La passion de Bernadette

Sydney Penny stars as the visionary saint from France and learned the language for the role. Any Catholic is familiar with the story of the little girl who claimed to be visited by the Virgin Mary in a small village where she was both praised by some and mocked by others of the faith. This film picks up at the time Bernadette joined a convent and worked as a simple nun while remaining a humble young sister. Penny is excellent in the lead and the movie is a moving account of the well known woman who made Lourdes a land mark for desperate people seeking miraculous cures, often from terminal illnesses. I grew up with a Catholic education but am now a lapsed one and describe myself as a Catholic atheist. Even as a skeptic I was moved by the American actress's beautiful performance as the future saint.