Hail Mary (film)
Encyclopedia
Hail Mary is a 1985
French film
written and directed by Jean-Luc Godard
. The film is a modern retelling of the story of a virgin birth. It was entered into the 35th Berlin International Film Festival
.
gas station and plays basketball for a local team; she claims to be a virgin and maintains a chaste relationship with her boyfriend Joseph (Thierry Rode), a taxi cab driver, who is a dropout. When a passing stranger named Uncle Gabriel (Phillippe Lacoste) (who arrives by jet plane and is accompanied by a small girl who acts as his secretary) informs Marie that she will become pregnant despite remaining chaste, and give birth to the son of God, she is at first shocked and confused. Joseph, however, cannot believe that she is pregnant and a virgin. Gabriel must school Joseph to accept Mary's pregnancy, while Mary comes to terms with God's plan through meditations that are sometimes angry and usually punctuated by elemental images of the sun, moon, clouds, flowers, and water.
Godard intercuts a brief parallel story of Eva (Anne Gautier), a college student and her nameless professor (Johan Leysen), who talks about life having been programmed by "a prior intelligence"; their adulterous affair is rife with philosophical discussions.
In time, Joseph's anger subsides, and the expectant couple marries. After they are wed Mary teaches Joseph to love her from a distance, revering her without touching her. Joseph eventually swears to keep his hands off his bride and to act as her shadow, to which she responds, "But isn't that what all men are, the shadow of God?" They raise their son, Jesus (Malachi Jara Kohan), who eventually leaves his family to pursue "his father's business." Meanwhile Marie explores her sexuality
, seeking to link her individual body and spirit.
criticized the film saying that it "deeply wounds the religious sentiments of believers." Protesters showed up at some theaters on opening night. The film had only 353,877 admissions in French movie theaters.
Hail Mary received mixed reviews, including one in the New York Times that characterized the film as "not especially provocative or entertaining", but also called it "an utterly serious attempt to examine the nature of relations between women and men and the possibility of profound friendships not based on sex. It's also about the demands of faith, which, in this time of cynicism, may be the most truly controversial aspect of the movie." Many other serious critics were more favourable: Time Out said "Composed like a brilliant mosaic, Godard's film gives fresh meaning to everyday images; makes us listen to Dvorak with renewed appreciation; and shows the female nude as though never filmed before." Channel 4 Film's critic wrote "The Virgin Birth is presented as a reality - the mystery for Godard being womanhood and birth in general. This he explores through stunning images of nature and the nude figure of his heroine - the latter photographed chastely without voyeurism or sexism, after certain classic paintings."
At the Cannes Film Festival
a man unhappy with the film threw a shaving cream pie into Godard’s face, making international news. Under heavy criticism, Godard attempted to withdraw the film from Italy, but his distributor was unable to do so. He also claimed that the film is not about the Virgin Mary, but about "a young woman named Mary who, at a certain moment in her life, finds herself part of an exceptional event that she would never have wished for herself." Despite the initial heavy criticism, the film has also been praised for its beautiful camera shots.
1985 in film
-Events:* 3 December - Roger Moore steps down from the role of James Bond after twelve years and seven films. He is replaced by Timothy Dalton.* The Academy Award for Best Picture was won by Out Of Africa, while the highest grossing film was Back to the Future.* Bliss wins AFI Award for best Movie...
French film
French Film
French Film is a 2008 British comedy film directed by Jackie Oudney and starring Anne-Marie Duff, Hugh Bonneville, Victoria Hamilton, Douglas Henshall and Eric Cantona. The film was shot in Spring 2007 at various locations around London including Waterloo station and the BFI Southbank.-Plot:Two...
written and directed by Jean-Luc Godard
Jean-Luc Godard
Jean-Luc Godard is a French-Swiss film director, screenwriter and film critic. He is often identified with the 1960s French film movement, French Nouvelle Vague, or "New Wave"....
