Léon Morin, Priest (1961)

Original title

Léon Morin, prêtre

Directed by

Jean-Pierre Melville

Genre

drama film

Country

France, Italy

Runtime

2h 10m

Rated

12

Rating

7.1 of 10 from 168 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

Set in a small French town under Nazi occupation during World War II, a widowed mother who has lost her religious faith meets a young priest. She debates with him about belief and morality, and finds herself drawn to him in a way she did not expect.

contemplativeintimatemelancholicconversationalslow-burntenseemotionally chargedrestrainedthought-provoking

What happens

Léon Morin, Priest (French: Léon Morin, prêtre) is a 1961 French drama film directed by Jean-Pierre Melville. It was adapted by Melville from Béatrix Beck's novel The Passionate Heart (French: Léon Morin, prêtre), which won the Prix Goncourt in 1952. Set during WWII in Occupied France, the film stars Emmanuelle Riva as a jaded, lapsed Catholic mother and widow of a Jewish husband, who finds herself falling in love with a young, altruistic priest, played by Jean-Paul Belmondo. For his work in the film, Belmondo was nominated for the BAFTA Film Award for Best Foreign Actor. At the 1961 Venice Film Festival, the film won the “Award of the City of Venice” and was nominated for the Golden Lion. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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