L'apparizione

Religious belief is a subject not often discussed in the cinema and there are very few 'great' religious films; the best of them more often dealing with doubt than with faith, ("Ordet", "The Diary of a Country Priest"), while the ones dealing with visions and miracles often cheapen the subject, (Linda Darnell as the Virgin Mary in "The Song of Bernadette"). Now we have "The Apparition", a very detailed and serious account of the Catholic Church's investigations into determining whether a young girl's claims to have seen the Virgin Mary are true or not. The twist, for want of a better word, is that the man tasked with carrying out the investigation is a journalist and a non-believer still grieving over the loss of his colleague.

Xavier Gianolli's film is clearly a work of considerable intelligence that midway through appears to radically change course, though not quite in the way you might expect. As Jacques digs deeper into the girl's past the film becomes something of a policier; he might be investigating a murder or a kidnapping rather than a vision of the Blessed Virgin. Given that he has very little to do but look glum and ask questions Vincent Lindon is excellent as the investigator and given that she has very little to do but look enigmatic Galatea Bellugi is equally good as the girl. If, ultimately, the film never rises to the heights of "Ordet" it certainly deserves kudos for tackling a difficult subject in such a way as to make you think about the issues involved while keeping you entertained at the same time.

The Apparition is considerably better than its scores on IMDB and MetaCritic would suggest. Comments posted by some viewers reflect their unhappiness about the film's length and about it's failure to put forward rigid conclusions. Maybe they've been watching too much simplistic TV.

This story demands that each viewer must make his or her own decision about what to believe. This is not a religious film, although it can be viewed that way. It is about the human belief mechanism and how it is influenced by what we want to believe and what we choose to doubt. There are scenes in this film that leave the viewer wondering what he or she should conclude, which is exactly what the characters in the film are experiencing.

At its core, this is the story of two people. We meet first an adult male journalist, somewhat cynical, who has just lost a close friend. He is troubled by what he regards as his failure to protect his friend. He agrees to help the Vatican investigate claims of a miracle. The other primary character is an attractive teen-aged girl who says she witnessed an appearance of the Virgin Mary. The girl was an orphan who grew up in foster homes and orphanages and has pledged herself to a life as a nun. Those two characters form an unexpected bond as the story progresses. We are left with a question: what qualities of human behavior are "saintly"? This is a thoughtful work, no easy answers, just like life.

I just saw a surprisingly interesting movie called The Apparition. No, not a horror flick, but rather a spiritual detective story, about a secularish journalist who is recruited onto a Vatican commission to investigate a sighting of the Virgin Mary in a French Village.

I hesitate to recommend it because it is 2 1/2 hours long, although it never seemed to drag. The lead is played by Vincent Lindon, one of those deep-voiced French actors who seem to purr their lines rather than speak them.

One of the realities that the movie explores is how uncomfortable the Catholic Church is with these kinds of sightings, which are subjected to intense scrutiny. Very few of them receive the Church's endorsement. Most are eventually rejected as unauthentic. Part of the Church's problem is its orthodoxy. The Church is like a sheepdog, driven by instinct to perpetually circle its flock, keeping them in a tight bunch. Every question of faith must be either dogma or heresy, believed by everybody or by nobody -- lest they forfeit the high ground of orthodoxy. Superimposed on this is the Church's need to protect its role as intermediary between man and God. If direct experience of the divine is commonplace, the Church and its sacraments are unnecessary. And if visionaries are adored and invested with exceptional spiritual powers, they wind up in direct competition with the hierarchy. The Church is (rightly) fearful of the potential mischief of cults.

Critics have charged the movie with lack of focus, and the director with lack of discipline, and the ending with lack of resolution. They have missed the point. One of the main themes is that different people pursue different sorts of truth. The Vatican wants spiritual truth. The journalist just wants to know exactly what happened (or didn't happen) and is not much concerned one way or the other with its spiritual significance. His is not a conflict of faith; his conflict is that his instinct as a journalist tells him that the girl he is investigating is sincere, but the facts don't add up. In this context, the ending is perfect. But the movie is a rich tapestry, with a lot else going on. It treats every character (save one, an American evangelist) with respect, and allows each his or her own truth. Its theme requires a broad focus, and a wandering camera. And 2 1/2 hours.

I don't know what to say other than the ending was hanging in the grey ... bland, uninteresting, and disappointing.

This is a curious subject, an investigation to find out if the apparition of a nun's virgin is true or not. With Vincent Lindon as a war reporter mandated by the Vatican to carry out the investigation.

Nice cast to support this story. The young Galatea Bellugi is impressive. Vincent Lindon follows this story, always a little suspended, in a universe where some are ready to believe many things.

Xavier Giannoli masters from beginning to end this story, rather iconoclastic nowadays because it is not very much related to societal concerns. The story has multiple dimensions: the Vatican protocol; the investigation of Vincen Lindon; the character of Galaté Bellugi, and her relationship with Vincent Lindon; the media exploitation by the believers (Anatole Taubman, impressive); the beliefs of the pilgrims. In short, even if the subject may not be interesting at first, the film is fascinating.

Xavier Giannoli knows how to choose the music of the film, which are all magnificent and accompany the images well.