Hail Mary (1985)

A college student gets pregnant without having intercourse, affecting people close and unrelated to her in different ways.

Director:

Jean-Luc Godard

Writer:

Jean-Luc Godard

Stars:

Myriem Roussel, Thierry Rode, Philippe Lacoste

2 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Myriem Roussel	...	Marie
Thierry Rode	...	Joseph
Philippe Lacoste	...	L'ange Gabriel
Manon Andersen	...	La petite fille
Malachi Jara Kohan	...	Jésus
Juliette Binoche	...	Juliette
Dick	...	Le chien
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Georges Staquet

Storyline

In this modern retelling of the Virgin birth, Mary is a student who plays basketball and works at her father's petrol station; Joseph is an earnest dropout who drives a cab. The angel Gabriel must school Joseph to accept Mary's pregnancy, while Mary comes to terms with God's plan through meditations that are sometimes angry and usually punctuated by elemental images of the sun, moon, clouds, flowers, and water. Godard intercuts a brief parallel story of Eva and her nameless lover; their adulterous affair, rife with philosophical discussions, leads nowhere.

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Plot Keywords:

female pubic hair | avant garde | experimental film | vagina | female butt | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Juliette Binoche: The Art of Being - Official Fansite

Country:

France Switzerland UK

Language:

French

Release Date:

11 October 1985 (USA)

Also Known As:

Hail Mary

Filming Locations:

Geneva, Canton de Genève, Switzerland

Company Credits

Production Co:

Sara Films, Pégase Films, JLG Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

72 min

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Pope John Paul II publicly condemned the film, stating that it was likely to offend the deeply religious. His remarks have since been used as a means to advertise the film.

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Quotes

[last lines]
Marie: I am of the Virgin, and I didn't want this being. I only left my imprint on the soul that helped me... you!

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Connections

Followed by The Book of Mary (1985)

User Reviews

postmodern take on the story of Mary is surprisingly more relevant today than when it was released.

This is a fascinating film. The story of a modern day Virgin Mary dealing with issues like human sexuality and the divinity as well as themes of "intelligent design" /creationism are challenging for the viewer to say the least. Godard has always been way ahead of his time in terms of formal aspects of film as well as socio-political points of view. This film was shot in 1984-85 and he addresses issues that are very relevant to the contemporary resurgence of faith - especially in American society today.

The fact that the professor's teachings are thinly veiled creationism as science is very revealing. It provides background and encourages the viewer question what is really going on with Mary and the idea of the creator/divine affecting her body and her life.

The nudity is not exploitative. A feminist reading of the film would probably be positive since the character of Mary is shown as intensely self-aware and strong rather than victimized or exploited.

The cinematography of Menoud and Firmann is excellent throughout. This applies to both the nature photography as well as the narrative composed shots. I think a lot of the shots were composed with the idea of replicating some classical paintings (Giotto, Fra Angelico) with severe fore-shortening.

The sound track is multiple-layered mix of music from Bach (St. Matthew's Passion, concertos) and Dvorak, dialog and sounds of natural environment and wildlife. It's a relatively short film (78 minutes)- but it's amazing to see and hear how densely compact it is with a very complex relationship of sound and image.

The way this film tackles the concept of divinity as it pertains to modern life is bound to cause controversy amongst conservative followers of organized religion precisely because it forces you to question what is taken as absolute. Whether you find it blasphemous or reverent is beside the point -that's the difference between spoonfed mainstream movies( like POTC) and the engaging cinema of Godard. You will find no moralistic pandering here. If you are close-minded or easily upset about nudity, then this film is not for you. If you have an open mind and are just curious to see what one of the true masters of cinema was capable of 20 years ago then you should see this interesting film. If you are willing to question the story of Mary not only from a theological perspective but from a post-modern point of view, then it is essential viewing.