Francesco and Clare… Rebels of their time! In a world of war they chose peace. In a world of hate they chose love.
Brother Sun, Sister Moon movie storyline. The beginning of the thirteenth century, the town of Assisi in Italian Umbria. The son of a rich merchant, Francesco Bernardone, comes back ill from war. In his delirium, he goes back in his memories to the days when he spent time on parties and carnal pleasures. Yet, the shadow of the cross that he sees in fever brings an end to his old life. The armor which he calls “my death mask” appears to be his final clothing of the old human. He slowly recovers, but after the illness there is not the Francesco that was known to everybody any longer.
Instead of spending hours in taverns, he spends them on meadows, instead of drinking, he meditates the beauty of God’s creatures. Once, he encounters a ruined little church. There, from the old cross, Christ changes his life forever. Francesco renounces the riches, his family and starts to rebuild the Church as “il Poverello – the poorest of the poor.” Soon, he gathers many people who are willingly built into a powerful new Spiritual Temple. Will the kingly Pope accept a new order of beggars and the poorest of the poor? Will the shining gold accept the inner treasure?
Brother Sun, Sister Moon (Italian: Fratello Sole, Sorella Luna) is a 1972 film directed by Franco Zeffirelli and starring Graham Faulkner, Judi Bowker, Leigh Lawson, Kenneth Cranham, Lee Montague, Valentina Cortese, Alec Guinness, Michael Feast, Nicholas Willatt, Adolfo Celi and Peter Firth. The film is an examination of the life of Saint Francis of Assisi.
About the Story
Francesco, the spoiled son of Pietro Bernardone, a wealthy textile merchant, returns from fighting in the war between Assisi and Perugia a changed man. Struck by a feverish illness that has forced him to leave the war, Francesco lies on his bed tormented by visions of his past when he was a boisterous, arrogant youth. During a long recovery process, he slowly finds God in poverty, chastity and obedience, experiencing a physical and spiritual renewal.
Healthy again, Francesco returns to his normal life as a rich young man. However, to the consternation of his parents, he begins to spend most of his time surrounded by nature, flowers, trees, animals and poetry as he becomes more and more reluctant to resume his prior lifestyle. Pietro’s obsession with gold now fills Francesco with revulsion, creating an open confrontation between Francesco and Pietro.
Francesco wanders into the basement where the family business is located. He feels the heat and humidity of the dye vats, passing through colorful lots of drying cloth, to see the workers with their families laboring in the heat without much rest. Rejecting his father’s offer to take over the family business, he instead pulls the laborers out of the building to enjoy the daylight. Then he throws the costly textiles out of the window to the poor gathered below. When his father sees the loss, Francesco invites him to join in throwing the cloth out the window so he can know the joy of being free of worldly possessions.
Pietro, completely frustrated, beats Francesco, drags him to the bishop’s palace and humiliates his son in front of Assisi’s bishop and the rest of the population. Lovingly, Francesco renounces all worldly possessions and his middle-class family including the name “Bernardone”, removes his brilliant clothing and leaves Assisi, naked and free from his past, to live in the beauties of nature as an ascetic to enjoy a simple life as a man of God.
Francesco comes upon the ruins of the chapel of San Damiano, where he hears God’s voice asking him to “restore My Church.” Believing the Voice means San Damiano, Francesco begins to beg for rocks to rebuild that church. Much to the dismay of his family, some of Francesco’s friends join him. He gradually gains a following from the sons of the wealthy, who begin to minister among the poor and the suffering.
Brother Sun, Sister Moon (1972)
Directed by: Franco Zeffirelli
Starring: Graham Faulkner, Judi Bowker, Leigh Lawson, Kenneth Cranham, Lee Montague, Valentina Cortese, Alec Guinness, Michael Feast, Nicholas Willatt, Adolfo Celi, Peter Firth
Screenplay by: Suso Cecchi d’Amico, Lina Wertmüller, Kenneth Ross, Franco Zeffirelli
Production Design by: Lorenzo Mongiardino, Gianni Quaranta
Cinematography by: Ennio Guarnieri
Film Editing by: Reginald Mills
Costume Design by: Danilo Donati
Art Direction by: Giorgio Giovannini
Music by: Riz Ortolani, Donovan (songs)
MPAA Rating: None.
Distributed by: Paramount Pictures (USA), Cinema International Corporation (non-USA)
Release Date: December 2, 1972
Visits: 269