Overall, and at first glance, Flowers of St Francis may not seem as special or unique as the "trilogy" of post-war films from Rossellini (few have had as good a run as that trilogy though, Paisan alone), but taken on its own terms the humble aims of this production, with a series of episodes about St Francis and his slightly naive, motley bunch of friars and Brothers who get into various encounters and adventures and mishaps, is actually what makes it interesting.
Rossellini is not trying to create anything else than what it is, which is a series of parables, some with a moral (if you go taking off a pig's foot, no matter the good intent, face the consequences of its owner), and some less so but with something to do with Capital F Faith (I kind of missed the point of the segment with the Sisters on a first watch). It's like he and Fellini want to give the audience a feeling like what it would be to spend a month at Sunday school, only it's far from boring. After all, Ginepro gets into enough mishaps - including almost getting himself killed by a bunch of locals who confuse Ginepro with a killer, and then that encounter with the big hairy dude is surprisingly funny - to make even the most cynical and hard-edged atheist to sit up and engage with the text on screen.
And, most notably, the scene with the Leper, who appears at night to Francis and against any expectations is confronted by the Monk with the love and care we can safely assume he hasn't had (or not in a long time), is as moving as anything he or any Italian filmmaker has directed or will ever direct. It's told with barely any dialog, it was the only thing I could remember from when Scorsese talked about the film in My Voyage to Italy, and it brought me to tears almost immediately. To go up to the one who has become the Ultimate Outcast, the one who has to live completely on their own, and say with a physical gesture "Hey, you matter, you're somebody, you are loved, it's ok," is profound and speaks to what is meaningful about Christianity or any religion at its purest.
Maybe not a film you'll think you're in the mood for, and it takes some time to get going. But Flowers of St Francis is memorable: a great minor film or a light-major work, if that makes any sense. 8.5/10.
Rossellini is not trying to create anything else than what it is, which is a series of parables, some with a moral (if you go taking off a pig's foot, no matter the good intent, face the consequences of its owner), and some less so but with something to do with Capital F Faith (I kind of missed the point of the segment with the Sisters on a first watch). It's like he and Fellini want to give the audience a feeling like what it would be to spend a month at Sunday school, only it's far from boring. After all, Ginepro gets into enough mishaps - including almost getting himself killed by a bunch of locals who confuse Ginepro with a killer, and then that encounter with the big hairy dude is surprisingly funny - to make even the most cynical and hard-edged atheist to sit up and engage with the text on screen.
And, most notably, the scene with the Leper, who appears at night to Francis and against any expectations is confronted by the Monk with the love and care we can safely assume he hasn't had (or not in a long time), is as moving as anything he or any Italian filmmaker has directed or will ever direct. It's told with barely any dialog, it was the only thing I could remember from when Scorsese talked about the film in My Voyage to Italy, and it brought me to tears almost immediately. To go up to the one who has become the Ultimate Outcast, the one who has to live completely on their own, and say with a physical gesture "Hey, you matter, you're somebody, you are loved, it's ok," is profound and speaks to what is meaningful about Christianity or any religion at its purest.
Maybe not a film you'll think you're in the mood for, and it takes some time to get going. But Flowers of St Francis is memorable: a great minor film or a light-major work, if that makes any sense. 8.5/10.