"Whiplash with nuns!"
When I first heard about Margaret Betts' Novitiate, this was the big sell for what seemed like a rather drab and traditional Sundance drama about a convent in the 1960s. It's a comparison that seems outlandish on the surface- how could a film about nuns have anything in common with a vicious musical thriller dominated by blood, sweat, and tears? But in all honesty, even if the comparison seemed strange, I was immediately intrigued by the buzz on this film. After all, Whiplash is of my favorite movies of the past few years, serving as both an introduction to the talents of Damien Chazelle and a virtuoso piece of filmmaking in its own right. If Novitiate could have channeled half of that energy and passion, I would have been very, very impressed.
Instead, I ended up finding myself having almost no reaction to this film. Now, let me start off by saying this- I really didn't care much for Novitiate at all. I think it's plagued with numerous issues, mainly involving the questions of motivation, focalization, and an overdramatic spirit that threatens to consume the entire film. There are scenes here that felt like they were ripped right out of the fake Kirk Lazarus trailer that precedes Tropic Thunder. This review is in no way meant to qualify my thoughts, nor is it meant to soften what amounts to a dissenting opinion on this well-received drama. But there is almost objectively powerful stuff contained in this film, and yet I found myself unresponsive to practically all of it. This is the rare case where it's fascinating to explore why I didn't connect to something, a work of art that undoubtedly has its merits but still managed to feel absurd and over-the-top. Why did I respond to Andrew's struggle in Whiplash while simultaneously groaning at the extent of Cathleen and Reverend Mother's devotion in this film? Is it gender? Or something else entirely? Novitiate isn't a good film, but I'm equally compelled by my virtual non-reaction to what is designed to be a raw, intense experience.
But before we jump into all that, let's quickly break down the plot. Cathleen (Margaret Qualley) does not grow up in a religious household at all. Her parents (Julianne Nicholson and Chris Zylka) fight frequently, putting Cathleen in the middle of a family rift that threatens to destroy her life. But at a young age, Cathleen's mother takes her to church, thinking that she needs to be introduced to religion. Cathleen feels an instant connection with Jesus, and at the end of high school, she decides she wants to devote her life to Christ and become a nun. Her mother balks at the idea, but Cathleen cannot be deterred. She enters a convent, one that is led by the infamous and terrifying Reverend Mother (Melissa Leo). As the young woman is exposed to the horrific intensity of the convent's practices, Reverend Mother is forced to deal with the tide of change, as the Archbishop (Denis O'Hare) prepares to institute the changes of Vatican II. This leads everyone involved to pose the question- could the very nature of the sisterhood be altered forever?
As documented by my review of Silence and my commentary on a few other films, I have a lot of problems with religion. And while I'm not going to re-litigate all of my complaints about organized belief systems, I think it's safe to say that I have a hard time getting into the mindset of someone who is purely devoted to something that is fundamentally intangible. I just don't get it, and my own personal opinions undeniably affected the way I saw this film. I can understand devoting yourself to a craft, a talent, a skill. Drumming until your hands bleed? In a twisted way, that makes sense to me. Breaking down in egregious fashion and confessing all of your inconsequential missteps because you think it'll bring you closer to God? I just don't get it. Novitiate felt overwrought to me at every turn, so committed to showing the endless devotion of these young women that it forget to feel real or compelling in any conceivable way. But I can also see someone really connecting with these characters, understanding the poignancy of their ferocious struggle and challenging plight. All reviews are subjective, but this feels particularly reflective of my own views.
But while my own personal annoyance with religious fanaticism undoubtedly played a role in my distaste for Novitiate, the storytelling on display here is far from perfect. I don't think this film has a clear idea of what it wants to be, and that's an issue that holds it back at every moment. Writer/director Margaret Betts is telling two stories in this film- Cathleen's slow and torturous path to the sisterhood, and Reverend Mother's response to the overwhelming changes that shook up the Church in the 1960s. These two narratives are incompatible. They do not go together in any conceivable way. It is seriously jarring when the film drifts away from Cathleen's perspective for long periods of time, only to occasionally wander back to her rocky journey. The film's half-hearted attempt to turn this into a tale of forbidden love also feels misguided, creating a mess of disjointed parts that never really come together.
