Behind The Covent Walls — Behind The Covent Walls( Blu Ray)
From the late 70’s Behind The Covent Walls is a lightly arty-tinged take on the Nunsploitation genre- with effective enough use of imagery, impressive/ at times hand-held cinematography, and a fair bit of sleaze. It’s an Italian production helmed by Polish painter and lithographer turned director Walerian Borowczyk- who was known for his often- provocative & perversely tinged art films such as Blanche (1971), Immoral Tales (1973), The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Miss Osbourne(1981). Here from Arrow Video is a Blu-Ray release of the film- taking in a new 2k scan, a new commentary track, and a few other extras.
Behind The Covent Walls ( aka Interno di un convento, Sex Life in a Convent, Within a Cloister) is from the year 1978. It was the 8th feature film by Borowczyk, and was clearly an attempt to try and make a more arty/ profound take on Nunsploitation, and while it has its moments of impactful imagery & worthy comment of religious commitment/ faith- it does often drop into straight out sleaze, which largely stays in the softcore side of things.
The film is set in an Italian village Covent- with the film opening with the local bearded and muscular butcher having a pair of dark glasses placed on his eyes as he enters the back door of the building with a large shoulder of meat. He clearly flirts with the nuns in the kitchen- flexes his muscles, hacks up the meat, and causes bread to burn.
As things unfold we see the place's stern mother superior is constantly trying to swat temptation & erotic interactions. These move from a church organ & vigorous violin session unfed by nuns fumbling in a confession booth, legs up in air passions, and generally building frenzy. Onto love-making in the library, nun-on-nun passion, and masturbation with a Christ-face illustrated stick.
The air of bubbling passion is increased when Rodrigo(Howard Ross ) a young artist & nephew of Covent’s middle age tubby priest turns up. The print here, I believe in it’s totally uncut for runs at the one hour and thirty-four-minute mark- and it’s a just ok example of Nunsploitation. There are clear stabs at trying to make things more impactful & at points dramatically interesting- with mother superior being involved in many of these. The thing is it just keeps dropping into cliched Nunsploitation tropes- though sadly the lack of wacky OTT moments, campiness, and bizarreness that makes the better examples of the genre shine/ stand out from the crowd.
Moving onto this new Blu-ray, we have a new 2k scan of the picture- this is wonderfully well-defined, full of both clarity & depth. On the extras side we get a few things- first up is a commentary track from film critic Justine Smith. She begins by telling us that this is one of her favourite films- discussing how it elevates the Nunsploitation genre. She talks about how it shows the true tension of being a religious devotee. She chats about the intensity of the female acting, the use of lush soft focus & how the colour red is utilized throughout the picture. She discusses the use of handheld cameras- which was both unusual for the genre & the director's work. She points out touches of humour & silliness in the film. Talks about the way it shows spirituality as a restricting form, and the many occasions though out the film of people watching. Later on, she discusses how COVID-19 ties into the moments of isolation in the film. Talks about the enemy here is not Satan or the devil, but the church itself. How someone who is saintly upsets the status quo and more. She is certainly very passionate about the film, and the track certainly improved my appreciation of the film- so well worth a play, though it is a little sporadic.
Next, we have Anarchic Nuns and the Artistry of Desire (18.37) which finds film scholar Virginie Sélavy discussing the film. We find out it was filmed near the pope's summer residence. She talks about how the film is a unique take on the Nunsploitation genre- its prevalent use of anarchy, and how it shows the nuns often been sexually excited by religious art. It’s a good overview/ appreciation of the film- also worth a play.
On the archive side of things we have Brief Von Paris( aka Letter From Paris)- this is a forty-minute arty doc/ short from 1975. It basically roams around the city- showing buildings, people and animals. The whole thing has a very drifting/ shapeless feel- it’s ok for the first ten or so minutes, but after this, I’m afraid it did become somewhat of a chore. And a theatrical trailer.
The finished release comes with a reversible sleeve. And an Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing by film scholar Kat Ellinger and original press notes.
If you are looking for a more arty/ thought-provoking take on Nunsploitation- then Behind The Covent Walls may appeal. We certainly get another classy presentation of the film from Arrow- with the 2k scan, and worthy extras. I wanted to give this a two-and-a-half mark, but as we only mark in full marks- I’ve gone for a two.