R | 2h 3m | Drama, Coming of Age, Religion | 27 October 2017 (USA)

Those who think the Catholic Church still operates with a Dark Ages mentality are probably not Catholic or have never heard of the “Second Vatican Council,” often referred to as “Vatican II," which took place in Rome between 1961 and 1965.

Vatican II was the 21st such church council, the first taking place in Jerusalem in the year A.D. 50, 17 years after the death of Jesus Christ. This might seem hard to swallow, but the Catholic Church has regularly examined itself and has made many changes over the last two millennia, probably more so than any other major religion in the world of equal or older age.

The movie’s title “Novitiate” refers to the training period for women who want to become nuns, and is set in the Deep South just before and after Vatican II; this will lead, in my opinion, to many Catholics who watch the movie losing their minds while shouting “heresy” and “blasphemy.”  

Another Spotlight

Based on the end credit epitaph and, well … facts, what happened in this fictional convent took place in similar locations the world over, and it’s probably not something the Catholic Church would endorse or encourage anyone to see. This also happened with “Spotlight,” the 2015 winner of the Best Picture Oscar, another film involving unsavory events taking place in the Catholic Church.

In the late 1950s, soon-to-be-single-mother Nora Harris (Julianne Nicholson), chooses to introduce her daughter Cathleen (Sasha Mason and later Margaret Qualley) to organized religion. Considering Nora’s own opinions regarding religion (she’s agnostic), this was a bold, but unselfish move; she wanted Cathleen to consider all of her spiritual options, something Nora would eventually regret.

Note to parents: If you want your children to follow your non-spiritual political viewpoints, or both, don’t voluntarily give them other options; let them discover them on their own. To Nora’s slack-jawed dismay, Cathleen actually likes Catholicism, wants to go to a Catholic school, and later wishes to become a nun.

Enter Reverend Mother

Reverend Mother (Melissa Leo) makes things solidly clear at the onset and establishes herself as an autocratic female version of the title character in “Patton.” She is The Voice of God in this here place, and if you think otherwise, leave now. She’s the be-all, end-all answer to everything. Period. Give Reverend Mother credit for one thing: She doesn’t mince her words or exhibit any signs of false modesty. She is also quite leery and paranoid regarding the ongoing talks in Rome.

Although rattled by the Reverend Mother, Cathleen doesn’t take the out and decides to go for it. The same cannot be said for others who, because of their infractions of some truly bizarre and petty rules, must suffer extreme corporal punishment, including but not limited to, self-flagellation and crawling across floors. In her mission to establish tyrannical order and strict obedience, the Reverend Mother inadvertently strengthens the bonds between three of the novices that extend far beyond the spiritual.

Without getting into graphic detail (or spoilers), these teen girls begin dealing with their transitions into womanhood in ways the Catholic Church certainly would not approve. Calling on teens not to think about puberty or to ignore their changing bodies is almost as hard as telling them not to breathe.

The Conduit

Cathleen is afforded some level of therapeutic and spiritual guidance through her deepening friendship with Sister Emanuel (Rebecca Dayan), a 20-something transfer who serves as a conduit between the more extreme views of the Reverend Mother and the inevitable changes coming out of Vatican II.

Tackling such heady (and polarizing) subjects, such as religion and puberty in the same movie, is a daunting and unenviable task. It’s the cinematic equivalent of sitting on a dry powder keg located next to a raging bonfire. Only a handful of seasoned filmmakers could pull this off convincingly while doing so without passing judgment. It’s all the more impressive that it was done by a writer-director (Maggie Betts) whose resume contains just one documentary and one short. Betts has crafted a masterpiece.

Aided significantly by lush, contrasting cinematography from Kat Westergaard, Ms. Betts creates something that is both warm and detached, hopeful and despondent, uplifting and flat-out scary. The same audiences who were impressed with “Spotlight” (and those who loathed it) are likely to feel the same way here.

The movie is available on home video and to stream on Vudu, Amazon Prime, Starz, and Apple TV+.

‘Novitiate’ Director: Maggie Betts Starring: Margaret Qualley, Melissa Leo, Rebecca Dayan, Julianne Nicholson MPAA Rating: R Running Time: 2 hours, 3 minutes Release Date: Oct. 17, 2017 Rating: 5 stars out of 5

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