Saint Maud (2019)
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A devout nurse becomes dangerously obsessed with saving the soul of her terminally ill patient.
The story
Katie, a nurse, becomes a devout Roman Catholic and takes a job as a private palliative care nurse in an English seaside town. She is assigned to care for Amanda, a terminally ill former dancer from the US who fears death. Maud becomes convinced that God has tasked her with saving Amanda's atheist soul. However, Maud's religious fervor leads to conflict with Amanda's companion, Carol, whom Maud views as a distraction from salvation. After being mocked and dismissed from her job, Maud's obsession deepens as she seeks signs from God in her isolation.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Katie, a nurse, becomes a devout Roman Catholic named Maud and works as a palliative care nurse in an English seaside town. She is assigned to care for Amanda, a terminally ill former dancer who fears death. Maud believes God wants her to save Amanda's soul, leading her to pray with Amanda and experience what she perceives as God's presence. Maud becomes hostile toward Amanda's companion, Carol, accusing her of being a distraction from salvation. After a confrontation at a party where she is mocked and fired, Maud experiences a traumatic encounter with a man that leaves her dissociative. Seeking signs from God, she begins practicing mortification of the flesh. One night, Maud enters Amanda's home and finds her weakened. Amanda admits she feigned the religious experience and believes God is not real. In a frenzy, Maud stabs and kills Amanda. The next morning, Maud goes to a beach and self-immolates with acetone peroxide. As she dies, she utters 'Glory to God' in Welsh; onlookers see her with angel wings, though a split-second cut reveals her screaming in agony.
- First release year
- 2019
- Runtime (minutes)
- 84
- Production countries
- United Kingdom
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Rose Glass
- Writers
- Rose Glass · writer
- Cast and characters
- Morfydd Clark · Maud; Jennifer Ehle · Amanda; Lily Frazer; Lily Knight; Marcus Hutton; Turlough Convery; Rosie Sansom
- Genres
- psychological horror; psychological thriller; religious horror; body horror
- Themes
- loneliness; religious obsession; redemption; mortification of the flesh
- Tone and mood
- unsettling; striking; affecting; mordantly funny
- Setting
- An English seaside town in the present day.
- Premise and plot tags
- psychological horror; religious horror; LGBTQ-related; body horror
- Reception
- The film received critical acclaim, with praise for the direction, screenplay, performances, and cinematography. It was described as a 'dazzling directorial debut' and a 'superb first feature film'.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 83 · scale: 100 · review count: 35
- Awards and nominations
- Outstanding British Film · Nomination · 2020 · Nominated; Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer · Nomination · 2020 · Nominated
- Production trivia
- The film was developed by Escape Plan Productions with funding from Film4 Productions and the British Film Institute.; Principal photography began in November 2018 and lasted for five weeks in North London and Scarborough.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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