The religion and the horror cinema have always been closely related, either by beliefs and legends popular, or by one’s own iconography in which the crucifixesthe bloodthe pain and the blame.
The struggle between good and the evilbetween sacred and the blasphemous has been a substantial part of horror cinema since films like Häxan. Witchcraft through the ages (1922), until the mythical The Exorcist (1973). But, in recent times, especially since the appearance of The nunhas been revitalized subgenre that seemed forgotten and that, above all, was responsible for investing in spirit erotic the space of the convents and the habits of the nuns.
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One of the first samples of this category was Mother Joan of the Angels (1961), directed by the Polish Jerzy Kawalerowiczin which a professed woman was subjected to a series of exorcisms after she was supposedly possessed For several demons.
Seminal films such as The demons (1971), by K.in Russell, Basada in a work of Aldous Huxley and starring Vanessa Redgrave. In Japan, works as controversial as Convent of the Sacred Beast (1974), by Norifumi Suzuki, and a whole series of ‘trash’ delusions in Europe.
This trend, known as the Nunsploitationcomes back to life with force thanks to Immaculatethe film starring (and produced) by Sydney Sweeney which has become an almost instant cult work thanks to its ability to connect with the direct references of the genre and give them a new contemporary meaning without losing a bit of its doses. subversive.
In Immaculate, the actress takes on the role of Sister Cecilia, a young woman who almost lost her life in an episode of her childhood and who, precisely for that reason, thinks that God saved her for something. She will end up in a convent from the countryside Italian apparently idyllic, but full of secrets of the most dark and disturbing.
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Director Michael Mohan recovers a good part of the environments of that Nunsploitation, mixing them with those of the ‘giallo’ of Lucio Fulci composing an atmosphere in which the erotic and the macabrein which there is catacombs, killer nuns, mad doctors and many doses of fanaticism.
And all through this novice who, without having committed the ‘sin of the flesh’, will remain pregnant as if it were a new Virgin Marywhich is why many have considered it antichristian, blasphemous and even pro-abortion, some ‘quotes’ used by the distributor itself to promote the film in a different way.
In recent years we have witnessed a recovery of these references to turn them around, adapt them to new times from a perspective feminist to talk of misogynyof the rights of the women or the vindication of their bodies Front of patriarchal repression.
Just like the reproductive rites evils that appear in Immaculate they could take us from The seed of the devil to The Cried’s Taletoother recent films like Sister Deathby Paco Plaza, have also used this mystical ecosystem to talk about the violence against women.
A couple of weeks ago the ‘remake’ of The prophecytitled The first prophecywith a narrative scheme very similar to that of Immaculate: novices arriving in Italy, unexpected pregnancies of entities and analogous visual paraphernalia.
To complete this short review, we must not forget the approach he made Paul Verhoeven with Benedettauntil now his last film, in which the craziness of the Inquisition and the corruption of the clergy when judging the sexuality and the desire of women from their usual spark irreverent.
