The Monastery: Mr. Vig and the Nun

Mr. Vig and the abbess, Sister Amvrosia

This is an older documentary (2007) directed by Pernille Rose Grønkjærbut.

The story: Jørgen Lauersen Vig bought Hesbjerg Castle, situated in the Danish country side, with the purpose of turning it into a monastery. Now, many years later, he is about to realize his old dream. A group of Russian Orthodox nuns are on their way, and thus Mr. Vig’s life-long dream is about to come true. But, nuns have plans and wills of their own, and Mr. Vig must realize that the road to fulfilling his dream is very different than what he imagined.

My family is Danish, so it’s possible that I find this extra fascinating, but I just love it. I am here to testify that this sort of thing is pretty on brand for Denmark, where old men do sometimes live out extraordinary dreams.

Watch the trailer here.

Get the whole film here.