Intelligent story told with wit
The Passion of Augustine (PG, 103 mins), directed by Lea Pool, ★★★★1⁄2
We are in Quebec and the year is 1967.
At a small-town convent, the social revolution rocking the outside world is walking up the marble steps in a poncho and widebrimmed hat ensemble straight out of Janis Joplin’s wardrobe. Her name is Alice. Waiting for her is the cloistered, disciplined and – until recently – timeless world of the nunnery.
But the women who inhabit this convent are not immune or unaware of the world outside. And neither are they necessarily resisting what the wind is blowin’ their way.
Nun and music teacher extraordinaire Sister Augustine (Celine Bonnier) is a woman with no desire to slavishly serve any institution, particularly the tottering patriarchy of the Roman Catholic Church.
Augustine sees in Alice a jagged reflection of her own muted anger, and The Passion of Augustine becomes a story of the two women’s parallel rebellions.
Veteran Swiss/Canadian director Lea Pool – who made the astonishing Emporte-moi and the must-see doco Pink Ribbons, Inc – lays out a tale that resists – nearly – every contrivance and cliche that a less-mature filmmaker or funder might have approved, and instead presents a nuanced, reflective and unashamedly intelligent film.
This is a warm, witty and genuine story, near-perfectly told. Great music too. – Graeme Tuckett