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1978 - Italy Directed By: Giulio Berruti. Starring: Anita Ekberg, Paola Morra, Joe Dallesandro, Alida Valli, Massimo Serato, Daniele Dublino, Lou Castel, Laura Nucci and Alice Gherardi.
Aka
Suor Omicidi
Current Availability
Available on a fine US R1 DVD from those great folks at Blue Underground. It should be noted that Killer Nun was submitted to the BBFC by Argent Films in April 2006 and was subsequently passed without cuts. However, as of the time of writing Argent are yet to announce any planned release date for a UK DVD.
Recommended
I would tentatively say yes. Although the dour tone will not appeal to some tastes, this is a fairly engaging study of a womans seedy descent into morphine induced insanity which features a fine central performance from Ekberg, moments of directorial flair and fair sized dollops of both sleaze and violence. Just don't approach it expecting a run of the mill "Video Nasty".
Review
The cloistered life of nuns has always proved a frequent and generally fruitful theme for the opportunistic wares of exploitation filmmakers. But really how could it not? The very notion of large congregations of chaste women living together without male companionship with their simmering sexual desires straining beneath a shroud of religious suppression is the kind of thing that plays right up to the sexual fancies of the predominantly male exploitation audience and when you add themes such as satanic possession to the mix you have an almost perfect exploitation formula.
The “nunsploitation” subgenre enjoyed by far its greatest success in the seventies when the large scale controversy whipped up by Ken Russell’s classic The Devil’s (1971) provided the inspiration for a proliferation of hoary, sexually charged shockers along similar lines, which emanated mainly from that hotbed of exploitation film production Italy. The prolific spate of Italian-made naught nun offerings included notable examples of the subgenre such as Sergio Grieco’s The Sinful Nuns Of Saint Valentine (1973), Walerian Borowczyk’s arty Behind Convent Walls (1977) and more typically exploitative fare such as Bruno Mattei’s shocker The Other Hell (1980).
One rather novel and rewarding spin on the familiar staples of the “nunsploitation” cycle comes in the form of the film in question, Giulio Berruti’s Killer Nun. Arriving in 1978 at the tail end of the nunsploitation craze, Killer Nun has gained a measure of note for featuring a name star (a rarity in this subgenre) in the shape of faded Swedish sex siren Anita Ekberg who had achieved fame as a model in actress in the sixties following her role in the Fellini classic La Dolce Vita. In addition Killer Nun also achieved a modest notoriety here in the UK when it was one of the pre-certification video titles caught up in the early eighties “Video Nasty” panic and was briefly outlawed on video.
Killer Nun – which dubiously claims to be based upon a genuine events which took place in Central Europe several years before – centers around a hospice for the sick and infirm run by the Catholic Church. The welfare of the hospices patients is overseen by Sister Gertrude (Ekberg) who has been exhibiting strange and out of character behaviour ever since she has undergone surgery to remove a brain tumour. Whilst medical evidence suggests that the procedure was a success, Sister Gertrude believes otherwise and insists she is suffering from cancer as her actions become increasingly self-destructive.
The truth is soon revealed as the viewer discovers that Sister Gertrude is a morphine addicted, neurotic wreck rapidly descending into a dangerous state of psychosis. As her drug addiction worsens and her mental condition deteriorates, Sister Gertrude’s irrational behaviour takes on a far darker hue as she engages in illicit sexual couplings, develops a sado-sexual flirtation with her devoted young understudy Sister Mathieu (Morra) and becomes prone to cruel outbursts towards the hospice patients. Therefore, when a number of patients die horrifically in a series of supposed “accidents” fingers of suspicion are soon pointed at Sister Gertrude leading the church to take decisive action in order to avoid a resultant scandal.
In all fairness Killer Nun despite its title ands general classification does not really fit in with “nunsploitation” cycle at all, as director Berruti for the most part eschews the sleazy staples of that particular subgenre in favour of a novel if sometimes exploitative character study. Killer Nun is perhaps best described as a unique riff on the themes of Roman Polanski’s classic Repulsion as the film documents Sister Gertrude’s ugly descent into morphine-addled psychosis. Despite the films rather sour and downbeat tone Gertrude’s fall from grace makes for absorbing viewing as Berruti imaginatively sucks the viewer into her gradual mental decline.
