Review of Lourdes (2009) by Kevin C — 28 Aug 2010

Nowt to do with Madonna's kid, but instead we are in the French Pyrenean pilgrimage site. This is a mysterious, ensemble piece about the role of miracles in the modern world.

The characters are obviously scripted, but the places are real, and we are allowed to watch the drama unfolding in such a location, both creepy and magical, dour and maybe uplifting.

The film starts to focus around Christine. She is frail, pretty and living with multiple sclerosis and unable to move her body below the neck. Christineâ??s religious beliefs seem lukewarm (prefering the cultural trips to Rome) but the pilgrimage is having a strange effect on her and soon sheâ??s the focus of everyone. Are we witnessing a miracle? Is Christine manipulating the situation? Is she really ill? And are we cruel even to entertain that last thought?

The beauty of this film is that just when you think itâ??s going to take a sneering swipe at Lourdes, its tacky souvenirs and deluded visitors, the film takes a much less easy â?? and more inquiring â?? turn. Thereâ??s also a delicious streak of black humour that runs through the film and stops it from becoming too pious or maudlin. The result is a provocative and surprising pleasure.