Operation Truth

While being critically acclaimed, films on religious life are less appreciated by the movie-going public or in theaters. Sister Patrizia Rossi, a Salesian, passionate about cinema, is the delegate of CIOFS (Italian Salesian Women’s Works Centre) for youth socio-cultural film clubs (CGS). She states, “Religious life is not very understandable in our society. Thus, even cinema, when reflecting on these themes, often resorts to clichés or provides very partial representations”.

Regarding female religious life, a theme that cinema has often touched upon is abuse. What registers have been used?

“Despite the limitations I have just mentioned, there are films of great cinematographic depth that have tackled these themes, even winning awards, but they haven’t made it to cinemas or achieved their deserved success. The register used is mostly that of sacrifice, which also recurs in titles—like Agnus Dei, Agnes of God —or in soundtracks—as in Luis Buñuel’s Viridiana, where he chose Mozart’s Requiem. Another recurring theme is the inner conflict of the abused nun, stemming from an imposed choice, tied to an unhealthy relationship with a superior. There is also a constant reference to the manipulation of God’s will within toxic structures. Generally, these films show that something was already cracking before the triggering event. Guilt, these films seem to tell us, lies not only with the individual nun but with the entire context”.

In your opinion, which film has centered more than others on this theme?

“One of the older ones, in my view, is The Nun’s Story directed by Fred Zinnemann, starring Audrey Hepburn. It is the story of Sister Luke, an intelligent, rebellious nun who does not conform to the will of her superiors. Set in 1959, with all the temporal distinctions, it represents the film that, in my opinion, best portrays the stereotypes of psychological abuse within a community”.

Any others?

“Many films have dealt with these themes, each with different nuances, and speak of a truthful aspect about these incidents of abuse. For example, Agnes of God directed by Norman Jewison, released in 1985, takes us inside a convent through the eyes of a psychiatrist played by Jane Fonda. A young nun gives birth to a baby who then dies, and the incident is covered up and dismissed as God’s will. It is interesting how it addresses guilt and the theme of generativity. The film tackles the conflict between faith and science and leaves many open and sometimes unresolved questions in the viewer’s mind”.

Which film has affected you the most?

“What struck and deeply affected me was Oltre le colline [Beyond the Hills] by Cristian Mungiu, from 2012, which won the Best Actress and Best Screenplay awards at the 65th Cannes Film Festival. This film does not belong to the Catholic sphere per se; it is inspired by a tragic story that occurred in 2005 within a community of Orthodox nuns at the Holy Trinity convent in eastern Romania. I was shocked by the brutality of this real-life story; the protagonist ends up being crucified after being accused of being possessed by the devil. But beyond this, the film, while it softens the brutality of the original story, it effectively portrays the silent atmosphere and the ways in which both psychological and physical abuse are masked within the convent, which culminates in the collective decision to ‘sacrifice’ a fellow sister who, in the fictional narrative, dies from the mistreatment she endured”.

Are there other important films on these themes?

Viridiana from 1961, which won the Palme d’Or at Cannes. This was a well-deserved prize for its depiction of the maturation of abuse, which occurs outside a convent at the hands of a relative. This abuse follows what the superior says at the beginning of the film, ‘Try to be affectionate with your uncle’. Then there is The Magdalene Sisters by Peter Mullan, from 2002, which is a film that exposes the abuses suffered by orphaned or disowned girls sent to Magdalene Asylums, where they were mainly used as unpaid laundresses. This remains an open wound in Ireland today. In my view, a masterpiece is Ida by Paweł Pawlikowski, which won an Oscar in 2015. The film delves into the protagonist’s interiority with superb use of black and white, balancing between the doubt of a past and a future already written. Agnus Dei [The Innocents] by Anne Fontaine, from 2016, is dedicated to the Polish nuns who were abused during World War II. The film deals with the dilemma of a nun’s pregnancy after she had been raped, which continues to be a relevant issue in some parts of the world. Here there is a glimpse of true history among many others. A touching scene is where Sister Maria reveals to Mathilde, the atheist doctor, what it means to live as a believer, ‘Twenty-four hours of doubt for a minute of hope’. What struck me is that doubt, in these films, is a recurring theme. Yes, because doubt about abusive forms is the questioning response to one’s conscience. And this applies to all women”.

By VITTORIA PRISCIANDARO
A journalist writing for “Credere” and “Jesus”, San Paolo Magazines