The Nun's Story (1959)

Director:

Fred Zinnemann

Writers:

Robert Anderson (screenplay)
Kathryn Hulme (book)

Release Date:

18 July 1959 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Her Faith Remained Strong and True in the Face of Africa's Terrors!

Plot:

This is the story of Sister Luke, from the time she enters the convent until she chooses to leave the Sisterhood...

Plot Keywords:

Nun | Belgian Congo | Convent | Hospital | Obedience

Awards:

Nominated for 8 Oscars. Another 13 wins & 12 nominations

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Audrey Hepburn	...	Sister Luke (Gabrielle van der Mal)
Peter Finch	...	Dr. Fortunati
Edith Evans	...	Rev. Mother Emmanuel (Belgium) (as Dame Edith Evans)
Peggy Ashcroft	...	Mother Mathilde (Africa) (as Dame Peggy Ashcroft)
Dean Jagger	...	Dr. Van Der Mal
Mildred Dunnock	...	Sister Margharita (Mistress of Postulants)
Beatrice Straight	...	Mother Christophe (Sanatorium)
Patricia Collinge	...	Sister William (convent teacher)
Rosalie Crutchley	...	Sister Eleanor
Ruth White	...	Mother Marcella (School of Medicine)
Barbara O'Neil	...	Mother Didyma (War-time Hospital)
Margaret Phillips	...	Sister Pauline (medical student)
Patricia Bosworth	...	Simone (postulant who changed her mind)
Colleen Dewhurst	...	Archangel Gabriel (Sanatorium)
Stephen Murray	...	Chaplain (Father Andre)

Runtime:

149 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Certification:

Canada:PG (Ontario) | UK:PG (tv rating) | UK:U | West Germany:12 (nf) | USA:Approved (certificate #18979) | Argentina:13 | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Belgium

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

The scenes where this is palpable sexual tension between Dr Fortunati and Sister Luke are not present in the novel.

Goofs:

Factual errors: When Sister Luke removes her wedding ring at the end of the movie, her nails are long and she is wearing clear nail polish, neither of which would have been allowed for a nun.

Quotes:

Rev. Mother Emmanuel: Have you struggled long enough to say surely that you've come to the end?
Sister Luke: I think I've been struggling all these years, Reverend Mother. In the beginning each struggle seemed different from the one before it. But then they began to repeat, and I saw they all had the same core: obedience. Without question, without inner murmuring. Perfect obedience as Christ practiced it. As I no longer can.
Rev. Mother Emmanuel: Yes?
Sister Luke: There are times when my conscience asks which has priority. It or the Holy Rule? When the bell calls me to chapel, I often have to sacrifice what might be the decisive moment in a spiritual talk with a patient. I'm late every day for chapel or refectory or both...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Punky Brewster: The Nun's Story (#4.1)" (1988)

Don't let the title serve only as a turn-off...

Honestly, if my family hadn't already owned this movie I probably would have past over it again and again without much hesitation. However, given the limited amount of movies I had to chose from, I decided to give this movie a fair shot. Wow. To think that I only viewed this movie out of desperation is embarrassing! The inner-struggle that Sr. Luke (Audrey Hepburn)undergoes from postulant to nun is incredibly human, not strictly religious. I thought, given the movie's topic, that I would be bored and lost, yet found myself completely in touch with the reality of her life. Its almost impossible not to become in touch with her character, especially once she reaches the Congo and faces the underplayed romantic tension between herself and Peter Finch. While I have absolutely no intention of suddenly becoming a nun or running off to the Congo, I will always be up for another viewing of this movie. So ignore the title and give this movie a chance!