NekoHomey Purely Joyful Movie!

Odelecol Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

Connianatu How wonderful it is to see this fine actress carry a film and carry it so beautifully.

Numerootno A story that's too fascinating to pass by...

Scott Amundsen I was tempted to give this movie a ten, because what it does well it does very well, but unfortunately it has a couple of problems that it never really overcomes.And this isn't totally the fault of the film, either, because the problems that plague the film are the same ones that plagued John Pielmeier's play.On the Broadway stage, AGNES OF GOD was basically a showcase for three powerful actresses at the top of their game: Elizabeth Ashley, the late, great Geraldine Page, and Amanda Plummer in a remarkable breakthrough performance.In the film, we have three equally powerful actresses: Jane Fonda, the late, great Anne Bancroft, and Meg Tilly in an equally remarkable breakthrough performance.The story is a simple one. A young nun in a cloistered convent (Tilly) has given birth to a baby, and has apparently also killed it. The young woman, raised in strange and sheltered conditions since childhood, is unworldly to the point of simple-mindedness and claims to have no memory of the birth.Enter Fonda as the court-appointed psychiatrist who has been assigned to determine just exactly what this young woman's mental state really is. She is a bundle of nerves herself, an agnostic with a grudge against the Catholic Church who chain-smokes and immediately raises the suspicion of Mother Superior (Bancroft), a woman who was married and had a family before taking the veil, who seems to have one foot in the spiritual realm and one in the worldly: she may know more about what happened than she is willing to reveal, and she wants desperately to believe in miracles, even to the point of implying that Agnes's child may not have had an earthly father.Naturally, the psychiatrist will have none of this, at least not at first, but Reverend Mother is not so easily put off, and Agnes herself is not exactly forthcoming with information.Watching this film, I could see why it made such compelling theatre: the performances by all three actresses are dynamite, the dialogue is crisp and knowing, and the situation has more than sufficient intrigue to keep the viewer's attention right to the final revelation.Unfortunately it's the final revelation that is the film's (and the play's) wet firecracker: the question that is raised is never satisfactorily answered, leaving the viewer hanging, and speaking for myself at least, feeling a little bit manipulated.I really can't complain too much though. Fonda, Bancroft, and Tilly are so good here that the play's basic flaw does not ruin everything that came before. So if you are in the mood to see three really great actresses strut their stuff, I highly recommend AGNES OF GOD. Despite its faults, it is compelling filmmaking.

lastliberal A Golden Globe performance for Meg Tilly and Oscar nominations for Tilly and Anne Bancroft. This is a story that brings into question stigmata, belief, along with the possibility of virgin birth.A nun (Tilly) has a baby, which is found dead, and she is brought up on manslaughter charges. She claims no knowledge of the baby or how to even have a baby.Jane Fonda, an obvious skeptic, is a psychiatrist appointed to examine the situation. What is a to be a psychiatric examination turns into an investigation of the convent. Secrets come out bit by bit as Nancy Drew, I mean the psychiatrist, discovers the one secret that can explain everything.But does it? Simple seduction or a miracle? It is left for the viewer to decide.What is not left to the viewer to decide is the excellent performances by the three stars above. They were miraculous.

Guillermo Rodriguez (er-guille) I saw this movie for the first time with a group of friends in a special show at midnight. We had just seen an awful movie called "A Hot Party" and were so mad. I picked up a torn newspaper from the floor and saw the ad for this special show. We decided on the spot that nothing could be worse than what we just saw and went over. Great Choice!. Fonda's character is so full of conflicts, but her struggle to keep objectivity is showed masterfully, Ann Bancroft is great as the Mother Superior, supportive of her flock, and protective; but trying to help the good doctor as a way to extricate Agnes (Meg Tilly) from her "delusions". And Meg Tilly, what a find she was for us. The photography, with dominating earthy colors, delivers the ambient of the movie in such a beautiful way.I can say that this is clearly, one of the best movies I've ever seen. Highly recommended.

