6/10
Dated But Watchable, and at Times, Beautiful
9 April 2011
Warning: Spoilers
Vastly superior to "Francis of Assisi," a movie which is as dry as dust. I watched the two movies one after the other with my Catholic mother-in-law, and she strongly preferred "Brother Sun, Sister Moon" to "Francis of Assisi." This film conveys real emotion and reminds us that those who feel called by God are different from most workaday folk. For those of you who have a strong aversion to the sight of the human body, be advised that there is a nude scene in "Brother Sun, Sister Moon." It has symbolic significance and is quite beautiful. Some reviewers on the internet thought the Francis and Clare characters seemed stoned. I did not see it that way at all. To me, they were conscious of being illuminated by the Holy Spirit. In other words, they were atypical and in a tiny minority of humans on earth; of course they're not going to act like your next-door neighbor or some concocted role model from a religious textbook. The acting is competent without being great. The soundtrack is written and performed by Donovan - think "Atlantis," "Jennifer Juniper," and "Hurdy Gurdy Man" - so you will either like or dislike the soundtrack because of this, depending on your musical taste. For those who strongly dislike the culture of the late 60s and early 70s, you may not like this film, because it was made in the early 70s and evokes the tone and feel of that period.
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