Five nuns, led by Sister Clodagh,
are tasked with opening a convent high within the Himalayas, but they soon find
themselves overwhelmed by the beauty and exotic majesty of their surroundings.
Black Narcissus is one of the
Archers’ (Michael
Powell & Emeric
Pressburger) four great Technicolor masterpieces (the others being: The Life and
Death of Colonel Blimp, A Matter of Life
and Death, and The Red Shoes).
The Archers work with composer Brian Easdale,
cinematographer Jack
Cardiff (who won an Oscar for his work), and production designer Alfred Junge/costume
designer Hein
Heckroth (Junge also won an Oscar for the film) – all frequent and
brilliant collaborators. The film was shot in its entirety in Britain, mostly
in a studio, and yet many believe that it was shot on location in India (some
even claim they recognize landmarks and places seen in the film from their
travels in India), which is a testament to just how magnificent the technical and
aesthetic work is on the film – it is just a stunningly beautiful piece.
The film stars Deborah Kerr (and
she is wonderful) and features very strong work from its entire supporting cast,
namely Kathleen
Byron (who creates one of cinema’s most astounding villains), Sabu, David Farrar,
and Jean
Simmons.
Black Narcissus was my
introduction to the Archers, and it changed everything. Their films during the
1940s are aesthetically enchanting, highly compelling, and purposely and poignantly
written (especially their four Technicolor outings). It is my opinion that
their work during the 1940s in terms of the overall quality of a body of work
is unequalled by any other filmmaker during a decade in film history (though,
one can argue Alfred
Hitchcock’s 1950s, Akira Kurosawa’s
1950s, Francis Ford
Coppola’s 1970s, and maybe even Christopher
Nolan’s 2000s). They are among my personal top five directors of all-time. Getting
back to the film, it is both a brilliant character drama about repressed
emotions (specifically sexuality and desire) and a tense thriller as good as
any in the genre. It is one of the best
films ever made and one that should not be missed.
Trailer: Here
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