''Lourdes'' is a 2009 film directed by Jessica Hausner. It stars

Sylvie Testud Sylvie Testud (born 17 January 1971) is a French actress hose film career est Actress for '' Fear and Trembling'' (2003), and the European Film Award for Best Actress for '' Lourdes'' (2009). Her other film roles include '' Beyond Silence'' ( ...

Léa Seydoux Léa Hélène Seydoux-Fornier de Clausonne (; born 1 July 1985) is a French actor. Known for her roles in both French cinema and in Hollywood she's received various accolades including the Cannes Film Festival's Trophée Chopard in 2009 as wel ...

, Bruno Todeschini and Elina Löwensohn. It received the 2009

Vienna International Film Festival The Vienna International Film Festival, or Viennale, is a film festival taking place every October since 1960 in Vienna, Austria. The average number of visitors is about 75,000. Traditional cinema venues are ''Gartenbaukino'', ''Urania'', ''Met ...

's Vienna Film Prize for Best Film.

Plot

Christine (

) is a wheelchair-using woman with severe

multiple sclerosis Multiple (cerebral) sclerosis (MS), also known as encephalomyelitis disseminata or disseminated sclerosis, is the most common demyelinating disease, in which the insulating covers of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord are damaged. This ...

. Along with a group of other invalids of varying disabilities she makes a pilgrimage to the

Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes () is a Catholic Marian shrine and pilgrimage site dedicated to Our Lady of Lourdes in the town of Lourdes, Hautes-Pyrénées, France. The sanctuary includes several religious buildings and monuments around ...

in the town of

Lourdes Lourdes (, also , ; oc, Lorda ) is a market town situated in the Pyrenees. It is part of the Hautes-Pyrénées department in the Occitanie region in southwestern France. Prior to the mid-19th century, the town was best known for the Châ ...

, France. Christine is assigned a volunteer helper, Maria (

) who acts as an aid for her and helps to feed and dress her. Christine admits to Maria that she is not particularly religious but that she has been on several pilgrimages as it affords her the possibility of travelling. Maria develops a crush on Kuno one of the guards assigned to care for the group. He is, in turn, attentive to Christine. When Maria notices this she abandons her duties and runs off leaving Christine in the care of her roommate who is more mobile than her. That day Christine is able to move her hand on her own. As the group prepares to return home, the head helper Miss Cécile, abruptly collapses while preparing for the final party. The following day, when Maria comes into her room to dress her for the day she finds Christine already dressed. The other members of the group are stunned by Christine's marked improvement and encourage her to have it officially recognized by the church. She is seen by a doctor who verifies that, while she still struggles to walk, her ability to do so is outside the realm of what can be explained scientifically and tells her her case will be moved to a committee who will determine whether it is a miracle or not. Christine is able to attend the last day excursion, which Maria tries to block her from as it was a hike available to the most well members of their group. On the trip other members wonder why Christine was miraculously cured while other, more pious people were not. Christine is oblivious to this and spends some time alone with Kuno. At the going away party Christine dances with Kuno and then collapses. Though Christine recovers others begin to doubt that she is cured. Standing on the sidelines she initially refuses to sit down. Eventually she reluctantly sits back in her wheelchair.

Cast

as Christine *

as Maria * Bruno Todeschini as Kuno * Elina Löwensohn as Miss Cécile * Gilette Barbier as Mrs. Hartl * Gerhard Liebmann as Pater Nigl * Linde Prelog as Mrs. Huber *

Orsolya Tóth Orsolya Tóth (born 20 November 1981) is a Hungarian actress. She has appeared in 26 films since 2002. She played the title role in the film ''Johanna'', which was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2005 Cannes Film Festival. Selec ...

as Child in Wheelchair

Critical response

"The remarkable coup of the film is that it can be taken either as a testament to the power of faith or as a subtle undermining of it." ''The Independent''

Peter Bradshaw Peter Bradshaw (born 19 June 1962) is a British writer and film critic. He has been chief film critic at ''The Guardian'' since 1999, and is a contributing editor at ''Esquire''. Early life and education Bradshaw was educated at Haberdasher ...

, writing in ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers '' The Observer'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the ...

'' newspaper called it 'subtle, mysterious and brilliant', awarding it 4 out of 5 stars.

Frank Scheck Frank Scheck is an American film critic. He is best known for his reviews in the ''New York Post'' and ''The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Hollywood fil ...

, American film critics, writing in ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade paper, and in 2010 switched to a weekly large ...

'' called it 'Moving and immersive, if not quite a cinematic miracle'.

Awards and nominations

Brian Award The Brian Award (in Italian language, Italian: ''Premio Brian'') is the award given since 2006 to “a film that highlights and enhances the values of rationality, respect for human rights, democracy, pluralism, promotion of individuality, freedom ...

at the

66th Venice International Film Festival The 66th annual Venice International Film Festival, held in Venice, Italy, was held from 2 to 12 September 2009, with Maria Grazia Cucinotta serving as the festival's hostess. The opening film of the festival was '' Baarìa'' by Giuseppe Tor ...

References

External links

* *
Lourdes
' a
Rotten Tomatoes
{{Our Lady of Lourdes 2009 films Austrian drama films 2000s French-language films Films about Catholicism

Film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmospher ...

Films directed by Jessica Hausner French drama films German drama films Best Foreign Film Guldbagge Award winners 2000s French films 2000s German films