Léon Morin, prêtre

Sep 22 1961 Not Rated 1h 57m
Drama, Romance, War

The widow Barny lives in Nazi-occupied France, looking after her half-Jewish daughter in a small village. When the Germans arrive, she decides to baptize her and chooses priest Léon Morin to do so. After spending some time with him, the relationship with her confessor turns into a confrontation with both God and her own repressed desire.

Plot

In World War II, the widow Barny sees the Italian soldiers arriving in occupied Saint Bernard while walking to her job. Barny lives with her daughter and works correcting tests and feels a great attraction toward her boss Sabine. When the Germans arrive, Barny sends her half-Jewish daughter to live in a farm in the countryside and finds that Sabine's brother has been arrested and sent to a concentration camp. The atheist Barny decides to baptize her daughter to protect her and chooses priest Léon Morin to discuss with him themes related to religion and Catholicism and Léon lends books to her. Barny converts to the Catholicism and becomes closer to Léon, feeling an unrequited desire for him.

Written by

Béatrix Beck, Jean-Pierre Melville

Directed by

Jean-Pierre Melville

Production Countries

Italy, France

Production Companies

Rome Paris Films, Concordia Compagnia Cinematografica

Languages

Français, English, Deutsch

Awards

Nominated for 1 BAFTA Award1 win & 1 nomination total

Scores
# of Votes
6,206
Average Rating
7.5 out of 10
Metascore
NA
Popularity
NA