. The film is a modern retelling of the story of a virgin birth. It was entered into the 35th Berlin International Film Festival
35th Berlin International Film Festival
The 35th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from February 15 to February 26, 1985.-Jury:* Jean Marais * Max von Sydow* Alberto Sordi* Regimantas Adomaitis* Sheila Benson* Wolfgang Kohlhaase* Onat Kutlar* Luis Megino...
.
Plot
Marie (Myriem Roussel), a student, works at her father's SwissSwitzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
gas station and plays basketball for a local team; she claims to be a virgin and maintains a chaste relationship with her boyfriend Joseph (Thierry Rode), a taxi cab driver, who is a dropout. When a passing stranger named Uncle Gabriel (Phillippe Lacoste) (who arrives by jet plane and is accompanied by a small girl who acts as his secretary) informs Marie that she will become pregnant despite remaining chaste, and give birth to the son of God, she is at first shocked and confused. Joseph, however, cannot believe that she is pregnant and a virgin. Gabriel must school Joseph to accept Mary's pregnancy, while Mary comes to terms with God's plan through meditations that are sometimes angry and usually punctuated by elemental images of the sun, moon, clouds, flowers, and water.
Godard intercuts a brief parallel story of Eva (Anne Gautier), a college student and her nameless professor (Johan Leysen), who talks about life having been programmed by "a prior intelligence"; their adulterous affair is rife with philosophical discussions.
In time, Joseph's anger subsides, and the expectant couple marries. After they are wed Mary teaches Joseph to love her from a distance, revering her without touching her. Joseph eventually swears to keep his hands off his bride and to act as her shadow, to which she responds, "But isn't that what all men are, the shadow of God?" They raise their son, Jesus (Malachi Jara Kohan), who eventually leaves his family to pursue "his father's business." Meanwhile Marie explores her sexuality
Human sexuality
Human sexuality is the awareness of gender differences, and the capacity to have erotic experiences and responses. Human sexuality can also be described as the way someone is sexually attracted to another person whether it is to opposite sexes , to the same sex , to either sexes , or not being...
, seeking to link her individual body and spirit.
Reception
Hail Marys religious themes and scenes of full frontal nudity offended some Christians. Pope John Paul IIPope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
criticized the film saying that it "deeply wounds the religious sentiments of believers." Protesters showed up at some theaters on opening night. The film had only 353,877 admissions in French movie theaters.
Hail Mary received mixed reviews, including one in the New York Times that characterized the film as "not especially provocative or entertaining", but also called it "an utterly serious attempt to examine the nature of relations between women and men and the possibility of profound friendships not based on sex. It's also about the demands of faith, which, in this time of cynicism, may be the most truly controversial aspect of the movie." Many other serious critics were more favourable: Time Out said "Composed like a brilliant mosaic, Godard's film gives fresh meaning to everyday images; makes us listen to Dvorak with renewed appreciation; and shows the female nude as though never filmed before." Channel 4 Film's critic wrote "The Virgin Birth is presented as a reality - the mystery for Godard being womanhood and birth in general. This he explores through stunning images of nature and the nude figure of his heroine - the latter photographed chastely without voyeurism or sexism, after certain classic paintings."
At the Cannes Film Festival
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes International Film Festival , is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films of all genres including documentaries from around the world. Founded in 1946, it is among the world's most prestigious and publicized film festivals...
a man unhappy with the film threw a shaving cream pie into Godard’s face, making international news. Under heavy criticism, Godard attempted to withdraw the film from Italy, but his distributor was unable to do so. He also claimed that the film is not about the Virgin Mary, but about "a young woman named Mary who, at a certain moment in her life, finds herself part of an exceptional event that she would never have wished for herself." Despite the initial heavy criticism, the film has also been praised for its beautiful camera shots.
Cast
- Myriem Roussel as Marie
- Thierry Rode as Joseph
- Philippe Lacoste as L'ange Gabriel
- Manon Andersen as La petite fille
- Malachi Jara Kohan as Jésus
- Juliette BinocheJuliette BinocheJuliette Binoche is a French actress, artist and dancer. She has appeared in more than 40 feature films, been recipient of numerous international accolades, is a published author and has appeared on stage across the world. Coming from an artistic background, she began taking acting lessons during...
as Juliette