God Is the Bigger Elvis

After Mom mentioned wondering about Dolores Hart after she left the movies for the convent, I mentioned this short doc of hers was on YouTube. So we both watched it right away and we were both fascinated by her journey from Hollywood to the abbey in which she now resides. The most fascinating part is when we get to her former fiancee Don Robinson and his eventually never marrying because of his eternal love for Ms. Hart. I think that's all I'll say about that so on that note, Mom and me both highly recommend God is the Bigger Elvis.

Dolores Hart was an actress in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Then, just like that, she gave up acting in favor of a cloistered life. She has been a nun ever since. Rebecca Cammisa's Oscar-nominated "God Is the Bigger Elvis" focuses on Hart's life in the Benedictine order at the Abbey of Regina Laudis, with some clips of her movie roles. Hart is the only nun who is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

I can understand why a person would want to leave Hollywood, but I can't imagine adopting a religious lifestyle. I guess that if it's made Dolores Hart happy, then more power to her. She was a real hottie in her movie roles. The only credit of hers that I've seen - besides this documentary - is an episode of "Alfred Hitchcock Presents". I wonder if she talks to the abbey's other nuns about her encounters with Elvis Presley and Montgomery Clift.

In the end, it's not a great documentary, but worth seeing.

I have a hard time distinguishing a cloistered life from a Manson cult. It has the same mental illness, the same self-hatred, the same power figure, and the same denial of reality. It is quite possible to live simply and close to nature without the trappings of an organization with rules, rituals, and rites. Only when life is "too much" for you is there a temptation to give up. But giving up it is, make no mistake.

I remember a drinking game called Cardinal Puff. It required an exact routine. If you made a mistake, you had to drink up and start over. It had as much meaning as the cloistered routine.

It made me sad to see that Ms. Hart gave up on life and mental health, but also very happy that she is content with her choices. The true thing is that we have to reconcile ourselves to the choices we make. She has done so.

This is the improbable story of Dolores Hart, Hollywood starlet turned cloistered nun. Best know for "Where The Boys Are", Ms. Hart in 1963 seems to have the perfect life: she is young, beautiful, talented, sought after and about to marry the love of her life. But there is something missing...how she finds that missing piece and where it leads her is the substance of the film. Inter-cutting scenes from her 60's film career with her very different life in the past 50 years and in the present makes for a compelling story. The last ten minutes of the documentary will absolutely haunt you as you realize the full implications of her decision to walk away from her former life.

I am no catholic. I can't even say I believe there is a god. But I defy anybody with a beating heart to judge this as anything but an ode to love. It is uplifting and heart- breaking. Mostly it drives home the glory of humanity. How many times have you seen that achieved in a short documentary? We have a central character who has made the most anti-Hollywood choice in history and a supporting cast who have made equally bold steps to back her up. Stock footage of the monastery deserve your full attention because they add so much nuance and clarity. It is a perfectly sculpted film, with humour and intrigue and of a succinct but lush economy.