Rebel Hearts is Director Pedro Kos’s fascinating documentary about an activist group of feminist nuns who fought for change within the Catholic Church in California during the 1960s.
The 1950s and early 1960s were still a very patriarchal society in America with women expected to miss higher education, marry young, bear children, and stay at home as good housewives. Ironically, one way to escape the system was to become a nun and join a religious order where you could receive a good higher education and avoid family life. Many women did this and one such religious order was The Sisters of The Immaculate Heart of Mary based in Hollywood, LA.
1963-68 was a great period of social upheaval across the western world with existing societal thinking on politics, gender, war, and sexuality challenged on many fronts. This highly educated group of about 400 nuns in LA looked at their own lives and realized there were no real reasons for them to have to follow the centuries-old lifestyle rules imposed on them by the male Catholic cardinals and bishops. Rules such as having to wear very stiff and impractical habits, vows of silence and having to be home by 6pm every night, were essentially there to control the women, instilling subservient obedience. They realised that these rules were very similar to those imposed on patients living in mental hospitals. The nuns were also forced to work as unpaid teachers in local schools, teaching classes of up to 80 pupils without proper training or resources. Many of the nuns were stressed and exhausted by their lifestyles. The nuns however saw how effective protest was changing society around them and started their own fight with the Catholic Church to improve their lives.
The Catholic Church in California in the 1960’s was run by Cardinal Mcintyre, a traditionalist, tyrannical, ex-Wall St manager who ruled with an iron rod. He pushed back hard against any changes sought by the nuns, and the ensuing conflict within the church took years to resolve. The highly educated nuns used every tool available to them to fight their battle – protests, striking in the schools, art, media interviews etc. One of the nuns, Sister Corita Kent, became a very successful religious pop artist and her work, much to McIntyre’s chagrin, really raised awareness of the nun’s fight with the church.
Kos’ colorful, energetic documentary, which premiered at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, uses a great combination of historic and current interviews with the very charismatic nuns. He also combines fascinating archival TV footage, stills, clever graphics, and Sister Corita Kent-inspired animation to tell his story. A punchy soundtrack by Ariel Marx includes tracks by Nina Simone, Patti Smith, and First Aid Kit. The engaging spirit of the nuns really draws you into their activist journey which extended beyond their internal battle with the church. The nuns joined the Martin Luther King marches at Selma, anti-Vietnam war protests, and other causes of the day, often getting arrested. Their motto, ‘Protest with Joy’, inspired many. We follow the nuns right through to the present day where they are still involved in human rights causes. It’s lovely to hear the (now largely retired) nuns recount their tales of 1960s activism, often with a giggle and a twinkle in their eye.
The causes fought in the film are still relevant today and this film is also a great reminder that if religion is to have a place in modern society then it needs to be to help society rather than to control it.
Rebel Hearts can be viewed on Amazon.com and Discovery +
Review: Ris Fatah Queerguru Contributing Editor Ris Fatah is a successful fashion/luxury business consultant (when he can be bothered) who divides and wastes his time between London and Ibiza. He is a lover of all things queer, feminist, and human rights in general. @ris.fatah
