Black Narcissus

Great Britain, 1947
Length
101 minutes
Director
Michael Powell
Cast
  • David Farrar
  • Deborah Kerr

Content

Sister Superior Clodagh and four other Anglican nuns are sent to open a school and clinic deep in the
Himalayas. Physically and emotionally overwhelmed by the situation, Sister Clodagh starts reliving
a romance from her pre-vow days, while Sister Ruth succumbs to erotic fantasies about local Brit
Mr. Dean. When he rejects the lovesick nun’s advances, Ruth turns her rage on Clodagh … This film
from the Archers production company was shot in England, almost entirely on back lots. It was as
far from British cinema of realism as its colour palette was from what cinematographer Jack Cardiff
called the “tyranny” of Technicolor. Powerful primary colours represent all that is profane; saturating
walls, floors, clothing, flowers, and mountains, they exert a near physical affect on the white-clad
nuns. The cool blue of the mountains provides a stark contrast to Sister Ruth’s delirium, signalized at
its acme by a flow of sheer red across the screen. “Colour itself became the emotion of the picture”,
fan Martin Scorsese said, praising the “painting with light” of Cardiff, who was inspired by Vermeer’s
use of light and van Gogh’s colours. Both he and production designer Alfred Junge won Oscars.
 

Gallery

Credits

Production company
The Archers
Original title
Black Narcissus