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Black Narcissus - Criterion CollectionRating:
Release Date: 30 January, 2001 Retail Price: $39.95 OUR Price: $35.99 You SAVE: $3.96! Cast: Complete Cast (8 total) |
Black Narcissus - Criterion Collection Reviews
a triumph of nature and grace!
This is one of my all time favorite films. It is about the clash of east with west, of Christianity with paganism, of celibacy with carnal desire. It is about how sometimes in failure and humiliation, there is triumph. Proud Sister Clodagh fails in everything she undertakes, but she achieves priceless self-knowledge and compassion for human weakness. And she takes with her the heart of a man whom she will haunt forever. A riveting performance by the magnificent Deboral Kerr in which one can see the duelling passions under the chaste exterior. David Ferrar is incredibly sexy and elemental and yet through his encounter with the nuns he finds his own soul. Jean Simmons steals the show as the village slut, and the dance she performs for Sabu is one of the most beguiling seduction scenes ever. Kathleen Byron is fantastic as the crazy nun and it is disturbing to watch her sink into evil and neurosis through untamed lust. I highly recommend this film as a masterpiece of acting, directing, cinematography and screenplay.
A tale of nature, suspense and romance
The story began when a group of 5 nuns - Reverend Sister Clodagh(Deborah Kerr) and nuns noted respectively for physical strength (Sister Briony), personality (Sister Honey), gardening (Sister Philippa) and problems (Sister Ruth) - embarked on the mission to convert a palace in the Himalayas to a chapel, school and convent. Standing on a vertical cliff, the breathtaking palace overlooked distant hills and valleys stretching far beyond. The wind blew non-stop, the trees flourished and flowers blossomed, the landscape uniquely beautiful - in other words, Shangrila.
What enticed me were its intriguing mix of rich and poor, nature beauty and temptations, solitude and human nature. Rich was the young General(Sabu) who was adorned with jade, gold necklaces and fine clothes and wore the perfume Black Narcissus. Even his teachers could not help marvel at the worldly treasures. Local people were relatively poor but contented, paid to send their children to study in the convent's classrooms. The very young boy interpreter (Eddie Whaley, Jr.),the translator for the Sisters, actually stole every scene and formed a strong bond with the Sisters. He would pray and live with the Sisters and sensed their change of mind. A dark-skin and strange looking (Jean Simmons) was placed under the care of the Sisters. Mr. Dean (David Farrar) was the man who would often argue with Sister Clodagh and discourage her while getting things done. The convent began to function well.
Yet the 5 Sisters gradually suffered - either haunted by their past, distracted by the new people or the new surrounding. Was it the wind, the water, Mr. Dean or the isolated geography that heightened the senses of the Sisters and made the loneliness unbearable? Reverend Sister's past overwhelmed her for the very first time since she became a nun. Instead of growing basic food, Sister Gardener started to dream and grow flowers. (The movie had an elegant way to reveal this.) Sisters Briony and Honey also had their reasons to be distressed. And none suffered more than the young, beautiful but troubled Sister Ruth (Kathleen Byron). Her transformation into a beautiful but relentless woman dominated the last part of the story. Her sinister twist turned the movie into great suspense and glued the audience to the screen. The contrast between the sunny mood at start and the convent in the dark near the end couldn't be greater. A tragedy ensued and the parting of the nuns with the Himalayas was somehow romantic, sad but relieving.
This movie was rich in details, both in terms of cinematography and characters. Despite or because of the serene picturesque landscape, the turmoil inside the nuns' minds gained momentum and made the whole story thought provoking. One of a kind.
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