FloatingOpera7 Agnes Of God (1985): Starring Jane Fonda, Meg Telly, Anne Bancroft, Winston Rekert, Gratien Gelinas, Anne Pitoniak, Guy Hoffman, Francoise Faucher, Gabriel Arcand, Jacques Tourangeau, Janine Fluet, Debora Grover, Michel George, Muguette Moreau, Norma Dell'Agnese, Laurel Lyle, Nicole Marie Abat, Jacqueline Blias, Rita Tuckett, Lillian Graham, Victor Desy...Director David Jewison...Screenplay John Pielmeier.Based on John Pielmeier's Broadway play, this is director David Jewison's successful screen adaptation. Released in 1985, "Agnes Of God" starred Jane Fonda in a role that she delivers with Oscar worthy power, although she is supported by an equally amazing cast of actors, including veteran star Anne Bancroft. The strength of this film is in its riveting drama of both a religious and psychological bent, not to mention a bleak atmosphere of suspense and mystery. Set in Quebec French-Canada, in a rural region outside Montreal, the story is about Sister Agnes (Meg Tilly) who becomes the subject of an investigation by Dr. Martha Livingston (Jane Fonda) a psychiatrist. As the film opens, Agnes has just given birth to a baby but who is found dead in a waste basket in her quarters at a remote convent. To avoid a media circus, the Mother Superior, Miriam Ruth (Anne Bancroft) keeps her confined in the convent and does not wish to put her into the hands of the authorities. As Dr. Livingston interrogates and befriends the child-like, spirited and imaginative Sister Agnes, secrets and disturbing facts are slowly revealed. Agnes grew up in a broken home, never went to school, never learned about the real world and was abused by her alcoholic and psychotic mother. As a result, her mind is warped and she is inclined to hallucinations and spontaneous bleedings. The mystery of who fathered her baby remains unsolved, even at the close of the film. Agnes believed it was God who impregnated her in a "Virgin Mary" sort of manner, and Mother Superior believed it too. But practical and scientific Dr. Livingston is determined to find out the man who seduced her. The film is not even about who knocked up Sister Agnes, but is instead a chilling drama about women and their issues. Mother Superior is a bitter divorced woman who had been a lousy mother and left her family to become a nun. Dr. Livingston is a modern woman who turned her back on Catholicism but who proves to be a compassionate woman bent on saving Agnes from doom. Agnes is herself the most troubled of the women, but it is her unbelievable story about a baby with an unidentified father that keeps this film in a compelling vein. Jane Fonda is simply wonderful, proving again, even at this late state in her career, that she still had the makings of a brilliant actress. This role is not considered one of her best but it was the type of role - the compassionate and intelligent liberal- that suited her personality so perfectly. Meg Tilly was not very known at this time but this performance is quite good and she would only move on to better roles. Anne Bancroft, who had once upon a time in the late 60's seduced a "Graduate", is humorous and bitter as the old Reverend Mother. The "bonding" scene between Fonda and Bancroft as they are smoking (a nun smoking!) and their playful banter is never overly irreverent and reveals warmth within embracing the human side of all people, whether a nun or a smoking psychiatrist. Catholicism is never attacked or criticized in this film, despite the playful jokes and somewhat anti-organized religion sentiments by the more progressive Jane Fonda character. Religion is merely the vehicle for the mystery. Could it be possible, even in our modern world devoid of miracles, that a virgin could conceive a child from God ? If it happened to a woman of ancient Roman-occupied Israel according to Catholics today, why can't they also believe it was possible in 1985 at a convent in rural Canada ? The film's theme is about fact and reason versus faith and miracles, though they are never actually at war with one another in this film, whose strongest theme is that of harmony and friendship among diverse characters. Like someone suggested, it's a reverse "Rosemary's Baby" where the horror elements remain in the spiritual dimensions and their influence over the living. In this case, the truth about Sister Agnes remains an unsolved mystery and is open to interpretation. This is a most terrific film with several different layers of emotion, psychology and spirituality. Two thumbs way up for this wonderful 1980's mystery drama with Jane Fond and Anne Bancroft doing their usual wonderful thing.