Via Dolorosa

16 MINUTES

Close-ups on the faces of Spanish Holy Week convey the rapture of group ritual

Encompassing the eight days between Palm Sunday and Easter, Holy Week in Spain (Semana Santa) is an elaborate festival of spectacle, Spanish culture and, for the devoted, fervent piety. A remembrance of a central tenet of Christian faith – Jesus’ persecution, death and resurrection – the week is characterised by penance processions carried out by Catholic brotherhoods and associations through streets across the country.

In the coastal Mediterranean city of Málaga, home to one of Holy Week’s most historic and famed celebrations, processions feature massive tronos (thrones or floats). Intricately adorned with Christian imagery, some of these structures are so massive that they must be carried by dozens of men who have trained for the task. Along the route – called Via Dolorosa (‘Way of Sadness’) in reference to Jesus’ final walk through Jerusalem – tronos are often accompanied by the sound of military drums and the scent of candles, held by women in tow. Streetside crowds greet them with roaring applause and even the occasional serenade of a mournful flamenco verse.

The grand, arresting scene draws hundreds of thousands of tourists – faithful and secular – each year. This makes the Dutch director Menno Otten’s decision to focus only on the faces and movements of a single group of trono-carrying men in his short documentary Via Dolorosa (2013) an intriguing one. In doing so, he draws attention to the festival as an intense religious ritual – one in which the penitents, with great strength and intense discipline, briefly embody the sacrifice at the centre of their faith.

Through intimate close-ups dramatically lit by streetlamps, Otten and the Dutch cinematographer Lennart Verstegen capture expressions of pain, solemn reflection and spiritual elation. The weight of the trono and the moment are only hinted at by the grimaces of the men and the noise of the crowd. Despite the narrow perspective, there’s a sense of the group as a whole, as the men lift, shift and shout anthems in choreographed unison. Ultimately, this unique framing provides an impression of the participants as occupying both physical and spiritual spaces, within themselves and as a part of something greater, amid a transcendent moment.

Written by Adam D’Arpino

Director: Menno Otten

Cinematographer: Lennart Verstegen

Explore more

Photo of an elderly man with a beard wearing a hat and glasses, holding a notebook in a sunlit forest.

There’s a nourishing calm in quietly wandering, far from goals and distractions

Directed by Mykhailo Bogdanov

A cremation ceremony at night on a riverbank, surrounded by fires, people and historical buildings.

They keep the Hindu funeral pyres burning, but at what cost?

For the men and boys of the Dom community in Varanasi, sacred cremations demand a lifetime of exhausting, dangerous labour

by Radhika Iyengar

Black and white photo of two elderly women sitting on a wooden bench in a chapel with heads bowed, one has a handbag beside her.

Find meditation really boring? You’re not the only one

Other practices like sermons, yoga and retreats can also trigger ‘spiritual boredom’. Here’s why it’s normal and even useful

by Thomas Goetz

A yellow taxi on a busy street, people walking, child holding flowers, historic building in the background under a blue sky.

Confessions of a teenage fundamentalist

My world was dark and scary. But beautiful things crept in, and threats of hell just couldn’t compete

by Liz Boltz Ranfeld

A person wearing a red jacket and a backpack walking on a winding path through lush green fields with hills and trees in the background.

How to plan a pilgrimage

Whether religious or not, you can undertake a special, meaningful kind of journey that could leave you changed forever

by Oliver Smith

Illustration of a hedgehog in a hat pulling a cart with flowers and fruit. Russian text says “Happy Birthday”

The birthday gift

In the Soviet Union, you’d never wish someone ‘S dnem rozhdeniya!’ without a proper present

by Margarita Gokun Silver

Ancient mosaic depicting a lounging skeleton with Greek text, an amphora, a loaf of bread and a platter on a dark background.

Reflections on mortality can help you live well now – here’s how

For me and many others, contemplating death has clarified what matters. These curiosity-based exercises will get you started

by Joanna Ebenstein

Painting of a cafe interior with a person sitting alone holding a cup tables stacked chairs on checkered floor.

Solitude can be profoundly restorative. Here’s how to savour it

Time alone offers unique psychological benefits, once you learn to embrace these quiet moments rather than escape them

by Thuy-vy Nguyen