A classic

Back in the 40’s, Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger made some really lavish productions during which what was considered by many movie viewers as the Golden Age of British cinema. With this movie, once again, the production value was quite impressive and it is hard to believe that the whole thing was shot in a studio and not on location. Indeed, the decors, the sets, the colors were just amazing to watch. I was also amazed that Kanchi, supposedly a native girl, was actually played by Jean Simmons, a British actress. Unfortunately, to be honest, the story didn’t turn out to be anything really mindblowing. Basically, it was about 5 nons who went to live in a convent in the Himalaya and they all became more or less crazy. Even though this set-up could have been interesting, they spent just too much time to make sure that the whole thing looked great instead of expanding the psychological turmoil of the characters. I was also bothered about their attitude towards the natives who were described as either 'primitive', 'childish', 'stupid' or  'ignorant'. Such a patronizing and discriminating attitude was unfortunately rather common back then. Anyway, even though it didn’t really blow me away, it was still a very well made drama and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you are interested in Powell and Pressburger's work.