In addition to the narrative bumps in the road, there's also the question of where the film asks you to place your sympathies. It's easy to understand the plight of Cathleen, a somewhat naive young woman who has found solace in God, and Qualley does a good job of capturing a unique mixture of fierce commitment and crippling vulnerability. I've been a fan of Qualley since her small role in The Nice Guys, and I think she does great work here. However, it's much harder to justify Betts' attempt to force the audience to empathize with Reverend Mother, a domineering monster who is the living embodiment of everything wrong with religion. She uses God as an excuse to belittle and demean her subjects, and she's dismayed by the fact that she'll no longer be allowed to force novitiates to use "unconventional methods." Melissa Leo is pretty great in the role, but the film never makes a compelling argument for her humanity.
The film's ultimate conceit is that Vatican II diminished the role of nuns, relegating them to a position of subservience within the church. And this is understandable- the scene where Reverend Mother reads off the numerous amendments to a room of faithful nuns is genuinely heart-wrenching, and I felt for those women who had been stripped of their identity in a way. So why then did Betts choose to frame this through the lens of a despicable character with a distorted moral compass? I genuinely do not understand this choice. The changes made by Vatican II were vast and sweeping, altering the church both for the better and for the worse. It's a fascinating story to tell, one that could feel emotional and moving when positioned as a feminist tale from the perspective of the women who served the church dutifully for many years. Betts isn't telling that story- she's asking us to feel sorry for a monster. If we're taking the Whiplash comparison to its conclusion, Novitiate is a movie that essentially asks you to feel bad for Terence Fletcher. And to me, that's an impossible task.
By the time the film concludes Cathleen's story, it's hard to feel any sense of investment in what's happening. Betts is a clearly talented filmmaker, equipped with an unequivocal visual talent and a sense of composition that is alluring and aesthetically pleasing. But Novitiate is an inconsistent slog, a film with inherent issues that I also just couldn't connect with on any level. It's sure to compel some viewers, but this dull and self-serious drama feels like a missed opportunity to tell a rich, moving story. It presents conflicting forces and opinions with ease, but in the end, it's just far too disjointed to ever amount to anything truly effective.
THE FINAL GRADE: C (5.6/10)
Images: IMDB/Sony Pictures Classics
When I first heard about Margaret Betts' Novitiate, this was the big sell for what seemed like a rather drab and traditional Sundance drama about a convent in the 1960s. It's a comparison that seems outlandish on the surface- how could a film about nuns have anything in common with a vicious musical thriller dominated by blood, sweat, and tears? But in all honesty, even if the comparison seemed strange, I was immediately intrigued by the buzz on this film. After all, Whiplash is of my favorite movies of the past few years, serving as both an introduction to the talents of Damien Chazelle and a virtuoso piece of filmmaking in its own right. If Novitiate could have channeled half of that energy and passion, I would have been very, very impressed.
Instead, I ended up finding myself having almost no reaction to this film. Now, let me start off by saying this- I really didn't care much for Novitiate at all. I think it's plagued with numerous issues, mainly involving the questions of motivation, focalization, and an overdramatic spirit that threatens to consume the entire film. There are scenes here that felt like they were ripped right out of the fake Kirk Lazarus trailer that precedes Tropic Thunder. This review is in no way meant to qualify my thoughts, nor is it meant to soften what amounts to a dissenting opinion on this well-received drama. But there is almost objectively powerful stuff contained in this film, and yet I found myself unresponsive to practically all of it. This is the rare case where it's fascinating to explore why I didn't connect to something, a work of art that undoubtedly has its merits but still managed to feel absurd and over-the-top. Why did I respond to Andrew's struggle in Whiplash while simultaneously groaning at the extent of Cathleen and Reverend Mother's devotion in this film? Is it gender? Or something else entirely? Novitiate isn't a good film, but I'm equally compelled by my virtual non-reaction to what is designed to be a raw, intense experience.
But before we jump into all that, let's quickly break down the plot. Cathleen (Margaret Qualley) does not grow up in a religious household at all. Her parents (Julianne Nicholson and Chris Zylka) fight frequently, putting Cathleen in the middle of a family rift that threatens to destroy her life. But at a young age, Cathleen's mother takes her to church, thinking that she needs to be introduced to religion. Cathleen feels an instant connection with Jesus, and at the end of high school, she decides she wants to devote her life to Christ and become a nun. Her mother balks at the idea, but Cathleen cannot be deterred. She enters a convent, one that is led by the infamous and terrifying Reverend Mother (Melissa Leo). As the young woman is exposed to the horrific intensity of the convent's practices, Reverend Mother is forced to deal with the tide of change, as the Archbishop (Denis O'Hare) prepares to institute the changes of Vatican II. This leads everyone involved to pose the question- could the very nature of the sisterhood be altered forever?
