Studio: NEON/Decal Releasing
Release Date: 6/11/2024
Rating: R
Film Grade: C
The Story: Our Lady of Sorrows was founded in 1632 on the catacombs of St. Stephen. The remote abbey provides a final, gentle respite to devoted nuns living out their few remaining days. New nuns are occasionally brought in to care for their elders. In slavish devotion to their lifelong destiny, they are not allowed to leave of their own volition.
Sister Cecilia believes that it’s her true calling to spend the rest of her life caring for the aged nuns. Even after being cautioned by one of the younger nuns that it is a hard life and not some romantic ideal for the temporarily wayward, Cecilia takes her vows of chastity, poverty, and obedience in a solemn ceremony officiated by Cardinal Merola and attended by the abbey’s residents.
Not long after, Cecilia begins to experience troubling dreams and notices that some things seem off, both in the abbey and with her very own body.
My Take: Given the title, anyone with even a rudimentary understanding of Christianity will have a good indication of what is about to come in general, but the specifics are unexpected. The movie offers a fresh take on an old idea and deserves credit for that. What it doesn’t manage as well is the why.
Telling a story that marries religion to horror treads a tightrope. To believers, there is the risk of coming off as disrespectful or blasphemous. For others, the acceptance of belief is an obstacle. Immaculate finds a way to balance those two, almost. The problem is that in the realm of devotional faith, there needs to be a clear demonstration of theological motivation, which is clearly missing in this movie. There’s no expectation of a sermon or a class on the intricate beliefs of the Catholic religion, just something that explains the impetus for the actions within.
We have a movie that is bathed in religious iconography and ceremonial trappings, but it’s largely just a superficial façade for the story. It’s not necessarily problematic from a religious perspective, after all it’s a fictional movie, but it is a fault in the narrative and motivational aspects. It leaves a schism for the viewer to provide their own reasoning for the inevitable conflict with little to go on.
As a simple horror movie, there isn’t much here. It’s not particularly scary, although there are some horrific moments. While the mechanism used for the plot is novel, the plot itself is straightforward. There are a number of unmemorable jump scares, interesting imagery, and standard tropes that we see in this kind of film. That part feels very by-the-numbers.
The cast is very believable in their roles. There are a variety of actresses playing nuns of different ages, each adding to the tapestry of characters that make up the abbey. Sydney Sweeney portrays Sister Cecilia with an innocent sweetness in a surprisingly convincing way, given audience expectations. Her character has a complete arc, and she’s really good in the role. Of course, she hand-picked this script for her next project, after she had originally been offered the part a decade earlier, and that older project never came to fruition.
Visuals: Just as the movie is split thematically, so is the image quality. On the plus side, there was extensive location shooting that helps add a legitimacy to the story. There are numerous shots that radiate beauty, solemnity, and authenticity. Those location shots are matched with great prop work and set design as well. There’s one scene featuring Sister Cecelia made up and lit in such a way that draws immediate comparison to a sculpted and painted Virgin Mary. It’s an absolutely stunning and glorious image that practically glows.
On the negative side, some of the scenes are so minimally lit that detail and contrast are sacrificed. There’s even noticeable banding in at least one sequence, and another where there’s almost no definition for the audience to see. Grain/noise is prominent throughout the movie. Outdoor shots are a mix of bright, sunny days, and others that are greatly desaturated.
Audio: Here we have another simple 5.1 DTS-HD MA soundtrack. The musical score to this movie is fantastic and enhancing the presentation with my HTP-1’s Neural X upmixer reproduces much of it in the top speakers. The result is amazingly similar to some of the Atmos mixes we’re getting, with music being their most prominent element. It works especially well for this movie, giving choral passages an ethereal quality that surpasses the limited 5.1 source.
Effects and placement are not overly used. There are a couple of quick panning scenes that will help you assess how well matched your front three channels are (mine passed). The jump scenes mentioned above are accented with dynamic punch, and there are a couple of instances where the subs are called into action. But there were some lost opportunities as well, such as the end of the movie, where the environment could have benefited with more definition from the sound field.
Special Features: Just a feature commentary by the director, Michael Mohan. If you’re looking for deep insight into the plot and theology of the movie, there’s little to be heard. There’s some talk about his upbringing and how the ending of the movie is left up to the audience to judge, but not much else. Most of it is spent talking about the actual production work and not about themes.
Final Verdict: I wish there was more to recommend this movie. At less than 90 minutes, it’s a fast, but ultimately unsatisfying watch. It’s not particularly scary, fun, or innovative. While it does offer some food for thought, it’s only done half-heartedly, serving more twinkling candles than frosting and cake.
I’ll admit that I spent more time researching the movie after watching it than normal. That’s not due to the richness of the film’s subtext, but I wanted to ensure that I wasn’t missing something obvious in what was lacking. I wasn’t.
Sidney Sweeny fans may want to check it out. Others may want to watch it out of curiosity when it hits a streaming service. One viewing for me was enough, and it won’t be added to our collection.
Fun Quote: “And, if you have dietary restrictions, we cannot accommodate them.”
Redband trailer, use discretion:
My Review System:JVC DLA-RS3100 4K Ultra High-Definition Front Projector
Elite Screens Sable Frame B2 117” Width with Infinitely Variable Height
Monolith by Monoprice HTP-1 16 Channel Processor with Dirac Live
Monolith by Monoprice 7x200 Watts Amp
Monolith by Monoprice 3x200 Watts + 6x100 Watts Amp
JBL Studio 590 for Left, Center, Right, Wides, and Rears
JBL Studio 580 for Side Surrounds
JBL Studio SCS 8 for Tops
JTR Captivator 1400 Subwoofer X 4
Panasonic DP-UB420 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Player
Oppo BDP-93
NVIDIA Shield Android TV - 4K
Xbox One X
HTPC Running madVR (work in progress)
Remote: URC MX-780
Mini DSP 2X4 HD controlling all subwoofers
APC S15 Power Conditioner with Battery Backup
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