To
celebrate the release of the book, The Three Sisters, I asked each of
the three sisters to tell me what were their three favorite movies with
nuns in them were, and then which movie they jointly chose as their
favorite “nun” movie of all time.
Regina
Grant: Since I like classic Hollywood films, I chose The Singing Nun
(1966), Come to the Stable (1949), and Heaven Knows Mr. Allison (1957).
The Singing Nun is my favorite of the three. It’s lots of fun in a
mindless way, and Debbie Reynolds as engaging as ever. You can’t help
but like the movie, even if it is pure fiction. The nun it was based
upon, Soeur Sourire, committed suicide 20 years after the film was made,
after a life of financial difficulties. Come to the Stable was written
by Clare Booth Luce who also wrote The Women. It’s an engaging film in
which some irreligious people help the sisters build a children’s
hospital showing the spiritual and secular can work together. Heaven
Knows Mr. Allison is set during World War II on an island in the
Pacific, and is about a castaway marine who falls for a stranded nun.
They work together to avoid the Japanese when they arrive on the
island. It is quite an engaging drama.
Theodora
Suora: I prefer the more intellectually challenging films, so I chose
Doubt (2008), Black Narcissus (1947) and Dead Man Walking (1995). Doubt
is my favorite of the three. The first time you see it, you are
inclined to view it from Sister Aloysius Beauvier’s point of view, but
if you watch it from Father Brendan Flynn’s point of view, you’ll see
his view makes just as much sense as hers, whence the doubt. Black
Narcissus is about a community of nuns who try to establish a civilized
community in the Himalayas in the former bordello of a Rajah. It is
wonderfully photographed and each of the characters is finely drawn.
Dead Man Walking takes on the difficult subject of the death penalty and
handles it with poignancy. Both Susan Sarandon and Sean Penn give
wonderful performances.
Coito
Gott: Since Theodora always tells me what a rebel I am, I didn’t want
to disappoint her, and I chose Viridiana (1961), La Religieuse (1966)
and Lilies of the Field (1963). Viridiana is Bunuel’s take on what
happens when an idealistic nuns meets the real world. With some
interesting twists and turns, she ends up helping the poor in ways she
never would have if she had stayed in the convent. La Religieuse is
based upon Diderot’s novel, perhaps a bit modernized, perhaps a bit
slow, but nicely done. Anna Karina is wonderful as always. Lilies of
the Field is fun as you watch the sisters manipulate Sidney Poitier to
get him to help them build a new chapel. After all, nuns are
irresistible, aren’t they?
And
which movie did we all choose as the best movie about nuns? The
Trouble With Angels, of course. There is a certain charm to this movie
that make it difficult to resist despite its silliness. It’s based upon
the novel, Life with Mother Superior by Jane Trahey, and has enough
rebellion and antics in it to keep you entertained. We’re sure anyone
who went through Catholic School could identify with the two “angels” in
the film. The sequel, Where Angels Go, Trouble Follows is fun, but
doesn’t work as well. You can tell it was more of a creation of
Hollywood to profit from the popularity of the first movie, but it is an
interesting reflection of its time.
Of
course, there are many others that didn’t make our list, but deserve an
honorable mention. We decided not to include any nunsploitation films
or movies that are only tangentially related to nuns. The ones that
didn’t quite make our list included Sister Act (more Whoopi Goldberg
than nuns), The Bells of St. Mary’s (too saccharine), The Sound of Music
(more about Nazis than nuns), Change of Habit (Elvis meets Mary Tyler
Moore), The Nun’s Story (Audrey Hepburn is enjoyable, but the movie is
slow), Agnes of God (good cast, too somber), Nasty Habits (Nuns meet
Watergate, but lousy), The White Sister (entertaining but silent), The
Devils (Ken Russell meets nuns), and of course, The Flying Nun TV Show
(not a movie).
The
one book which would make a really, really fabulous movie someday would
be The Three Sisters, but if you can’t wait for the movie to come out,
be sure and read the book.
Nuns
just want to have fun! But when three former Catholic nuns have too
much fun and get in trouble with the law, they become nuns on the run.
Driving
back to Washington D.C. where they work at the Kennedy Center for the
Performing Parts, the three sisters are arrested in Tennessee. After
defeating the local deputy in strip poker, they escape from jail, and
are pursued by the zealous Detective Schmuck Hole, who has personally
offered a $10,000 reward for their capture on The 700 Club. Little do
they know that when the three sisters visit the Washington Monument,
their lives will change forever.
Set
in 1979, The Three Sisters is a sacrilegious satire that skewers not
only organized religion, but the government, the media, intellectuals,
corporate greed and every other part of the establishment. Maybe not the
greatest story ever told, but possibly the funniest.
Buy @ Amazon
Genre – Humor, Satire, Catholicism, Politics
Rating – R
More details about the author
Connect with Bryan Taylor on Facebook
Website www.threesistersnovel.com
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