As documented by my review of Silence and my commentary on a few other films, I have a lot of problems with religion. And while I'm not going to re-litigate all of my complaints about organized belief systems, I think it's safe to say that I have a hard time getting into the mindset of someone who is purely devoted to something that is fundamentally intangible. I just don't get it, and my own personal opinions undeniably affected the way I saw this film. I can understand devoting yourself to a craft, a talent, a skill. Drumming until your hands bleed? In a twisted way, that makes sense to me. Breaking down in egregious fashion and confessing all of your inconsequential missteps because you think it'll bring you closer to God? I just don't get it. Novitiate felt overwrought to me at every turn, so committed to showing the endless devotion of these young women that it forget to feel real or compelling in any conceivable way. But I can also see someone really connecting with these characters, understanding the poignancy of their ferocious struggle and challenging plight. All reviews are subjective, but this feels particularly reflective of my own views.
But while my own personal annoyance with religious fanaticism undoubtedly played a role in my distaste for Novitiate, the storytelling on display here is far from perfect. I don't think this film has a clear idea of what it wants to be, and that's an issue that holds it back at every moment. Writer/director Margaret Betts is telling two stories in this film- Cathleen's slow and torturous path to the sisterhood, and Reverend Mother's response to the overwhelming changes that shook up the Church in the 1960s. These two narratives are incompatible. They do not go together in any conceivable way. It is seriously jarring when the film drifts away from Cathleen's perspective for long periods of time, only to occasionally wander back to her rocky journey. The film's half-hearted attempt to turn this into a tale of forbidden love also feels misguided, creating a mess of disjointed parts that never really come together.
In addition to the narrative bumps in the road, there's also the question of where the film asks you to place your sympathies. It's easy to understand the plight of Cathleen, a somewhat naive young woman who has found solace in God, and Qualley does a good job of capturing a unique mixture of fierce commitment and crippling vulnerability. I've been a fan of Qualley since her small role in The Nice Guys, and I think she does great work here. However, it's much harder to justify Betts' attempt to force the audience to empathize with Reverend Mother, a domineering monster who is the living embodiment of everything wrong with religion. She uses God as an excuse to belittle and demean her subjects, and she's dismayed by the fact that she'll no longer be allowed to force novitiates to use "unconventional methods." Melissa Leo is pretty great in the role, but the film never makes a compelling argument for her humanity.
The film's ultimate conceit is that Vatican II diminished the role of nuns, relegating them to a position of subservience within the church. And this is understandable- the scene where Reverend Mother reads off the numerous amendments to a room of faithful nuns is genuinely heart-wrenching, and I felt for those women who had been stripped of their identity in a way. So why then did Betts choose to frame this through the lens of a despicable character with a distorted moral compass? I genuinely do not understand this choice. The changes made by Vatican II were vast and sweeping, altering the church both for the better and for the worse. It's a fascinating story to tell, one that could feel emotional and moving when positioned as a feminist tale from the perspective of the women who served the church dutifully for many years. Betts isn't telling that story- she's asking us to feel sorry for a monster. If we're taking the Whiplash comparison to its conclusion, Novitiate is a movie that essentially asks you to feel bad for Terence Fletcher. And to me, that's an impossible task.
By the time the film concludes Cathleen's story, it's hard to feel any sense of investment in what's happening. Betts is a clearly talented filmmaker, equipped with an unequivocal visual talent and a sense of composition that is alluring and aesthetically pleasing. But Novitiate is an inconsistent slog, a film with inherent issues that I also just couldn't connect with on any level. It's sure to compel some viewers, but this dull and self-serious drama feels like a missed opportunity to tell a rich, moving story. It presents conflicting forces and opinions with ease, but in the end, it's just far too disjointed to ever amount to anything truly effective.
THE FINAL GRADE: C (5.6/10)
Images: IMDB/Sony Pictures Classics
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