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Black Narcissus (The Criterion Collection) (1947)

Deborah Kerr , David Farrar , Emeric Pressburger , Michael Powell  |  Unrated |  DVD
4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (116 customer reviews)

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Frequently Bought Together

Black Narcissus (The Criterion Collection) + The Red Shoes (The Criterion Collection) + The Films of Michael Powell: A Matter of Life and Death (Stairway to Heaven) / Age of Consent
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Product Details

  • Actors: Deborah Kerr, David Farrar, Flora Robson, Jean Simmons, Sabu
  • Directors: Emeric Pressburger, Michael Powell
  • Format: Color, NTSC, Widescreen
  • Language: English
  • Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  • Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
  • Number of discs: 1
  • Rated: Unrated
  • Studio: Criterion Collection
  • DVD Release Date: July 20, 2010
  • Run Time: 100 minutes
  • Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (116 customer reviews)
  • ASIN: B003ICZW7I
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #64,715 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
  • Learn more about "Black Narcissus (The Criterion Collection)" on IMDb

Special Features

  • New, restored high-definition digital transfer
  • Video introduction by French filmmaker Bertrand Tavernier
  • Audio commentary featuring the late director Michael Powell and filmmaker Martin Scorsese
  • The Audacious Adventurer, a 2006 video piece in which Tavernier discusses Black Narcissus and Powell
  • Profile of “Black Narcissus” (2000), a twenty-five-minute documentary
  • Painting with Light, a twenty-seven-minute documentary about Jack Cardiff’s Oscar-winning cinematography on Black Narcissus
  • Original theatrical trailer
  • PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by film critic Kent Jones

  • Editorial Reviews

    Amazon.com

    Appropriately enough for a picture named for a flower, Black Narcissus exists in a color-drenched, hothouse atmosphere. The setting is a nunnery in the Himalayas, where sister Deborah Kerr has her hands full with an envious nun (the remarkable Kathleen Byron) and a sardonic Englishman (David Farrar). Director Michael Powell and screenwriter Emeric Pressburger, the team responsible for the mid-forties masterpieces A Stairway to Heaven and The Red Shoes, decided to shoot Black Narcissus entirely in the studio, so they could create their own controlled, slightly unreal world. The choice paid off, as both art director Alfred Junge and cinematographer Jack Cardiff won Oscars for their blazing Technicolor work. The climactic sequence--a murder attempt on the cliffs of the cloister--bears special attention, as Powell "set" the sequence to a preexisting musical track, staging it as though it were a piece of visual choreography. Adding a bit of behind-the-scenes tension to the production was the fact that Kerr was the director's ex-mistress, and Byron his current one. "It was a situation not uncommon in show business, I was told," he later wrote, "but it was new to me." --Robert Horton

    Product Description

    This explosive work about the conflict between the spirit and the flesh is the epitome of the sensuous style of filmmakers Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger (I Know Where I’m Going!, The Red Shoes). A group of nuns—played by some of Britain’s best actresses, including Deborah Kerr (From Here to Eternity, An Affair to Remember), Flora Robson (The Rise of Catherine the Great, Wuthering Heights), and Jean Simmons (Great Expectations, Hamlet)—struggles to establish a convent in the snowcapped Himalayas; isolation, extreme weather, altitude, and culture clashes all conspire to drive the well-intentioned missionaries mad. A darkly grand film that won Oscars for its set design and for its cinematography by Jack Cardiff (The Red Shoes, The African Queen), Black Narcissus is one of the greatest achievements by two of cinema’s true visionaries.

    Customer Reviews

    Most Helpful Customer Reviews
    64 of 67 people found the following review helpful
    5.0 out of 5 stars "You Must All Get Away Before Something Happens" October 15, 2005
    Format:VHS Tape
    This stunning and atmospheric film from Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, who were the team behind Archer Productions, is an engrossing and moody masterpiece one might term, religious noir. It was shot in lush colors by Jack Cardiff with a score by Brian Easdale performed by the London Symphony Orchestra. It is the story and the atmosphere created by Powell and Pressburger that gives this adaptation of a novel by Rumer Gooden its noirish feel, however, and it would easily be just as good in black and white.