The films trump card proves to be the central performance of Anita Ekberg who neatly bucks the general trend for faded name stars phoning in their performances in European exploitation productions. Indeed Ekberg demonstrates tremendous screen presence in her role and delivers her protagonists cruel, venomous outbursts with an arresting sense of conviction. For example take the memorable dinner hall sequences which Gertrude snaps and smashes the dentures of an elderly patient in a cruel, calculated rage. Under most circumstances such an incident would prove an unintentional amusement, but thanks to the power of Ekberg’s performance the unmitigated spiteful malice of the act is hammered home to the viewer and far from being funny the sequence is probably the most singularly uncomfortable moment in the entire film. Yet at the same time Berruti is astute enough and Ekberg talented enough to bring a balancing sense of vulnerable uncertainty to Sister Gertrude’s actions, meaning that despite the highly questionable nature of her actions she remains a largely sympathetic central protagonist.
Ekberg receives capable support, principally from the gorgeous Paola Morra as her understudy Sister Mathieu, whom seems to harbor a secret romantic obsession with Sister Gertrude. Having also appeared in Behind Convent Walls the previous year, the then eighteen year old could be looked upon as something of a nunsploitation starlet. Although she is called upon the provide practically all of the films nudity, Morra to her credit also manages to make a strong impression a Ssister Mathieu’s own actions begin to appear in a whole different light as the film progresses. In addition familiar Euro-cult faces such as Lou Castel and Alida Valli offer dependable support, although the latter is somewhat wasted in a bit part as the imposing Mother Superior. To his credit even the usually wooden Joe Dallesandro manages something resembling a passable performance in his role as the hospices new doctor.
Surprisingly Killer Nun would mark an abrupt end to the directorial career of Giulio Berruti whom having made just two films promptly departed the film industry following its release. This is perhaps a shame as while the partial success of Killer Nun might have been a fluke, in all fairness Berruti demonstrates enough flair and a willingness to think outside of genre boundaries which suggests that he could have made further worthwhile contributions to Italian genre cinema had he persevered. Despite the sensationalist subject matter Berruti deftly manages to keep the films feet firmly on the ground whilst managing several commendable stylish sequences. The best of these comes in the form of an exceptionally well realised morphine induced hallucination sequence in which shots of a prone Sister Gertrude are intercut with what appear to be flashbacks to her brain surgery , dreamlike scenes of Gertrude attending a nude male corpse in a mortuary and most alarmingly the murder of a patient who is violently bludgeoned with a table lamp. This stylish sequence offers a potent visual allegory for Sister Gertrude’s feverishly disintegrating psyche. Additionally I feel Berruti also deserves some credit for his disarmingly subtle handling of the films obvious religious subtexts. While some filmmakers would have used these themes to launch a ham-fisted, predictable attack of Catholicism, Berruti instead opts to present the background presence of the Catholic Church not as the cause of Sister Gertrude’s insanity, but as a hypocritical onlooker her gradual decline.
Of course Killer Nunfor all its merits is ultimately far from a perfect film. Although Berruti offers up some novel ideas they are often merely paid lip service to, Berruti it seems lacking the confidence to see the films underling subtexts through to any real conclusion. Instead Killer Nun tends to constantly retreat back to the comfort zone of tried and tested exploitation motifs, principally some brief but sleazy sex scenes and the ongoing titillatory as do-lesbian undertones between Sister Gertrude and Sister Mathieu who is easily young enough to be Gertrude’s daughter. In fairness however the relationship between Gertrude and Mathieu does at least have a major bearing on the narrative. On top of the modest but emphasized sleaziness Killer Nun also weights in with some brief but nasty gore, most notably an uncomfortable scene in which an elderly lady has her face perforated with pins and is then sliced at with a scalpel. However, these fleeting moments hardly quantity the films status as a “Video Nasty” and it should be noted that in 1993 Killer Nun would be passed by the BBFC for UK video re-release by Redemption following a discreet 13 seconds of cuts. In 2006 the BBFC would go a step further a pass the film fully uncut for a proposed future UK DVD release.
In conclusion Killer Nun is a film that ultimately manages to fall between two stools somewhat in terms of its general appeal. Killer Nun is perhaps a little too dour in tone for more conventional and contemporary horror tastes, whilst the bluntly cheesy title and Berruti’s preoccupation with delivering the requisite exploitation jollies are unlikely to appeal to more refined arthouse tastes. Those approaching the film with preset expectations based on its onetime “Video Nasty” status are also more than likely to end up feeling a trifle underwhelmed. This is not to say however, that Killer Nun is a waste of time, for if approached purely on its own merits Berruti’s film is a flawed but worthwhile excursion into the extremes of offbeat European cinema proving to be a far more audaciously unique film than its title and premise would suggest at a first glance. An arresting, vivid depiction of a cloistered woman descent into psychosis, Killer Nun might ultimately stay true to its exploitation origins, but along the way it offers more original ideas than most of its “nunsploitation” brethren put together.
Also Try… The Devils (1971, Ken Russell) / Flavia The Heretic / Behind Convent Walls / The Sinful Nuns Of Saint Valentine / The Other Hell / Images In A Convent.
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