This week on “Picture Perfect,” in this season of wall-to-wall Biblical epics, enjoy a bit of counterprogramming in the form of music from films about faith, conscience, and grappling with self-abnegation.
Bruce Bereford’s “Black Robe” (1991), based on a novel by Irish-Canadian writer Brian Moore, tells the tale of a Jesuit priest who treks through 1500 miles of Canadian wilderness on a mission to convert the native tribes of the Huron and the Algonquin. The evocative score is by Georges Delerue.
“Black Narcissus” (1947), a Powell-Pressburger classic, is one of those startling films that just sort of sneaks up on you. Psychological tension abounds in a tale of repressed nuns struggling to maintain their composure in a voluptuous Himalayan valley. Eventually, the wheels begin to spin off the tracks, to spinetingling effect. The stunning cinematography is by Jack Cardiff. Incredibly, the entire film was shot in England, mostly on soundstages at Pinewood Studios. The music is by Brian Easdale, of “The Red Shoes” fame.
Audrey Hepburn gave one of her most impressive performances in Fred Zinnemann’s “The Nun’s Story” (1959). A young woman enters a convent of sister-nurses and undergoes many trials in the hopes of becoming a missionary in the Belgian Congo. The film also features Peter Finch, Edith Evans, Peggy Ashcroft, and, in a memorable early role, an unhinged Colleen Dewhurst. The music is by Franz Waxman.
Finally, Ennio Morricone composed on of his most-beloved scores for “The Mission” (1986). Jeremy Irons plays a Jesuit priest, who ventures into the South American rainforest to convert the Guarani to Christianity. Robert DeNiro is a reformed slave hunter, who seeks redemption. The moving music has received a great deal of exposure over the years through its use in television commercials and by figure skaters, who have made “Gabriel’s Oboe” a recognizable hit.
Join me in seeking grace in an imperfect world, with music from films about nuns and missionaries this week, on “Picture Perfect,” music for the movies, this Saturday evening at 6:00 EDT, on WWFM – The Classical Network and wwfm.org.
