A film

that I hope to get one day:



Roberto Rossellini's

The Flowers Of St. Francis - ContactMusic.com (Review 1)

The Flowers of St. Francis - Slant Magazine (Review 2)

The second reviewer saw more of what I saw in the film, though what I saw was a product having a familiarity with St. Francis, and a faith that includes him and his charism, and having read the book The Little Flowers of St. Francis of Assisi.

The first reviewer alerts us to his lack of familiarity with the book due to his comments on the film being in little vignettes - just as the book is. Rossellini has taken the book's format and transfered it to the screen. Unlike some reviewers, I do consider the film a classic, and I'm obviously not alone in this as Criterion has chosen it as a film to produce with their outstanding DVD production values, as much as the original prints allow and with what restoration that is possible. It's one that is worth having in order to enjoy over again - even if you're not a Franciscan!

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Speaking of the book, The Little Flowers of St. Francis of Assisi, here's a review quote from Amazon.ca:

"St. Francis of Assisi--the saint who preached to birds and wolves, the saint whose vow of poverty changed Christian ethics forever, the saint who repented of his fleshly sins by loving the material world--was also a pretty great writer. His Little Flowers, a series of 53 short chapters ranging in form from wild stories to serene meditations, is perfect bedtime or devotional reading. Before you know it, you'll be reading this one aloud to your cat. And Francis will be very pleased to hear it. --Michael Joseph Gross "

I think our cats would like it. I'll have to try it with them...

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