Coming of Age
The Austin Gay & Lesbian International Film Festival turns 15
Fri., Aug. 23, 2002
Sister Smile (Suor Sorriso)
D: Roger Deutsch; with Ginevra Colonna, Antonio Salines, Simona Caparrini.
This isn't your gramma's Singing Nun. Actually, it is -- only filtered through an arthouse lens and with all the stuff (sex and drugs) left out of that 1965 bit of Debbie Reynolds fluffery. Call it the True Hollywood Story (... or don't) of Janine Deckers, a real-life, one-time future nun who topped the charts in the early Sixties with "Dominique," a pop ode to Decker's patron saint. Life in the convent didn't jibe well with the young woman, so she took off for the outside world, a move that eventually ended in nasty addictions, unresolved Daddy issues, and a suicide pact with her lesbian lover. Ably shot and performed, this Belgian/Italian production is moody, often moving, and not a little bit weird. -- K.J. (9/1, 4:45pm)
