The other day, my copy of Thérèse arrived from the good ol' US of A so it was time for me to take a drive down the Dover Road to that great temple of mammon, Bluewater, to get hold of a DVD player that could be hacked into being multi-region. Having checked that the cheapest one currently available had a hack available online, I was a little crestfallen to find that the shop had printed sheets with all the details. At any rate, I can now merrily play DVDs from the USA or anywhere else - which seems sensible after all.I thoroughly enjoyed the film and will watch it again - probably with a few parishioners. However, I rather winced at one or two points; not from personal dislike but in anticipation of what I might read in the reviews; the Rotten Tomatoes page for Thérèse confirmed some of those fears.
UPDATE: I referred here to a NYT review. A commenter points out that it was a review of an earlier film. [wipes egg off face]
I would share the concern of some commentators that the movie might not give a very full picture of the Little Flower for someone who did not know much about her. I was amused by this comment from Chris Armstrong in his review of the film for Christianity Today:
As an evangelical Protestant, however, I felt as I watched this first full-length English-language film portrayal of the young lady of Lisieux that I had somehow wandered into a theater playing a foreign film without subtitles. Something was being communicated just below the surface here, I thought, in telegraphic symbols and catchphrases, but I was too dense to quite catch the deeper meaning. I felt uncomfortable, as if I sat with a sign around my neck reading "clueless Protestant."That is a perceptive comment. At times the film operates almost as a slideshow of the saint's life and spiritual quest. Nevertheless, if you are familiar with the life of St Thérèse and have even a little devotion to her, you just can't allow it to pass by. (I got my copy via Amazon UK.)
14 comments:
He makes it sound like "clueless protestant" is an unfair and inaccurate description of himself.
I beg to differ.
Tom
I purchased the movie a couple years ago because I was unable to see it in the theatre. It was not widely released.
Some people I know really hated it; she doesn't seem "holy enough".
And I think that would actually be the perception of any true Saint; their holiness isn't always apparent to outsiders. A prophet is never accepted in his or her own place and time, but rather, it is outsiders who recognize the true message.
I have read Celine's (Genevive of the Holy Face) biography of her sister, St. Therese, and while she refers to her as "The Saint" I have the impression that they came to this true realization after her death. Certainly they recognized her holiness...but not likely to the true degree of it.
As far as the "clueless Protestant"....well, given that he made such a comment, he is not so clueless than he thinks. Just as those who realize their sinfulness and weakness before the Lord, so is a Protestant who recognizes that there are pearls being cast before him that he ought not trample...becuase he is not swine, and those pearls are meant for him, too.
Sounds good..i will get a copy..
Canon John Udris, the priest who cared for Chesterton's home parish in Beaconsfield for many years ; has a great devotion to the little flower; as exemplified in his book on the subject - Incredible to see how his love has made him flourish - this was a very young 'youth' priest with a guitar over his shoulder, a lot of sincerity and a caring heart - but I believe his association with the most recent doctor of the Church has matured him into a saintly cleric himself. St Therese's example evangelises in so many ways - mention the name and see certain catholic's eyes sparkle !!!
I have this DVD film which I bought last year. I watched it with great anticipation but was thoroughly dissapointed by it. The only good thing about it was the music score. For my taste, the acting from the actress playing Therese was wooden and cold, film patchy, sacharine sweet, it did not portray Saint Therese as gutsy, driven and one totally in Love with God. I definitely would not watch it a second time. I think that I will stick to the book. The last thing St. Therese would have wanted was to be portrayed as some sweetie, daydreaming, closseted chocolate box sort of a Saint as the film endorses. She was a woman with a mission with a fire in her belly to make God Loved who wanted to make use of every single second of her short life, through all her life, hardships, joys and sorrows.
