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Rating: 4.5 out of 5
I am not a religious person. I would say I am an atheist more than anything else. I don’t believe in some divine force. One reason is that I believe everyone has their destiny in their own hands and can change anything the world throws at them. I believe that if you truly believe in yourself and your abilities, you can make anything happen. With that said, I am not one who shits on anyone’s faith or religion. Everyone has a right to believe in what they want and should be happy doing it. During college, I took a class called Religion 101. I learned about the four major religions and found each one of them interesting. I found that each one has similarities and differences between them, but I was happy to sit and learn about each and every one.
Recently, I picked up the movie, The Song of Bernadette. The primary and only reason I picked up this film was because it won an Academy Award for Best Actress. Besides that, I would’ve never known this was a movie or play. The Song of Bernadette revolves around Bernadette, who reportedly experienced eighteen visions of the Blessed Virgin Mary from February to July 1858 and was later canonized in 1933.
Fourteen-year-old Bernadette Soubirous (Jones) lives in poverty in a small little house in Lourdes. Her father tries to provide for the family as best as he can. At her extremely Catholic school, Bernadette is shamed and ridiculed by her teacher, Sister Vauzou (Cooper), for falling behind in her studies because of her asthma. Later in the afternoon, Bernadette, her sister Marie, and her friend Jeanne are out fetching firewood. When Bernadette is left behind in the Massabielle grotto, she becomes distracted by unusual circumstances. Bernadette investigates and sees a beautiful lady. They pray together before the woman disappears. Soon word spreads all over Lourdes until Bernadette starts performing miracles at the grotto. As word spreads, many believe in her, while others see her as a fraud.
I must admit that I found this film inspiring and very moving. I wouldn’t have watched the movie if Jennifer Jones didn’t win the Academy Award. Besides my views on religion, the story did make me feel for the main character. In many religious films or history, someone claims that they had visions from God, but there is always major opposition to what the person is saying. Think about it, there is always someone who says they had visions, and then the church rolls up to investigate and interrogates the person into stating that they never saw anything or they are lying. When the person keeps hold to their convictions, the church finds any other way to disprove it until decades later, they claim the person was right.
The Song of Bernadette is no different. Bernadette Soubirous claims she saw a beautiful lady clad in white but tells her friends not to tell anyone. Her friends can’t keep a secret and tell the whole town. When Bernadette tells the truth, the authorities come and interrogate her. What must be commended is how Bernadette keeps to her faith and believes what she saw. The turning sign of the film and Bernadette’s visions is when the lady asks Bernadette to drink and wash at a seemingly nonexistent spring. Bernadette begins to dig, and the town thinks she has finally lost it. She is ridiculed until water begins to flow and has miraculous healing properties.
You would think that everything would be straight because Bernadette proved everyone wrong, but nope, her life gets more challenging. When she states the lady identifies herself as the “Immaculate Conception,” civil authorities try to have Bernadette declared insane. Homegirl just made a marlaceous well, and she all of a sudden insane. Makes no sense. This is where people change sides. Peyramale, who was her enemy, switches up and becomes her biggest ally. He asks for a formal church investigation to verify if Bernadette is a fraud, insane, or genuine. You think the church would be understanding, but hell to them. The church spends years investigating and constantly questioning Bernadette repeatedly. It wasn’t until Bernadette was on her freakin death bed that the church determined that Bernadette truly experienced the visions and was visited by the Virgin Mary.
The scene that made you get the feels is when Peyramale persuades Bernadette to join the Sisters of Charity of Nevers. Bernadette goes through the grind with rigorous spiritual training and doing work at the convent. She is such a sweet person and never complains, but she is subjected to emotional abuse from Sister Vauzou, who is the mistress of novices at the convent. You would think that a person who is a servant of God would be nicer. Why is Sister Vauzou such a bitch? She doesn’t believe Bernadette and can’t believe someone as young as Bernadette has never suffered. She is straight-up jealous as she thinks she should’ve been chosen by God and has spent her miserable life suffering in God’s service. When Bernadette agrees that she has not suffered, she lifts up her skirt to reveal a hidden tumor but never complains about it. Vauzou breaks down. Yea, you still a bitch. Don’t even get me started on Vicent Price’s character and his threats. Karma was a bitch for you in the end.
The acting was superb in this film, but I have to give it up to Jennifer Jones as Bernadette Soubirous. She played Bernadette with such grace and emotions. You think Bernadette is an airhead because she is awful at school. When she sees the vision, she is committed but loving. Jones displayed all the emotions and faith in Bernadette. I have to applaud Jennifer Jones on her portrayal.
The Song of Bernadette is a high-quality film about belief and faith. If you are not a religious person, it might not be for you. I highly enjoyed this film as it helped me learn about a religious miracle and a person in history. Maybe I should take a trip to visit the grotto. Jennifer Jones was excellent, and I applaud her for winning the Academy Award.
