Encrucijada para una monja (1967)

Director:

Julio Buchs

Writers:

José Frade (idea)
Federico De Urrutia (story) ...

Release Date:

March 1970 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Could she leave her world of peace to return to the world of violence?

Plot Keywords:

Religion | Nunhood | Catholic Priest | Pregnant Nun | Missionary

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Rosanna Schiaffino	...	Sister Maria
John Richardson	...	Dr. Pierre Lemmon
Mara Cruz	...	Lisa
Ángel Picazo	...	Fr. Raymond
Paloma Valdés	...	Sister Blanche
Lili Muráti	...	Mother Claire
Lex Monson	...	Nangu
Margot Cottens	...	Madeleine
Andrés Mejuto	...	Michel
Wilhem P. Elie	...	Isaku
Claudia Gravy	...	Yvonne
Lorenzo Terzon	...	Jean
María Fernanda Ladrón de Guevara	...	Mother Superior
Antonio Pica	...	Officer
Alicia Altabella	...	Sister Genevieve

Also Known As:

A Nun at the Crossroads
Violenza per una monaca (Italy)

Runtime:

Italy:94 min | Spain:97 min | USA:100 min

Country:

Italy | Spain

Language:

Italian

Colour:

Colour (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:GP

Filming Locations:

Alcalá de Henares, Madrid, Spain

Company:

Filmes Cinematografica

interesting oddity

This one I saw at my small town theatre as a kid, mid-week during the summer and with about five other people there. I've never met another human being who's ever seen it. It starts out, to the best of my memory, very excitingly, as a missionary convent in the Congo tries to hold its own as the terrifying rebellion starts closing in. As with all films dealing with this episode of history (SIMBA, SAFARI, SOMETHING OF VALUE) things get very bloody, with everyone except the pretty leading lady savagely massacred (very traumatizing stuff during that SOUND OF MUSIC-SINGING/FLYING NUN era, especially for a young non-Catholic who figured all nuns were cute saints.) The graphic spearing of the mother superior still shows up in my nightmares. The young novice is raped and left to die, but is eventually rescued and taken back to Rome. From there it's thoughtful soap opera, the young woman emotionally torn between giving up the impending child for adoption (her uppercrust family tells her they don't want "a little Mau-Mau hopping around") or leaving her life's calling and facing life as an unwed mother. At the time I was merely disappointed by the screeching halt of the action, but it's funny how this completely forgotten dubbed-for-the-drive-ins fare has stuck with me, complete with its moral issues that were very daring for their time. I wonder if it'll ever surface.