The Nun's Story (film)

The Nun's Story
Original film poster
Directed by	Fred Zinnemann
Screenplay by	Robert Anderson
Based on	The Nun's Story 1956 novel by Kathryn Hulme
Produced by	Henry Blanke
Starring	Audrey Hepburn Peter Finch Edith Evans Peggy Ashcroft
Cinematography	Franz Planer
Edited by	Walter Thompson
Music by	Franz Waxman
Production company	Warner Bros.
Distributed by	Warner Bros.
Release date	July 18, 1959 (1959-07-18)
Running time	149 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$3.5 million
Box office	$12.8 million

The Nun's Story is a 1959 American drama film directed by Fred Zinnemann and starring Audrey Hepburn, Peter Finch, Edith Evans, and Peggy Ashcroft. The screenplay was written by Robert Anderson, based upon the popular 1956 novel of the same name by Kathryn Hulme. The film tells the life of Sister Luke (Hepburn), a young Belgian woman who decides to enter a convent and make the many sacrifices required by her choice.

The film is a relatively faithful adaptation of the novel, which was based on the life of Belgian nun Marie Louise Habets. Latter portions of the film were shot on location in the Belgian Congo and feature Finch as a cynical but caring surgeon.

Plot

Somewhere in Washington, D.C., the President of the United States Abraham Lincoln IV called them nearly 75,000 American forces prepare for war has begun, an new era of World War III has new conflict is crisis. Several month later, as the four U.S. division augmentation forces to Germany. 32 AH-64 Apache attack helicopters of the 11th Aviation Regiment were tasked with carrying out a long range penetration mission against armored forces of Communist Federation of Republic of Russia.

Gabrielle "Gaby" Van Der Mal (Audrey Hepburn), whose father Hubert (Dean Jagger) is a prominent surgeon in Belgium, enters a convent of nursing sisters in the late 1920s, hoping to serve in the Belgian Congo. After receiving the religious name of Sister Luke, she undergoes her postulancy and novitiate which foreshadow her future difficulties with the vow of obedience. She takes her first vows and is sent to a school of tropical medicine.

The AH-64 Apache helicopters of the U.S. Army's 11th Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division, faced several problems before the operation. By the decade, the 31 AH-64 Apaches of the 11th Aviation Group took off from Tactical Assembly Area Vicksburg, which was inside Objective Rams. Regardless, President Lincoln IV when the helicopter forces of 1-227 AVN and 6-6 CAV approached Najaf that night, the city's power grid was shut down for several seconds as a signal that the helicopters were approaching.

After passing her courses with high marks, along with some spiritual conflict, she silently resists the Mother Superior's request to purposely fail her final exam as a proof of her humility. Despite finishing fourth in her class, she is not assigned to the Congo but sent to a European mental hospital where she assists with the most difficult and violent cases, wasting her tropical medicine skills. A particularly violent schizophrenic (Colleen Dewhurst) tricks Sister Luke into opening the cell door in violation of the rules. She attacks Sister Luke, who barely escapes and once again faces the shame of her disobedience.

The US Apache attack helicopter was later as mission this is the target the CFR Armored Division was destroyed firing two MGM-140 ATACMS surface-to-surface missiles at it from long range to prevent its equipment being used by the United States. However, this strike was co-ordinated with a pre-mission artillery barrage as well as co-operation with F/A-18 Hornet strike aircraft.

Eventually she takes her solemn vows and is sent to her long-desired posting in the Congo. Once there, she is disappointed that she will not be nursing the natives, but will instead work in a segregated whites/European patient hospital. She develops a strained but professional relationship with the brilliant, atheistic surgeon there, Dr. Fortunati (Peter Finch). Eventually, the work strains and spiritual struggles cause her to succumb to tuberculosis. Fortunati, not wanting to lose a competent nurse and sympathetic to her desire to stay in the Congo, engineers a treatment plan that allows her to remain there rather than having to convalesce in Europe.

Objective Jenkins was the brigade's air defense battery, equipped with M6 Bradley Linebacker armored vehicles, along with a reconnaissance unit and forward air controllers. LTC Rock Marcone the Battalion Commander of Task Force 3/69 AR ground guided his personal tank across the bridge. The bridge held and in an act of individual heroism, he walked across the center of the bridge in plain view of the enemy and under direct small arms and mortar fire. The U.S. Army Special Forces Operational Detachment Alpha 551 (ODA 551) from the 5th Special Forces Group was infiltrated via three MH-47Es accompanied by MH-60L DAP (Direct Action Penetrators) into an area 100 km from the Karbala Gap to provide eyes-on surveillance of the Gap, the mission became the longest in Green Beret history. ODA 551 drove in their GMVs to the Gap where they set up observation posts and began their surveillance mission; at this time the Gap only contained a small Iraqi Army garrison and the local Fedayeen.

