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The Song of Bernadette Movie Review

The Song of Bernadette is a 1943 biographical drama film directed by Henry King and starring Jennifer Jones in the main role. It’s a very effective, moving drama.

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“Life goes fast, my child.

It’s hard to believe how fast“

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A French peasant girl’s visions of the Virgin Mary create controversy as pilgrims flock to her small town for healing. This is a story that’s based on real life events and a real historical figure. I hadn’t known about her before, so this film was a great history lesson in that regard. It’s one of those undecided cases that remain mysterious to this day.

Did she really see the Virgin Mary or did she fabricate it? A couple of interesting tidbits of information would suggest that it really was a miracle, but this happened so long ago that nobody could really know. What is great about the film itself is that it remained ambiguous to the very end. Yes, we do see the apparition as played by an actress illuminated with a glowing light behind her. However, I wouldn’t say that diminished the ambiguity of the tale at all.

As far as we know, this apparition could have still presented herself to Bernadette alone or she could have lied about the whole thing for some reason or another. That ambiguity remained throughout and I loved that about the film. The dialogue is also incredible as there are some powerful conversations here with both the scientists/doctors and the priests/people of faith.

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You would think that she would be beloved by the other people who are devoted in faith, but you’d be mistaken. The film cleverly showcases the inherent combativeness and jealousy within the spiritual community and those scenes were brutally honest and very well written. But simply the idea of believing in something despite everybody else telling you it’s not real is what made this movie quite special. It’s a rare religious picture that really works as it embodies the feeling of spirituality effortlessly well.

When The Song of Bernadette was released back in 1943, it was one of the biggest hits of the year due to the immense popularity of the novel the movie was based on. It also ended up receiving twelve Academy Award nominations (yes, 12!), a fact that these days is usually forgotten. It did deserve most of those nods, though I do find the Best Actress winner choice problematic.

Jennifer Jones is very good in the role, don’t get me wrong. It’s just that the role itself is rather one-note in her wide-eyed innocence and perseverance. She’s one of the youngest winners in this category, but I wouldn’t call her win particularly deserved. Among the supporting players, Anna Revere was also nominated and she was good, but it is Charles Bickford and Gladys Cooper who stole the movie from everybody else and those two undoubtedly deserved their nominations.

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The black-and-white cinematography is gorgeous and the production design is splendid. The grotto itself looks unforgettable and the imagery of the apparition was striking. The score is also strong, but the editing not so much. This is an extremely long movie, clocking in at two and a half hours, and I wouldn’t call that runtime decision warranted for what is a simple tale that was elevated by sophisticated execution, but it remains too simple to be this long. Still, it was engaging enough due to strong dialogue and great emotional investment.