    Deborah Kerr is Sister Clodagh, fullfilling her duties at the Servants of Mary in Calcutta. She is assigned to helm St. Faith, high in the Himalayas, and is given the charge of Mother Superior in order to do so. She will be the youngest ever to hold such a position, and it is one her Mother Superior believes she is not ready for. Once she reaches the lonely place over nine thousand feet from the earth, with her small group of Sisters, she will discover that while they may be in closer proximity to the heavens, they will be much further from God.

    The isolation, the drums, and the wind, will have an effect on each of the Sisters, including Sister Clodagh. She is strict and demanding, but becomes concious of the danger here when she herself begins to drift and dream of her past in Ireland before joining the Servants of Mary. Kerr has a graceful Irish beauty that is almost stunning in these flashback scenes. She was young and happy, and in love. She was from a small area and did not want to be shamed when the one she had given her love to decided to move on without her. Her decision was born out of her desire to avoid humiliation.

    An older Sister will also find herself recalling a past she had thought forgotten, and no amount of hard work can keep her mind from it. It is the outside element of Mr. Dean (David Farrar) that will set in motion the biggest change, however, as the already unstable Sister Ruth (Kathleen Byron), young and quite beautiful, is driven by repressed passion and jealousy to utter madness. She becomes jealous of Sister Clodagh, whom she believes wants the attention of Mr. Dean. Sister Clodagh, who originally found Mr. Dean to be objectionable when sober, and an abomination when drunk, begins to finally soften, and even goes so far as to confide in him her fears about what is happening to all of them.

    Farrar is excellent as the somewhat irreverent womanizer who knows how to push Sister Clodagh's buttons. There is one scene where he is drunk and sings of how he cannot be a nun that infuriates Sister Clodagh and worries her at the same time. Sabu is also excellent as the young General who sends the children there to learn and is just as eager to do so himself. Jean Simmons shines as the exotic and sensual Kanchi. She is brought there by Mr. Dean for the Sisters to "tame" but her wild and earthy spirit will seduce the General and he will run off with her for a time. Simmons' dance sequence may be famous, but it is the scene between Kanchi and the General, where he refuses to beat her for stealing a necklace, which holds the most tension, and is charged with passion.

    Kathleen Byron's performane as the unbalanced Sister Ruth is unforgettable. The elements she is exposed to, from the remote isolation of St. Faith, to the charming scoundrel Mr. Dean, will turn her already precarious mental state into true insanity. She will expand the tiny bit of attention shown her by Mr. Dean into a desire so intense, her fragile grip on reality will slip away. She orders a deep burgandy colored dress and makes the decision to leave the other Sisters. Once spurned she will return, with a fever of madness behind her eyes the viewer can actually see. Byron's scene in the doorway on the cloister, high on the mountains, as Sister Clodagh rings the bell Ruth had been so fond of, is unsettling.

    Sister Clodagh will come to terms with the fact that we are all human, even herself, and will begin to learn humility. She will take a lesser post elsewhere and bid farewell to Mr. Dean, asking only one favor of him as she leaves. It is a request filled with sadness, as it is obvious to her now that they should not have come here, despite the fact it has made her grow personally, and given her a better understanding of human nature, and human weakness.

    This is a very unusual film with an exciting and memorable conclusion. It will intoxicate the viewer with its mood, like the scent of the flower after which this film was named. A must see film.
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    68 of 72 people found the following review helpful
    5.0 out of 5 stars The Criterion version is COMPLETE September 21, 2005
    Format:DVD
    I am not sure why the poster believes the film is missing a scene. I have the Criterion edition, and I have just watched the scene. It starts about 43 minutes into the film, and it involves the beggar girl looking at wall art, dancing, and trying to seduce the young General. In the commentary, Michael Powell says, in reference to the girl's dance: "When Larry Olivier saw this... he couldn't believe it. His Ophelia [from 'Hamlet' in 1948] changed into this..." I've posted snapshots from the film of this scene in the Criterion version.

    There is one minor error in the Criterion and previous versions of the film that have been released. When Sister Ruth sees red and passes out, the screen goes to blue instead of black. This is most likely the result of some electronic sampler that thought "black" meant "no signal", and as VCRs will do, switched the screen to blue.

