Item: Benedetta
Rating: 8
Author: Matt Rooney

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10TMYMXMA7w

PLOT: A young nun begins a romantic affair with a fellow nun and begins to experience visions of Jesus, leading to her being targeted by the leading figures of the Catholic church.

REVIEW: Filmmaker Paul Verhoeven (Robocop, Showgirls, Elle) has never been one to shy away from shock and satire. That very hallmark makes him a perfect fit for the subject matter of Benedetta, a loose adaptation of the life of Benedetta Carlini, an Italian nun who supposedly had a lesbian relationship with another member of her convent, and who was also supposedly a mystic who claimed to have visions of and get messages from a one Jesus Christ. That means on multiple fronts, Verhoeven’s latest places him and his cast in a playground to explore sexuality, faith, the ruling patriarchy of the Catholic church, and more in ways that are ravishing, welcomely absurd, and utterly compelling.

Even when she was young, Benedetta (as a child played by Elena Plonka) would tout her connection to God and Jesus, demonstrating by praying for vengeance on men who took her mother’s necklace, with a bird soon flying out of a tree and crapping in the vagrant’s eye. But as soon as Benedetta, clinging to a small wooden statue of the Virgin Mary, is taken to the convent where she is made a “bride” for Christ, she realizes religion is not all about connecting to a Lord and savior and getting them to poo on those who have wronged you. Making her remove her fancy clothes and put on an undoubtedly itchy robe, she is told by an older nun that to be uncomfortable is to be truly removed from sin. But still at this young age at one point finds herself on the other end of what appears to be a genuine miracle.

Fast forward several years and Benedetta is now a full-grown, devout nun (Virginie Efira) serving God by being penitent and in no way engaging with anything that could give her any pleasure. That is until a woman, Bartolomea (Daphne Patakia), rushes into the convent begging to join and be rid of her violent father. With their connection instant, Benedetta convinces the expectedly-dour-for-an-Italian-nun Sister Felicita (Charlotte Rampling), to let her in (with the help of her father’s pricey dowry). Benedetta’s true test is in the form Bartolomea’s very presence, with the latter wasting little time trying to seduce the former. The chemistry between Efira and Patakia is alluring and fascinating as they slowly become lovers, taking small, but escalating opportunities to erase their boundaries with each other, going so far as to eventually turn that wooden Virgin Mary of Benedetta’s into a dildo. As gorgeously shot as the rest of the movie is by DP Jeanne Lapoirie, their love scenes hardly feel exploitative, emphasizing the pleasure on their faces and less on the heightened romance that would come off far too wistful for a movie this bold.

While this sexual exploration would be more than enough to explore between faith and individuality, Verhoeven and his co-writer David Birke (adapting “Immodest Acts: The Life of a Lesbian Nun in Renaissance Italy” by Judith C. Brown) push everything even further into the realm of delightful madness, by portraying Benedetta’s test of faith via her visions of Jesus, which are often erotic and bizarre. From getting to express her love to Jesus via these visions by kissing his stigmata, or picturing him as a sword-swinging warrior who comes to save her, how these visions become more chaotic and twisted correlates with her increasing sexual relationship with Bartolomea. As far as a crisis of faith on screen has been portrayed, I can hardly think of any as entertaining.

Part of Verhoeven’s albeit limited subtly here is in not determining for certain whether or not Benedetta is actually some sort of saint, or is simply going a bit nuts. Either way, her visions lead to her own stigmata (self-inflicted or the work of God, who is to say?), and she finds herself leading the whole convent. Digging deeper into the satire, soon comes in the male-dominated side of the church, particularly the corrupt Nuncio (Lambert Wilson). While many would look to Benedetta’s experience perhaps with a bit of faith, the Catholic politicking has them running around trying to put an end to the lesbian nun who can’t possibly represent the church.

So much of this is so fun to watch thanks to strong dialogue that blends in a bit of wit and profanity into quoting scripture, but as clear a vision Verhoeven has for how it all should look and sound and be evocative, there’s not much that goes deeper. Even Benedetta’s personal struggle of “Can something that feels so right be unholy?” and “How holy can these men be if they deny what is clearly from God?” begins to evaporate a bit once she opens herself up to love and whatever her visions are, rolling with everything as it unfolds. It becomes less a crisis of faith that challenges her and more a parade of experiences that prove that the patriarchal system is corrupt and f**ked. It makes for entertaining viewing, especially as it gears up to the gonzo finale, but by the end, there’s little depth or emotional complexity left in the material.

And yet, so much of that hardly matters when the world and characters Verhoeven and Birke crafted are so bonkers. Set during plague-riddled Italy, Verhoeven doesn’t shy away from the more grotesque and bloody elements, like plague pustules and the bloody gashes of Benedetta’s stigmata. She herself even begins screaming in a sort of demon voice at some point, making for deeply weird eruptions into a rage. Through it all, Efira proves herself a commanding leading woman, willing to dive headfirst into the mayhem and sexuality with undeterred gusto. No matter what Benedetta is going through during her wild journey, Efira sells it every step of the way.

There’s a delicacy to the more complex themes of Benedetta that Verhoeven doesn’t quite nail, perhaps aiming to nail the more cerebral, visceral elements for maximum impact. On that level, he succeeds in crafting a brazenly entertaining and – perhaps to many Catholics – a deeply offensive exploration of religion that at times offers up the best kind of shock value. Very rarely do we see movies that offer this much humor, sexuality, wit, and craftsmanship woven into challenging material that constantly dares you not to have a strong reaction. Praise be unto Verhoeven and his crafty Virgin Mary dildo.