THE FLOWERS OF ST. FRANCIS (1950)

Directed by: Roberto Rossellini

Screenplay by: Federico Fellini, Father Antonio Lisandrini, Father Félix Morión, Roberto Rossellini

Cast: Aldo Fabrizi, Brother Nazario Gerardi, Arabella Lemaitre

An experimental neo-realist film, not so much a biopic as a pictorial devotional to the titular medieval saint. Rossellini divides Flowers into twelve vignettes showcasing the personal and spiritual milestones in the ascetic life of St. Francis. Rossellini's use of non-professional actors (except for the appropriately scene-chewing Fabrizi) and a stripped-down technique succeed in creating the impression that the director and his cameraman traveled back to early 13th century Italy and gathered this luminous record. The result is simple, unpretentious, and an uncannily evocative portrait--emotionally moving, even funny, without overplaying its hand. In that sense, Rossellini stays true to his neo-realist principles and to his unconditionally humble subject. With his warm, welcoming, unassuming presence, Gerardi does the example of St. Francis proud in this, one of the cinema's loveliest spiritual explorations.

Runtime: 75 min.

Jay Antani © 2006 Perihelion Journal