I caught this by sheer curiosity on Netflix. One of these purely intuitive, instinctive selections that turn out to be pretty rewarding in the end... I was much intrigued by the capsule on Netflix which went by something like "while doing field work near a small port on the Ireland coast, a young geologist from Newfoundland becomes enamored of a serene, innocent local girl who has a strong personal relation with God". I'm paraphrasing here but that was basically the only introductory note. I found it rather exotic and enough out of the beaten path to capture my insatiable curiosity.
And God did I have a good idea today! Because compared to the truckloads of manure that are shipped from the big studios every year, this was so extraordinarily refreshing and so powerful despite its modest means. It's the best demonstration that one does need only truth and truthfulness to make a film interesting, provided that you come up with an original setup. Sometimes, hundreds of millions are spent with good purpose and a mega-production may live up to its promises and need the investment made simply because of the cost required to make unique and perfectly credible illusions. The best example is 2001: A Space Odyssey, which remains to this day my number 1 movie of all times. But next to a 2001, films such as "Love and Savagery", with a ridiculously low budget, no-name yet excellent actors, and intrinsically gorgeous scenery manage to grasp a viewer's attention and imagination and leave a durable impression on him/her.
I will not unveil anything of the story except the premises: Michael, a young Newfoundlander gets acquainted with Cathleen - played by Sarah Greene, a young Irish actress and a name to remember- a pretty girl working in a pub and who plans to enter the local convent and become a nun. Michael learns about her career plans almost right from the beginning, and the film describes the evolution of his ardent, devoted courtship in an environment increasingly hostile to him for several reasons. And I'll stop here. The rest is for everyone to discover for oneself.
Let's say that this is about the mystery of Love when boy meets girl and an earthquake follows in both individuals. I'm using the capital "L" not because God is at the center of the intrigue, but simply to indicate that the movie is about the universal value of the word, i.e. physical love (the sexual aspect of love) as well as love as the cement that transcends all differences and that can overcome all hardships and abolish all wars, the love of serious hippies.... Hence my use of Love. The movie is about that Love as lived by two individuals who have to cope with its far-reaching implications.
My review would be incomplete if I forgot to give a special mention about the splendid role of Cathleen. Sarah Greene's expression and acting perspires the sort of purity, of virginal candor that would be expected from her vocation, and yet, she also shows great strength, the same solidity that we see in the intriguing, unique limestone formations studied by Michael around her small Irish hometown. I am looking forward to see more of her. She is absolutely mesmerizing as an actress, and she has both true external and internal beauty by standards of her own. She has a gorgeous face that does not fit with the usual Hollywoodian or Cannesian canons, but is more comparable to these actresses who look serious while taking your breath away, e.g. Lisa McAllister, Susie Parker, etc. Entirely believable in her role in Love & Savagery, and the film works largely because of this. A key element to why this is a pure gem.
A magnificent pearl from the rugged coastlines of Newfoundland and Ireland, and how Love will bridge the wide ocean that separates these two regions. Do yourself a big favor today and watch this film.
