Lilies of the Field (1963)

User Rating:

7.6/10   

Director:

Ralph Nelson

Writers:

William E. Barrett (novel)
James Poe (screenplay)

Release Date:

5 July 1963 (West Germany)

Genre:

Drama | Comedy

Tagline:

Sidney Poitier as the life-loving ex-GI who one day encounters five nuns escaped from beyond the Berlin Wall...

Plot:

An unemployed construction worker (Homer Smith) heading out west stops at a remote farm in the desert to get water when his car overheats...

Plot Keywords:

Desert | Nun | Construction | Church | Priest

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 11 wins & 10 nominations

Cast

Sidney Poitier	...	Homer Smith
Lilia Skala	...	Mother Maria
Lisa Mann	...	Sister Gertrude
Isa Crino	...	Sister Agnes
Francesca Jarvis	...	Sister Albertine
Pamela Branch	...	Sister Elizabeth
Stanley Adams	...	Juan
Dan Frazer	...	Father Murphy

Runtime:

94 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | German | Spanish

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:Approved | Canada:G (Manitoba/Quebec) | Canada:PG (Ontario) | UK:U | South Africa:(Banned) | South Africa:PG (re-rating) | Finland:S | Sweden:Btl

Filming Locations:

Tucson, Arizona, USA

Company:

Rainbow Productions

Trivia:

Since the story's action was tied to the chapel's construction, crew had to work through the night to keep up with it "progress" in the film. The actual building was real and could have stood for decades, but because it was built on rented property, it had to be demolished immediately after the filming was completed.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Homer returns after his unexplained absence, he turns the car around and overtakes the Mother Superior. From a distance, it is obvious that he overshoots her by about fifteen feet, but the next shot shows he stops with her directly outside his car window.

Quotes:

Homer Smith: Gringo? I don't know if that's a step up or a step down from some other things I've been called.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Afro Promo (1997)

Soundtrack:

Amen

My 'perfect' movie.

If someone were to ask me for the 'perfect' movie, this is the one I would choose. Not 'greatest', not 'best', but something better... an utterly flawless film. It's lean and spare, set in the desert and filmed in B&W. Both the humor and the drama are low-key, but are all the more moving for that, presented without clutter. It uses a small cast to create a rich diversity of characters from different religions, races, and cultures. But these differences aren't what creates the drama, they are simply a wonderful part of the background texture. The conflict lies purely in the clash of personalities between two good people, Homer Smith (Sidney Poitier) and Mother Maria (Lilia Skala), both with their own personal flaws and virtues.

I really can't begin to describe how much I like "Lilies of the Field". It could have been one of those awful preachy 'message' films, but it isn't. It is purely fine story telling. Which isn't to say you can't find meaning in it. Far from it. For me, I've always been taken by how the common human goodness of all the characters is brought out without being dependent on, or sacrificing, their many differences of religion or culture. They remain the same people at the end of the movie as at the beginning, except they're all a bit better, a bit less flawed. And that's pretty close to perfection.