Going back home is never easy, but it’s particularly difficult if you’ve become a completely different person since you’ve left. That’s the spark that lights Zach Clark‘s buzzworthy indie “Little Sister.” And today we have an exclusive peek at the unique and distinctive comedy.
Set in the fall of 2008, and starring Addison Timlin, Ally Sheedy, Peter Hedges, and Keith Poulson, the story follows Colleen, a young nun who returns to her hometown to see her family, when her brother returns from the Iraq war. While there, Colleen is re-introduced to her goth past and faces familial tension, all with help from Halloween, pot cupcakes and GWAR. And in the clip below, Colleen takes a tour through a greenhouse, that ends with a little lesson about chickens.
“Little Sister” is now playing across the country in limited release, and is also available on digital platforms. After watching the clip, check out Zack Clark’s list of five favorite nun movies, ranging from a cult classic by Ken Russell to a movie featuring the unlikely pairing of Mary Tyler Moore and Elvis Presley.
Zach Clark’s 5 Favorite Nun Movies
“Black Narcissus” — The most beautiful movie ever made, and the zenith of Powell and Pressburger’s combined powers. There are close ups in this movie that are works of art in their own right. Pent up eroticism and lurid blue lighting drip from every corner. Few movies make both piety and perversion look so simultaneously appealing.
“The Devils” — A terrifying masterpiece that has never been made available in a complete version, Ken Russell’s “The Devils” lays bare the destructive power of organized religion and mass hysteria in a way that will always be relevant. So much so that it’s essentially banned in the United States, it’s last official release was back in the VHS days. Oliver Reed and Vanessa Redgrave’s performance are visceral, alarming, and transcendent.
“Viridiana” — No one fetishizes Catholic guilt like Luis Bunuel, and his story of an innocent novice confronted with the vulgarity and blasphemy of the very people she’s trying help remains an hilarious and honest look at how our ideals can crumble in the face of truth. The sacred and the profane are not mutually exclusive.
“Dark Habits” — A lost gem from Pedro Almodovar’s bad old days, “Dark Habits” follows the misadventures of a convent made up of recovering addicts, former prostitutes, and assorted degenerates of all types. Instead of taking the names of saints, these nuns have names like “Sister Rat” and “Sister Shit” and if you’re not sold already, then may God have mercy on your soul.
“Change Of Habit” — Mary Tyler Moore plays a modern, forward thinking nun whose virtue is tempted by the King himself, Elvis Presley. This was the last time Elvis portrayed a fictional character in a feature film, and it’s a pretty appropriate swan song to his acting career with plenty of low key vibes and down home charm to spare. Also, his character is named “Dr. John Carpenter.”