I, the Worst of All

Juana Ines de la Cruz was a woman ahead of her times. She had everything going against her; she was a woman, she had intelligence, and she intimidated the people around her. Everything conspired to make her a target for the higher ups in the Catholic Church in Mexico. The Archbishop wanted to silence her at all costs.

These were the times when the so called Holy Inquisition was an instrument of the Church to get rid of anyone considered heretic, or who would question the dogma. It was a convenient way to get rid of the enemies, as the Catholic Church had such power that no one dared to challenge it.

Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz wrote some of the best poetry known in the Spanish literature. Her work has survived because of the strength and beauty of her work. Sor Juana was befriended by the Spanish Viceroy and his wife. The virreina, in particular, saw in Juana a kindred spirit. Their relationship had shades of lesbianism, although only a chaste kiss is exchanged between them. When the Medinacellis are recalled home, Sor Juana is left at the mercy of the evil Archbishop who is bent in destroying her. Sor Juana Ines succumbs to the pest that took thousands in her country without being recognized in life for all she gave the world.

Maria Luisa Bemberg, a feminist film maker, puts her stamp in this story by bringing together the influential virreina and Sor Juana, a combination of two strong women who lived during a period of uncertainty in Spain and her colonies in the new world.

Asumpta Serna has some good moments as Juana Ines de la Cruz. Dominique Sanda is also effective playing opposite Ms. Serna as the virreina. Hector Alterio, Lautaro Murua, and the rest of the cast do a good job supporting the principal players. Cecilia Roth's dubbed the voice for Ms. Sanda.

Felix Monti's dark cinematography serves the film well. The film was photographed in a studio, and at times, it looks as though it is a theater set. Ms. Bemberg directed with a sure hand and got a lot out of her cast and crew.

When I picked up this DVD, I thought this was a movie whose main theme was Lesbianism--at least that's what many would assume about it judging by the DVD cover. And while this might have made a very interesting subject for a film, this was not at all what the film was about in the least!! Apart from a rather innocent kiss between Sister Juana and her lady friend, there is NOTHING about this film that could be construed as a gay or even straight picture. The women MIGHT have been in love with each other, but they never acted upon this and this really wasn't the main message of the film.

Instead, its a story about a real-life nun, poet and scholar and the difficulties encountered by being all these during the days of the Spanish Inquisition. Juana is a brilliant and very accomplished woman who was not allowed to enter the university because women simply weren't allowed to do this. A woman either needed to marry and make babies or become a nun--and she chose to become a nun because she believed she could pursue her studies of space, the word, philosophy, and especially poetry this way. And for a while, this was the case--until an overzealous new Mexican Archbishop saw her curiosity about the world as a sign of wickedness! Instead of Lesbianism, the film is actually about wasted talent and misogyny--a super-talented lady who was despised for being different! This movie would be excellent fair for teens and young adults--especially young women daring to walk their own path. As a father of two very accomplished girls, I would hope that this real-life story would inspire them.

As far as the technical merits of the movie go, it is very well acted, written and produced. It was a bit slow-going at times, but considering it was reality, this can't be helped. And despite this, the film could have been scored a 9 by me--it was very, very close.

Who would have guessed that there is a genre out there called nunsploitation. I am not sure what it means, but this film appears to be included.

It is the story of a Mexican nun that was decidedly feminist. You can look up Juana Inés de la Cruz on Wikipedia and it will give you more. Apparently this film is historically accurate according to those I have consulted.

The main thrust of this film is the intense hatred (Can one say fear?) of women by the Church through the ages, which continues to this day. It examines the Inquisition, by which the Church sought to stifle creativity and thinking.

One would do well to know the status of women in the Church at the time to properly understand and enjoy this film. The role of women can be defined: "it is right for (women) to pride themselves on being silent, both those for whom it is convenient to cover up their lack of knowledge, and those who might shamelessly reveal what they know, because in all of them it is not only an agreeable condition, but a proper virtue, to speak little and be silent." Unlike Saint Teresa, Sr Juana is castigated not canonized for the audacity to speak her mind, to seek knowledge, and to think.

If you seek the "lesbian passion behind convent walls" that is on the DVD cover, you will be sorely disappointed. While a lesbian relationship might be strongly suggested between Sr Juana and her noble protectress, it is never overtly expressed with the exception of a kiss that would be considered an "air kiss" compared to the one Phoebe gave Rachel on "Friends." The film was extremely interesting and Assumpta Serna was outstanding as Sr Juana.

The movie is well made, although not much money seems to have been spent on sets! It sticks fairly closely to the basic historical data, but a quick read up on Sor Juana in the Encyclopedia Brittanica might help many viewers.

Now to the rating issue. There is no good reason why this movie should be restricted to those over 18 by Amazon and other online merchants. There is no overt nudity or genital sex. There is a fairly chaste kiss between women. I suppose the violent scenes of nuns whipping themsleves in a penitential exercise might be offensive to some, but self-flagellation was indeed a part of Catholic monastic life until well into the 20th century, and the scene is not presented in any prurient way. If this amounts to a need to ban the movie for young people, then the Bible also would need to be banned. It has far more sex, nudity, and violence.

The writers who object to the "Lesbian passion" line on the box do have a point. Anyone buying this for erotic arousal would be profoundly mislead.

There is, however, a real lesbian aspect to this film. Sor Juana is clearly a "woman identified woman." She achieves her greatest triumphs while in the nurturing and all-female world of the Convent; her relationship with the Vicereine is the most heated in the film; and the destruction of her writing comes from the intrusion of the exclusively male world of the church hierarchy and the inquistion. Most importantly, her writing reflects an explicit feminist critique of women's oppression.

Just as one does not need to have genital sex in order to be a "heterosexual," neither does one need genital sex in order to be part of the lesbian continuum. Sor Juana is indeed part of the that continuum.

This film is an interesting historical piece set in the late 17th century. It is in Spanish and is based on a book by noted Mexican author Octavio Paz, which was itself based on a true story. The story is about Sor Juana, a nun and poet in Spanish Mexico who challenges the theology of the archbishop. In doing so, it also explores the tension between the church and the crown, in this case between the archbishop and the viceroy, who supports Sor Juana. The camera work and use of color, light, and shadow throughout the film sets the mood quite well. While it occasionally seems a little drawn out, in general it is an interesting, effective and entertaining work.