    This film is excellent and Jack Cardiff was a genius. It rightly won the Oscars for Best Cinematography and Best Art Direction-Set Decoration in 1947.
    Was this review helpful to you?
    46 of 50 people found the following review helpful
    5.0 out of 5 stars One of my favourites of all time! October 17, 2000
    Format:DVD
    One of the best British films ever made is this pioneering effort by independent filmmakers Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. Shot entirely in Scotland with painted matte backgrounds to recreate the Himalayas (and astonishingly well at that), the film is superbly textured and mature, thematically ahead of any movie made in its period. Deborah Kerr heads a superb group of performers as the Mother Superior of a group of nuns who move to a convent in a remote mountain village in India, only to find that their confidence and strength in their religion is no match for the mystic powers of the East. Sexual frustration over local white man David Farrar, weakening faith, harsh climate and the growing fondness for their homeland soon get to the women and they are forced to leave or die. Interestingly enough, Kerr's flashback scenes of her Scottish youth and teenage sweetheart were cut by American censors upon first release, even though they were completely without sexual content, explicit or implicit; it seems it was too taboo to show a nun who has taken her vows to escape a failed love affair (the scenes have since been restored and are now available on home video). Funny, the nun who throws herself off a mountain because she goes bug-eyed every time she sees Farrar in his shorts didn't even make the Prude Alert blink.
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    Most Recent Customer Reviews
    5.0 out of 5 stars better than the movie
    This book is psychologically very gripping. The cover throws one off balance to look at it. And is more suspenseful than the old movie.
    Published 15 days ago by Amy G. Blaiir
    5.0 out of 5 stars Buy it now!!
    First of all I love Deborah Kerr and this movie. The Criterion Collection has truly out done themselves with all the wonderful Special Features. Don't wait. Get it now.
    Published 23 days ago by BILLY
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great Movie
    One of my Mothers favorite movies saw it here on Amazon and had to get it glad I did I made her day! thanks Amazon
    Published 1 month ago by Tori Neely'Sanchez
    5.0 out of 5 stars classic film
    spellbinding and beautiful setting make for an exceptional drama in a Tibetan monastery. Deborah Kerr is perfect and David Farrar is a magnificient specimen of male sexy.
    Published 1 month ago by MOVIE BUFF
    1.0 out of 5 stars Is this Blue Ray or something? It down't play outside the country and...
    I have a little movie group in Antigua Guatemala. (There is no movie theatre here) We get together for the best of the best I buy in the states (where you can get DVD's for 5Q... Read more
    Published 2 months ago by Judith E. Cohen
    4.0 out of 5 stars CONFLICTS
    THE STORY SEEMED REALLY TWISTING TO ME, BUT THE CINEMATOGRAPHY LOOKED WONDERFUL, AND DEBORAH WAS SO BEAUTIFUL...LIKE A ROSE ON A PLAIN. Read more
    Published 3 months ago by HAN XIAO
    5.0 out of 5 stars Black Narcissus
    This is an excellent movie. It has a first rate cast of actors..including the marvelous Sabu. It deals with 5 nuns and the conflicts they encounter with the new convent they try... Read more
    Published 3 months ago by Matti Kniva Spencer
    5.0 out of 5 stars One Of A Kind
    I first saw this unusual film as a teenager and never forgot it. The atmosphere, Oscar-winning cinematography and colors are unforgettable... Read more
    Published 3 months ago by J. Kapsalis
    5.0 out of 5 stars Bizarre and Beautiful Existential Parable
    You must own this in Bluray to fully appreciate the award-winning color cinematography and art direction, which were achieved in England, not the Himalayas. Read more
    Published 4 months ago by James M. Ward
    4.0 out of 5 stars Great Michael Powell movie
    This classic Deborah Kerr film looks absolutely gorgeous on Blu-ray. The colors (so important in a Michel Powell film) are rich and glorious. Read more
    Published 4 months ago by Modrnknght
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    The Version is CUT
    If what you say is true, then next time you may want to consider not taking NINE YEARS to clarify what you mean about the movie "missing" a specific scene.
    Aug 12, 2010 by brian0918 |  See all 2 posts
    This version is COMPLETE
    My God!! Don't you know your cinema history at all? Sit in a dark room and repeat over and over to yourself. There were no modern widescreen movies before 1953, there were no modern widescreen movies before 1953 ... Also, check out this website:
    http://www.widescreenmuseum.com/index.htm
    Apr 27, 2008 by Terry Carroll |  See all 6 posts
    Black Narcissus. Be the first to reply
    Scotland ? What ? Be the first to reply
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