Main cast: Sydney Sweeney (Sister Cecilia), Álvaro Morte (Father Sal Tedeschi), Dora Romano (Mother Superior), Benedetta Porcaroli (Sister Gwen), Giorgio Colangeli (Cardinal Franco Merola), Simona Tabasco (Sister Mary), Giulia Heathfield Di Renzi (Sister Isabelle), and Giampiero Judica (Doctor Gallo)
Director: Michael Mohan
The novice Sister Cecilia believes that she will be tending to and caring for elderly nuns at the end of their lives, which is so sweet, when she accepts Father Sal Tedeschi’s invitation to join an Italian convent. I don’t recall the name of that convent ever being mentioned; maybe that is intentional or unimportant, I guess.
Anyway, I’d think maybe she would learn Italian first before she heads off to stay with a bunch of people that don’t speak or understand English, but hey, maybe Cecilia thinks that Jesus will wiggle a finger and make everyone there capable of speaking American-ese.
At any rate, barring the bitter and jealous nun that seems to be the mandatory requirement in these movies, the people in the convent are eager to welcome her… unusually eager. Soon, strange things and strange dreams happen to her, culminating in her somehow having an immaculate conception, hence the title of the cover.
Well, can things get any weirder, or are all these events planned by God to make Cecilia’s life more exciting?
Immaculate is said to be bringing those old-school nunspoiltation movies back into fashion, but while it definitely looks like a nicely put together atmospheric “Eek! I’m trapped in a convent full of crazy weirdos!” movie, it doesn’t really bring anything new to the table.
The usual suspects and the hype machine talked about how this movie is some feminist take on issues such as female bodily autonomy, but come on, these things and more have been around ever since the genre is conceived.
After all, we are talking about a horror genre set in a convent, with women terrorized by insidious elements of a religion that hold an iron grip over their actions, thoughts, and perceived purity. No crap that these issues are fundamental aspects of that genre, and honestly, this one doesn’t offer any revolutionary and insightful treatment of those themes.
Still, one thing this movie excels in is recapturing the Gothic horror vibes of better nunspoiltation and even just general horror movies churned out by those wacky Italians back in the old days. Things start out normal, picturesque even, only to slowly become more insane and loopy as the movie progresses.
The pacing is fine, Sydney Sweeney is pretty good in the role of a sweet and innocent nun that ends up being far more tenacious and strong-willed than her opponents expect her to be, and overall, this is a pretty watchable movie.
Only, as I’ve mentioned, this one doesn’t offer any new take or even spin to the formula, as the whole thing plays out like any other typical nunsploitation movie: the jealous nun, the kindly ally that ends up getting killed because she talks too much, the sinister mother superior, the cray cray men in charge of the whole thing… they are all here and the cards fall as expected. Well, the only aspect of the formula missing here is Satan, but then again, who knows what is in Cecilia’s womb anyway.
So overall, this is pretty solid movie, but it sure feels more like a modernized reboot of some sort, due to how formulaic it can be, than anything else.
