When Christianity began to spread across Europe, there were still some Baltic Pagan tribes floating between Eastern and Western Christianity. In the new documentary, Baltic Tribes, viewers get to see the beliefs and fears through the eyes of a traveler in the ancient land. Sometimes resembling a horror movie, sometimes feeling like an episode of Vikings, the documentary is quite fascinating. Even if you’re not a documentary kind of person, I highly recommend giving this a chance as it feels very different from a standard documentary film.
Viewers see the realms of the Baltic people through the eyes of a Danish spy named Lars. Though intended to travel and convert the remaining Pagan tribes to Christianity, he finds himself taking part in religious rites, getting high during the Summer Solstice, becoming a slave briefly, and fighting crusaders. Watching this film kind of feels like you’re being tricked into an education and I’m here for it. Want to know what the pagans near Prussia ate at this time? You’ll find out. Interested in how they determined guilt or innocence, you’ve got it. However, don’t watch this with your kids. There’s definitely some sex and violence in this one that would be a bit hard to explain to your younger ones.
Baltic Tribes will be available on DVD and Digital January 7, 2019.
