The Boys of St. Vincent (1992) (TV)

Director:

John N. Smith

Writers:

Sam Grana (written by)
John N. Smith (written by)

Release Date:

1992 (Canada)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

The true story of boys being sexually abused at their orphanage ran by a religious community in Newfoundland.

Plot Keywords:

Orphanage | Police | Priest | Scandal | Canada

Awards:

10 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Henry Czerny	...	Brother Peter Lavin
Johnny Morina	...	Kevin Reevey
Brian Dooley	...	Detective Noseworthy
Philip Dinn	...	Mike Finn
Brian Dodd	...	Steven Lunny
Ashley Billard	...	Brian Lunny
Jeremy Keefe	...	Mike Sproule
Jonathan Lewis	...	Eddie Linnane
Michael Wade	...	Brother MacLaverty
Greg Thomey	...	Brother Glackin
Alain Goulem	...	Brother Glynn
Ed Martin	...	Tom Kennedy
Maurice Podbrey	...	Archbishop
Sam Grana	...	Monsignor
Aidan Devine	...	Brother Michael Davitt

Also Known As:

Le collège St. Vincent (Canada: French title)
Les garçons de Saint-Vincent (Canada: French title)

Runtime:

Germany:90 min | USA:186 min

Country:

Canada

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

UK:18 (cut)

Filming Locations:

Montréal, Québec, Canada

Company:

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC)

Quotes:

Chief Kennedy: [after reading Noseworthy's report and the witness statements] You will rewrite this piece of pornography! I can't send something like this out! You will remove all references to sexual matters, is that understood?
Detective Noseworthy: I didn't make this stuff up, Chief! Those are sworn statements made by the boys.
Chief Kennedy: You get orders. I get orders. Now the case is closed!
[Noseworthy prepares to leave]
Chief Kennedy: This comes straight from the Department of Justice! There are to be no arrests! Apparently the brothers involved will be sent somewhere for treatment.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Followed by The Boys of St. Vincent: 15 Years Later (1993)

Fearsome

Horror films as such have nothing on the THE BOYS OF ST. VINCENT. Loosely based on the Roman Catholic child molestation scandals as they unfolded in Canada, this 1991 film was first show on Canadian television but later shown theatrically in the United States. Directed by John N. Smith, featuring an extraordinary cast, and boasting an excellent script, the film is one of the most fearsome experiences you could ever endure.

The story falls into two parts, first offering a portrait of St. Vincent, a Catholic orphanage for boys, as it existed in the early 1970s; then presenting a portrait of the various characters some fifteen years later as the original accusations of child molestation and abuse result in a high profile court case. The film focuses on a number of characters, but most particularly on Henry Czerny, who begins the film as Brother Lavin of St. Vincent--a truly dangerous pedophile who uses his position to sate his desires while also looking the other way re abuse of children by other Brothers at the orphanage. When the scandal at last breaks around him, it is quickly hushed up by the authorities, and Lavin leaves the church. Some fifteen years later he is a respected businessman, a husband, and the father of two sons when the long-forgotten and covered-up case begins to explode relentlessly in the public eye.

The cast is truly amazing here, chief among them Henry Czerny as Lavin, who creates a truly multi-layered portrait of a man at once pitiful but both vicious and dangerous. Equally amazing are the cast of children and their adult counterparts in the latter half of the film, most particularly Johnny Morina and Sebastian Spence, who play the role of Kevin as a child and an adult respectively.

Perhaps the single most impressive accomplishment of the film is the delicate balancing act director Smith achieves, a stance which does not attack the Catholic Church as an institution but which relentlessly exposes the corruption that can exist within it. The film does contain some child nudity, all of it "back shots," and while some may find this in questionable taste it is all carefully filmed and not explotational--and indeed has the effect of further demonstrating the innocence of the children while emphasizing the evil of those who abuse them.

Painful as the film it is, I cannot recommend it too strongly. It should be seen by every responsible adult, not simply for the artistry involved in its presentation, but for the warning it offers. A must see.

Gary F. Taylor, aka GFT, Amazon Reviewer