Film Review: Brother Sun, Sister Moon (1972)
Any film is product of its time, but some, either by design or accident, give very clear and unquestionable indication of when exactly they were made. This could happen even with films set in completely different time period, like Brother Sun, Sister Moon, 1972 religious biopic directed by Franco Zeffirelli.
The plot begins in early 13th Century, when Italy was, in large part, made of city-states, often at war at each other. One of those cities is Assisi, where rich textile merchant Pietro Bernadone (played by Lee Montague) sends his son Francesco (played by Graham Faulkner) to fight in war against neighbouring city of Perugia. Youth, who used to be spoiled, returns home after getting ill. During the long recovery he rediscovers his Christian faith and tries to live according to its principles. One day, when stumbling into father’s textile factory, he takes workers to enjoy sunlight and gives away all the clothes to poor, creating violent conflict with his father. As a result, Francesco renounces his last name, leaves all of his wordly possessions and goes to countryside to live a simple life. One day, when he comes near ruined chapel of San Damiano, he hears God telling him to “repair His church”. He begins to do so with his bare hands, and his efforts gradually gather many of his young friends, who become his enthusiastic followers. Their rich and influential parents begin to show hostility and Francesco, trying to understand what he has done wrong, goes on pilgrimage to Rome where he would meet Pope Innocent III (played by Alec Guiness).
Many who subscribe to popular perception of Middle Ages as the dark period of European history tend to view St. Francis of Asssisi, Catholic saint and founder of Franciscan order, as one of the more brighter medieval figures. Certain details of his life and his teaching apparently very corresponded with the mindset of the youth in Western world in late 1960s or early 1970s. Italian director Franco Zeffireli in his previous, immensely popular and successful adaptation of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, has shown doomed romance as form of teenage rebellion. In his biography of Francis he makes obvious between 13th Century Italy and Western world early 1970s, depicting Catholic saint as representative of counterculture. Misunderstanding between Francis and his parents is clear reflection of generational conflict between Boomers and their parents; Francis and his young followers reject materialism, embrace nature and live simple life like some sort of proto-hippies; Francesco’s war traumas reflect anti-war sentiments maintained by still ongoing nightmare in Vietnam. And, to make things even clearer, soundtrack by Riz Ortolani is accompanied by songs by Donovan, Scottish folk singer and “flower power” icon.
This is the interesting concept, very similar to blending of religious tradition with “hip” iconography of counterculture in similarly themed, but much more successful Jesus Christ Superstar. Zeffireli has apparently invested a lot of passion and talent in the project. Brother Sun, Sister Moon features great cinematography by Ennio Guarnieri and medieval period reconstructed with lush colourful costumes and plenty of period detail. However, during the two hours of running time audience will also become aware of the film’s shortcomings. Those include very slow pace, lack of proper dramatic conflict and British actor Graham Faulkner often succumbing to overacting. The film also ends on slightly cynical note, which is at odds with the rest, which is, like the protagonist, idealistic. Despite that, Brother Sun, Sister Moon deserves recommendation, at least to those who like to see history interpreted in original and unconventional ways.
RATING: 5/10 (++)
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