The sound, score, cinematography, and lighting in this film are all executed to the highest standard, with the cumulative effect of an enjoyable cinematic experience. The grim subject matter is conveyed in an atmosphere of creeping paranoia and danger, although the stately pace undercuts any true suspense.

The dilemma of keeping a religious school in existence within a totalitarian police state is the heart of the narrative, with the ancillary issue of the corruscating effect of communism on interpersonal relationships and individual integrity.

In sum, a bit of a grim slog at points, but a rewarding effort for those with the patience to see it through to the end.

While watching this marvelous B/W arthouse film I could not shake the feeling that it is a perfect companion to polish director Pawel Pawlikowski's Ida, which deals with different topics but similarly features studying catholic clergy youth.

Servants is set in 80s Czechoslovakia, and outlines the grip of the regime as it encompasses a catholic seminary for upcoming priests. As with most arthouse films of this kind, story is secondary, hence not too complex. The strenght lies in the atmosphere of bleak hopelessness that pervades every frame right from the beginning, in a similar fashion to the HBO Chernobyl series.

The dehumanising and demoralising effects of totalitarianism and resistance to it are the main themes of the film. I cannot avoid mentioning the imposing presence of romanian actor Vlad Ivanov in the role of the secret police agent tasked with supervising the seminary.

The black & white aesthetic, borrowed from Pawlikowski's cinema is definitely worth mentioning. The framing, lighting, perspective of each shot was immaculate, a very conscious and successful use of monochrome, especially when compared to how several modern b/w films seem simply to put a black and white filter over the film without any attention to contrast or without exploiting the potentials of the style, almost as if it was just a gimmick to make the film more "artsy". This is not the case at all, luckily.

Being a slow-paced arthouse film about a topic seen in several east european films, that of the oppression of communist regimes through the secret police, it is not a "sunday afternoon flick", which would explain why this film went practically unnoticed after its premiere at berlinale last year, and why it yet has not had a wide distribution, not even in arthouse theaters worldwide, but that deserves more consideration.