movie Review: Triumph of the Heart
May 22, 2025
Fr. Gabriel Gillen, a Dominican friar and National Chaplain for FOCUS, joins to dive deep into the film 'Triumph of the Heart' about St. Maximilian Kolbe. He shares his initial hesitance to watch a film set in Auschwitz, viewing it as a Lent-like reflection. The discussion explores how the film serves as a spiritual meditation, its focus on Kolbe's last days, and a juxtaposition of hope and horror. Fr. Gabriel also defends the use of grotesque imagery, linking it to Flannery O'Connor’s themes, ultimately emphasizing the film's witness to holiness amidst darkness.
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A Movie As A Spiritual Meditation
- Triumph of the Heart focuses on St. Maximilian Kolbe's last ten days in the starvation bunker rather than his whole life.
- The film uses that confined setting to meditate on suffering, presence, and spiritual accompaniment.
Reluctant Viewer Turned Reflective
- Fr. Gabriel admitted he initially resisted watching the film because its focus on the starvation bunker seemed too brutal.
- He watched during Lent and found the experience difficult but ultimately spiritually fruitful.
Inverting Hagiography To Show Accompaniment
- The film inverts expected hagiography by centering the nine men Maximilian accompanied rather than glorifying a single triumphant hero.
- This shift highlights accompaniment and the shared human struggle in holiness.
