THE MIRACLE OF OUR LADY OF FATIMA

US, 1952, 102 minutes, Colour.
Gilbert Roland, Frank Silvera, Angela Clarke, Jay Novello.
Directed by John Brahm.

The Miracle of Our Lady of Fatima was made in the early 50s, at a time when devotion to Mary under this title and memory of the apparitions was very strong. A statue of Our Lady of Fatima toured the world during the '50s and Father Patrick Peyton made many gospel films with Hollywood stars and spread the devotion, made focusing on the mysteries of Christ and the decades of the Rosary, often made with Hollywood stars. These were very popular.

The prologue of the film indicates that it is certainly a film of the U.S. in the 50s: anti-socialist, anti-communist, wary of police states and taking a strong stance. It seems to use religion against socialism.

The film re-creates the atmosphere of Portugal in the early 20th century, tastefully looks at the family, the children, the apparitions. It can be compared, of course, to The Song of Bernadette from ten years earlier. Gilbert Roland is the star - a character who is able to voice scepticism and a lot of ordinary people's reactions about visions - and then of course he is converted. It does not compare dramatically with Henry King's 'The Song of Bernadette', but it is an interesting example of specific film-making about religious topics.

For Catholic viewers, a glimpse of devotion and faith in the early 20th century. For non-believers, a pious and religious film, tastefully done.

1. For what audience was the film made? Catholics? Christians? Non-Christian? audience? Adapted for a religious audience of the fifties? The early 20th century religious aspects of Catholicism and emphases? How appropriate was the Hollywood treatment of a religious topic? The characteristics of the Hollywood treatment? Representation of historical episodes, religious feeling, religious experience? How much emphasis on the pious? The tasteful style of the film, reverence, piety? Credibility?

2. A film of the 50s? Impressions later? Religion, reverence? Catholic perspective? The 50s, the prologue, the comments on the socialist revolution in Portugal, the police state, comparisons with the Soviet Union? Religious anti-communist propaganda?

3. The re-creation of Portugal and the Portuguese in the early 20th century? An American view of Portugal? Audience knowledge of Portugal, the background to the visions? Understanding of Mary? Fatima and the visions? The aftermath? Portugal in 1910, the socialist revolution, the scenes of revolution -tableaux? The priests and religious arrested and numbered? Churches shut? The comment on the police state? The contrast with the people of simple faith in the countryside?

4. The impact of religious people and their experience? Peasants, simple people, simple faith? The visions and their acceptance within this community? Steady authenticity? Criticisms by government, tests by church authority? Superstition and eager piety by the ordinary people? The place of the Virgin Mary in the piety of the people? Traditions of visions of Mary? How well did the film portray the village and the range of people there? The parish priest and his place within the village? The basic religious traditions? The introduction to the anti-clerical society, the authorities and their attack on religion? Their control? The religious phenomenon of Fatima within this anti-clerical experience?

5. The portrait of the children? Their family backgrounds, their work in the fields? The initial experience of the vision and their naivety and simple faith? The compulsion to go back on the arranged days? The way that family pressures were visualized especially from Lucy's mother? The parish priest and his situation, his pleas with them? his relationship with the authorities? Prison? Themes of simple religion, faith? The children illustrating this and their running away to the place of the visions? Their own prison experience and the prisoners saying the Rosary? how credibly? The scenes of the visions themselves? 7. The sketch of the children, their friendship, the quick Rosary and its echoes, the experience of the apparition, Francisco not seeing, the Rosary, his seeing, Mary, her message? Prayer? The later visions, the message, intimations of war, World War One and Two, Russia, Conversion?

6. Fatima, ordinary village, Sunday with people at Mass, Francisco and Hugo in the bar? The priest and his influence? The life of the village, the church? The children after Mass going to the hills?

7. The children, their relationship with their parents, the priest and his questioning, the police and the authorities, the interrogations, the accosting of the crowd for finding the children, Hugo giving the wrong advice to Lucia? The threat of torture? The authorities and their lies about taking the children to the bishop, putting them in the prison? The prisoners and their support and the Rosary? The difficulties in getting to the hillside? The finale? Sketch of their characters, their background, reasons for the vision, effect? The elderly Lucia and her going to the graves, with Hugo?

8. The characters to highlight the drama of the situation? Gilbert Roland as recognized Hollywood star and his performance? The humorous and ironic character that he portrayed - conventional comic, sentimental man around the town? his helping the children especially in the confrontation with the authorities and handing over the false Lucia? Selling the rosaries at the place of the vision? His being in prison?

9. The pressures on the families to cope? The reaction of the crowds and their eagerness, hysteria, sensationalism? How much sensationalism and hysteria behind such faith?

10. The sketch of the parents, their strictness, Lucia's mother hitting her, the father and his drinking, change of heart? Their support?

11. Hugo and his scepticism, saving Lucia, arrested for impeding justice, prison, helping the children at the end with the crowd? His final visit to Lucia?

12. People's response, superstition, faith, moods, demanding miracles, the impact of the sun? The cures?

13. The ecclesiastical judgment by the parish priest and his wariness? The tradition of church testing of such visions? The picture of government in Portugal, the authorities and the people's antagonism towards them?

14. The vindication of the children? The phenomena of the weather and the sun on October 13th, 1917? How is the impact of these visions explained? The popularity of Fatima throughout the 20th century? Basilica, place of pilgrimage? The early deaths of the two children and Lucy remaining alive for so long?

15. The basic message of the experience of Fatima - for Portugal, for the church, for the world? How persuasive was this film version of a religious phenomenon? The postscript and the aftermath of the visions, devotion in Fatima? A significant devotion of the 20th century?