I bought mine several months ago. It cost me $10 (Australian). I had no problems with format because it is set up for our format. I have watched it twice. The first time I felt that it was too sugary and rather superficial. Perhaps I expected more depth (Spiritually) than I found. My second viewing was more positive. I know that the DVD hasn't changed so the change must have been in me. Perhaps it is now time for a third look!
JARay
Anne, couldn't agree more. A while back I blogged about movies with Catholic appeal, and this is one of the few I gave a "Phooey* to. Pity, as St. Therese is, next to the Blessed mother, my favorite female saint. The "clueless protestant" I think was right. Therese came off as an insipid, saccharine character. I've read a lot about her, and all the factual errors drove me nuts too. I did see it in the theatre with a friend. She didn't know much about Therese, so it didn't bother her as much. If she hadn't have been with me, I'd have walked out. I think I get a plenary indulgence for NOT throwing things at the screen and cussing out the director.
And Jackie, you've been reading a lot about St. Therese lately - so I'd love it if you dropped me a line what you think when you see it. I think you still have my email, let me know if your new computer ate it or not. The performances were wooden. I don't think I was ever so disappointed in a religious movie. Judge for yourself though.
Father,
The New York Times review you link to is for the 1986 film and not for the 2004 film you refer to here.
Clavis - that was silly of me! Many thanks for the correction.
I saw this film when it opened locally on Ash Wednesday in 2005 (about half the audience had ashes on their foreheads). I enjoyed the film and found it spiritually valuable despite some incredibly bad acting and the very schmaltzy musical score. The director was in attendance, and I considered going to tell him everything that I thought made it a bad movie by any technical or aesthetic criterion as a way of underlining just how remarkable it was that I still found it moving and inspiring. But I decided he might very well take it the wrong way.
Later I shocked the friends with whom I has seen the film by suggesting that I thought it a more genuinely holy film than Mel Gibson's _The Passion of the Christ_. I stand by that judgement, despite the fact that Gibson's film is vastly superior in every criterion by which one typically judges films.
All that said, I hear that the French film of 1986 is much better, and look forward to seeing it one day: http://imdb.com/title/tt0092090/
Personally, I enjoyed the movie and found it practically tragic that it did not receive much more support here in the US. This was a first effort by Leonardo Difillipis and he should have been able to expect a lot more support, even from people who felt it did not quite measure up. Have we got so many people putting out Catholic films that we can afford to scorn the efforts of those who make this kind of attempt? A few years ago my wife picked up from the dollar bin at a local store a film called "The Man Who Knew Too Much" made in the 30's by one Alfred Hitchcock. Talk about histrionics! It was ridiculous. Apparently the filmgoers of the time did not have as much taste as the Catholics of today, however, because Hitchcock was able to go on making films, learning as he went. I wonder if Defillippis made enough on this to be able to do the same.
BTW, I am reading "The Story of a Family" by Fr. Stephane-Joseph Piat, OFM, about the home life of St. Therese. It convinces me that their home life was every bit as sweet as depicted in the film. If we find that cloying, perhaps that is because we live in a far more brutal world.
This review gives me the opportunity, I think, to tell you of another, wonderful film about a Carmelite saint, St. Theresa of Jesus.
"Teresa of Jesus" is actually an eight part TV series that appeared on Spanish television in 1983. It is available in Spanish with English subtitles from www.divisared.es
Concha Velasco does such a wonderful job of portraying St. Teresa that I had to remind myself at times that I had not actually been transported back to the 1600's for an hour of her company. It was wonderfully done, certainly not saccharine in the least, often with a very disconcerting realism. What a performance! It leaves you wondering how Concha Velasco could get so much into the the role without departing for a convent when the filming ended.
Have we got so many people putting out Catholic films that we can afford to scorn the efforts of those who make this kind of attempt?
Spot-on, Lee. Well said!
Hello Lee, thanks for the recommendation I just bought the DVD on St. Theresa of Avila from the Spanish website which you kindly pointed out. I shall look forward to seeing the film.
Blessings.
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