Director
Alejandro Monteverde
(THE SOUND OF FREEDOM)

Starring
Christina Dell’Anna, David Morse and John Lithgow

The inspiring true story of the Catholic missionary, Mother Cabrini, who was the first US citizen to be canonised a Saint is brought to life in this new film by The Sound of Freedom director Alejandro Monteverde. Cabrini not only tells of her impressive feats bringing education and medical care to impoverished Italian immigrants in the late 19^th century New York, but it’s also an interesting commentary on feminism and immigration as a whole.

Francesca Cabrini (born in 1850) spent all of her formative years in her home in Lombard (then part of the Austrian Empire, now Italy). Due to a premature birth and a near drowning incident in her youth, Francesca had been quite sickly as a child, and had been given very limited life prospects. She was never expected to leave her bed, let alone her hometown. These imposed limitations did nothing but spur her on to strive for more, to aim for greatness. She joined the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and set upon a crusade to lead the first all-female mission. Her greatest desire was to take Catholic missionary work to the East and set up programs to help impoverished people in China, but after much resistance from the Vatican, the Pope granted her permission to lead a mission, but on the proviso that she begin her work in the West, not the East. Hence, she set forth to New York, where the first wave of Italian immigration was floundering in squalor, amidst racial prejudice from a previously predominantly white city. When she arrived, Mother Cabrini would have to overcome a number of challenges related to both her gender and her race in order to achieve her goal of bringing about a better standard of living for her compatriots.

Whilst the narrative and delivery of the films messaging can be a little heavy handed and overdone at times, the overall intention is good. Talking about the struggles of immigrant life in the late 1800’s is sadly still relevant today. With each wave of immigration, there are those that came before trying to push them back (often without the acknowledgement of irony of the situation). More disheartening still is to see how similar the struggle was for women at this time to be seen and heard, which is still so prevalent today. The message here though is that women can achieve all kinds of greatness if given the chance. The final line of the film may have been an incredibly powerful feminist statement had it not been directed like an over-the-top midday movie. That’s the only thing really letting this film down, but that’s not entirely surprising coming from Monteverde whose in-your-face, moral messaging seems to be a key theme to his work. At least this latest endeavour cannot be linked to any QAnon conspiracy nutters and has a largely unproblematic cast.

On that front, the work of Italian actress is Christiana Dell’Anna as Mother Cabrini is impressive, as was that of the many bilingual cast members that will be unfamiliar to many western audiences. The film doesn’t rely on a ‘big name’ drawcard, and the fact that John Lithgow is one of the top billed actors is a bit sad for him given his minimal role throughout. The real stars are the lesser-known actors, in particular the captivating Romana Maggiora Vergano who plays prostitute turned pseudo-missionary Vittoria.

Overall the film is perfectly inoffensive and enjoyable. It’s sad that it’s taken this long to have a film about one of the least problematic Catholics in history, whose legacy spreads far and wide today. If you’re in the mood to see a sassy Italian woman taking on the patriarchy and racism, then this is just the ticket for you!

Cabrini is in selected cinemas now.