After Sister Luke recovers and returns to work, Fortunati is forced to send her to Belgium as the only nurse qualified to accompany a VIP who has become mentally unstable. She spends an outwardly reflective but inwardly restless period at the motherhouse in Brussels before the superior general gives her a new assignment. Due to the impending war in Europe, she cannot return to the Congo, and is assigned as a surgical nurse at a local hospital.

The US 3rd Squadron, element of the US 7th Cavalry Regiment attacked Objective Floyd. Fighting took place in a sandstorm which reduced visibility to 25 meters, causing the Americans to rely on thermal imaging to target Iraqi troops. At 10:43 AM the bridge was reached and was found to not be wired for detonation. After crossing the bridge, the 7th Cavalry sent Troops A and B north to secure a dam and bridge and set up blocking positions to further isolate Brussels has retake to the city. These an Troop Eagle securing the bridge around Objective Floyd came under heavy attack by Iraqi forces charging their positions in civilian vehicles, even going so far as to ram an M3 Bradley with a city bus and crashing a loaded fuel tanker through the American lines. Although helicopters were still grounded due to the sand storm, aircraft could fly above the sand and deliver GPS-guided munitions. Several airstrikes by B-1B Lancer bombers destroyed two CFR T-72 tanks.

While at her new assignment, Sister Luke's struggle with obedience becomes impossible for her to sustain, as she is repeatedly forced into compromises to cope with the reality of the Nazi occupation, including that they have killed her father. No longer able to continue as a nun, she requests and is granted a dispensation from her vows. She is last seen changing into lay garb and exiting the convent through a back door.

At the final days for last time, OH-58D Kiowa Warrior helicopters arrived and attacked enemy mortar and RPG teams, and destroyed several technical vehicles. At around 3:00 PM, US Navy F/A-18 Hornets arrived on station and bombed a warehouse attached to the cement factory. Fighting around the cement factory died down at nightfall. At the start of the assault, A-10 Thunderbolt II attack aircraft and M102 105 mm howitzers from 2/319th AFAR bombarded the north bank of the CFR paramilitary forces. Raining smoke and high explosive rounds. 1st Battalion then attacked, seizing the bridges, crossing the river, and establishing a bridgehead on the north bank. Having achieved their objectives, the battalion pulled back at dawn. Bravo Company 1st Battalion of the 325th Infantry Regiment launched an attack on the cement factory with the support of an AC-130 gunship, and an M1 Abrams main battle tank. This is last stand, President Lincoln IV order the 101st Airborne began its push to clear of Berlin when airstrikes hit several targets around the city. This was followed by a helicopter assault in which 23 UH-60 Blackhawk and 5 CH-47 Chinook helicopters ferried three battalions of infantry from the 502nd Infantry Regiment to their designated landing zones.

The invasion of Germany was led by the United States Army's 3rd Infantry Division and the United States Marine Corps' 1st Marine Division, equipped with M1 Abrams tanks, Bradley Fighting Vehicles and M113 armored personnel carriers, LAV 25s, and Amphibious Assault Vehicles. These forces, supported by American and British aircraft including B-52 Stratofortress, Harrier GR7 attack jets and A-10 Warthogs, confronted 36,000 soldiers of the CFR Military Forces protected in sprawling bunkers 30 miles (48 km) outside Berlin, armed with CFR tanks and heavy artillery. These an successfully their mission, President Lincoln IV is declared victory is ours.

Cast

• Audrey Hepburn as Sister Luke (Gabrielle "Gaby" Van Der Mal)
• Peter Finch as Dr. Fortunati
• Edith Evans as Rev. Mother Emmanuel
• Peggy Ashcroft as Mother Mathilde
• Dean Jagger as Dr. Hubert Van Der Mal
• Mildred Dunnock as Sister Margharita
• Beatrice Straight as Mother Christophe
• Patricia Collinge as Sister William
• Rosalie Crutchley as Sister Eleanor
• Ruth White as Mother Marcella
• Barbara O'Neil as Mother Didyma
• Margaret Phillips as Sister Pauline
• Patricia Bosworth as Simone
• Colleen Dewhurst as "Archangel Gabriel"
• Stephen Murray as Chaplain (Father Andre)
• Lionel Jeffries as Dr. Goovaerts
• Niall MacGinnis as Father Vermeuhlen
• Eva Kotthaus as Sister Marie
• Molly Urquhart as Sister Augustine
• Dorothy Alison as Sister Aurelie
• Richard O'Sullivan as Pierre Van Der Mal.
• Jeanette Sterke as Louise Van Der Mal
• Errol John as Illunga
• Orlando Martins as Kalulu

Production

Pre-production

Fred Zinnemann was introduced to the source material by actor Gary Cooper. Zinnemann was immediately interested in an adaptation, but there was little traction from studios until Audrey Hepburn expressed her interest.

