Classic Movie Review: Under the Sun of Satan (1987)

Under the Sun of Satan (1987)

Directed by: Maurice Pialat.

Written by: Sylvie Pialat and Maurice Pialat based on the novel by Georges Bernanos.

Starring: Gérard Depardieu (Donissan), Sandrine Bonnaire (Mouchette), Maurice Pialat (Menou-Segrais), Alain Artur (Cadignan), Yann Dedet (Gallet), Brigitte Legendre (La mère de Mouchette), Jean-Claude Bourlat (Malorthy), Jean-Christophe Bouvet (Le maquignon), Philippe Pallut (Le carrier), Marcel Anselin (Mgr Gerbier), Yvette Lavogez (Marthe), Pierre D'Hoffelize (Havret), Corinne Bourdon (La mère de l'enfant), Thierry Der'ven (Sabroux), Marie-Antoinette Lorge (Estelle).

 

Those who take their faith seriously can be absolutely tormented by it. It is easier to just blindly believe is a benevolent God, who has a plan for you, and will protect you – unless of course it’s your time to go, and then, again, that’s all part of God’s plan. But some of the deepest believers are the ones most tormented by doubts – they take questions of faith seriously – because they take the questions religion raises seriously. And perhaps because they do, they end up doing the most damage.

 

Maurice Pialat’s Palme d’or winning drama Under the Sun of Satan stars Gerard Depardieu as Donissan, a priest who does in fact take questions of religion seriously, and because of that he is plagued by doubts. Those doubts in turn make him a fairly ineffectual priest – unable to provide much in the way of comfort or guidance to his parishioners. His boss and mentor is Menou-Segrais (Pialat himself), who has doubts as well – but is better able to hide them, and deliver something to the parishioners that they need. It may be cynical, but it helps.

 

The key sequence in Under the Sun of Satan takes place when Donissan is sent to walk from his small town to another – over the fields. A man stalks (Jean-Christopher Bouvet) after Donissan, and engaging him in conversation – playing on his doubts. There scenes thrum with even homoerotic of homophobic tension depending of your view on them – and, of course, it slowly becomes clear that this mysterious stranger is Satan himself. As a result of this encounter, Donissan is either blessed or cursed, depending on your view, with some Godlike powers – visions, the ability to heal the sick, etc. But are you still doing God’s work, if the power to do so comes from Satan? And what happens when your good intentions all go awry? Nowhere is this more apparent that with Mouchette Sandrine Bonnaire) – a teenage girl, with a self-destructive streak, engaging in one affair after another with older men – one of whom she has just killed. Donissan wants to save her – but he well damn her instead.

 

Under the Sun of Satan is the kind of talky, heady religious drama that Ingmar Bergman could have done remarkably well. It has a cynical view of, and religion – and questions seriously the notion of God and belief. Naming one of the major characters Mouchette also undeniably brings to mind Robert Bresson’s film of the same name from 1967 – about a young girl suffering through one humiliation after another. Bresson was another filmmaker who could make long, serious conversations about God cinematic and interesting.

 

Unfortunately, I don’t really think that is Pialat’s strong suit. He is better suited in films like Police – large, sprawling casts of people talking over each other, rather than this type of serious, religious drama with long conversations about God, religion and belief. It’s a testament to the performances by Depardieu and Bonnaire that they work as well as they do – although it’s hard to deny that they are merely symbols, not real characters – and no one else is even given that depth. The film looks great – particularly that long journey between towns featuring the scenes with Satan – and the events leading up to Bonnaire’s shocking act of violence.

 

But taken as a whole, Under the Sun of Satan is the type of film that is more interesting to talk about than it is to watch. Everything is here is metaphor and symbolism, and long drawn out conversations. Bresson could have pulled this off. Bergman and Carl Th. Dreyer probably could have too. Hell, at the moment, I’d love to see a Paul Schrader version. But in the hands of the immensely talented Pialat, I just don’t think he quite figured out how to pull it off as anything more than an exercise.