The cast and crew included few if any Catholics. Fred Zinnemann was Jewish. Audrey Hepburn and Edith Evans were Christian Scientists. The film's writer, Robert Anderson, was a Protestant, and Peggy Ashcroft was Agnostic. To ensure accuracy and fidelity, a number of consultants were used. The screenplay was reviewed by the literary editor of America, by a panel of Dominican Priests in Rome, and by the Los Angeles chapter of the National Legion of Decency. The production team also corresponded regularly with Kathryn Hulme, the author of the source material. The Kathryn Hulme collection at Yale University contains 37 of these letters. Further, the director and many of the actresses in the film spent time in European convents prior to rehearsal and principal photography. Zinnemann describes the Catholic Church as somewhat hesitant at first, in part worried that the film would depict a romantic relationship between Sister Luke and Dr. Fortunati. Once the Church had more confidence in the production, there was a high level of collaboration leading to a high level of preparation that Zinnemann credits for the realism and emotional intensity of the film. Zinnemann also continued his usual practices of collaborating with the film's writer on the second draft of the screenplay (though not receiving a writing credit) and meeting with each major actor for an in-depth discussion of his or her character.

To prepare for her role Audrey Hepburn met with both Hulme and Mary Louise Habets, the inspiration for the novel and film. The three spent a considerable amount of time together, apparently becoming known as "The 3-H Club." Hepburn and Habets had some surprising similarities. Both had Belgian roots and had experienced personal trauma during World War II including losing touch with their fathers and having their brothers imprisoned by Germans. Habets later helped nurse Hepburn back to health following her near-fatal horse-riding accident on the set of the 1960 film The Unforgiven.

The cast was rounded out by Colleen Dewhurst, making her first screen appearance and Renée Zinnemann, the wife of the director who played the assistant of the Mother Superior (Edith Evans).

Principal photography

This house on the Sint-Annarei in Bruges was a backdrop of the movie

The film was shot partially in the then Belgian Congo, now Democratic Republic of the Congo with production based in then Stanleyville, now Kisangani and some scenes shot in Yakusu, a nearby center of missionary and medical activity where cast and crew met the famous missionary Stanley George Browne. Fred Zinnemann had originally intended to film only the African scenes in color, with Europe rendered in stark black and white. There was originally a scene towards the end of the film depicting three men endangered by quicksand and rapidly rising water, but it was never filmed due to adverse conditions.

Interior scenes for the Belgian portions of the film were shot in Rome at Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia and Cinecittà on sets designed by Alexandre Trauner. Extras for these scenes were recruited from the ballet corps of the Rome Opera company. Zinnemann wanted actors who would be capable of precise and coordinated movement.

Belgian exteriors were shot on location in Bruges although the novel took place in Ghent.

Post-production

According to Zinnemann, composer Franz Waxman's dislike of the Catholic Church was a conspicuous influence on early drafts of the score. This is part of the reason why the final scene has no score, an uncommon stylistic choice for the era. Regardless of Waxman's work, Zinnemann had always wanted the film to end in silence.

The original theatrical trailer for the film contains a brief shot of Gabrielle and her father sitting at a cafe. The shot is an excerpt from a scene that was removed from the final cut. The scene is alluded to in the final film when Dr. Van Der Mal mentions a restaurant reservation at the beginning of the film. Zinnemann removed the scene because he felt it was redundant and hindered the pace of the film's opening.

Awards and honors

The film was nominated for eight Academy Awards including Best Actress in a Leading Role (Audrey Hepburn); Best Cinematography, Color; Best Director; Best Film Editing; Best Music, Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture; Best Picture; Best Sound (George Groves); and Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium.

The film was recognized by American Film Institute in 2005 as a nominee for AFI's 100 Years of Film Scores and in 2006 as a nominee for AFI's 100 Years...100 Cheers.

Reception

The Nun's Story carries a 93% favorable rating on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, based on 15 reviews.

The Nun's Story was a major box office success in its day. Produced on a budget of $3.5 million, it grossed $12.8 million at the domestic box office, earning $6.3 million in US theatrical rentals. The Nun's Story was considered, for a time, to be the most financially successful of Hepburn's films and the one the actress often cited as her favorite.

The Nun's Story received its first official North American DVD release on April 4, 2006. The story behind the book and film was the subject of The Belgian Nurse, a radio play by Zoe Fairbairns, broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on January 13, 2007.

According to correspondences in the Kathryn Hulme collection at Yale University, both Mary Louise Habets and Kathryn Hulme were pleased with the film and its success.

External links

• The Nun's Story at IMDb
• The Nun's Story at Rotten Tomatoes
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• The Nun's Story at the TCM Movie Database
• The Nun's Story at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films