Customer Reviews

I, the Worst of All [VHS]

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Don't be fooled by the cheap publicity on the cover: this is not a movie about lesbian nuns, but the true story of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, one of Spanish literature's greatest poets of all time, and perhaps the first feminist of the Western Hemisphere, circa 1685.

Assumpta Serna shines as the fierce, beautiful (the resemblance is striking) and brilliant Sor Juana, the Mexican wondergirl who took the vows hoping to get an education, astonished her friends, foes and times, and was later ordered to silence by the Church for the sole sin of being an intelligent woman.

Based upon the book by Nobel laureate Octavio Paz, I, THE WORST OF ALL is a precious little Argentine film, with the look of a Vermeer and the passionate heart of its heroine. You will certainly enjoy it more if fluent in Spanish (since Sor Juana's poetry is like written Mozart), but if not, see it anyway. I'm sure you'll thank me.

P.S. You can get the works of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz here on Amazon books. You don't know what you've been missing!

One of my best friends saw that I was reading a novel about Sor Juana, SOR JUANA'S SECOND DREAM, by Alicia Gaspar de Alba, and recommended this film to me -- with the admonishment to ignore the tawdry blurb on the cover: "Lesbian passions seething behind convent walls", indeed! How ridiculous -- it would be like describing FORREST GUMP as "partying with coeds in a dorm room after hours". It's a cheap attempt to draw the wrong conclusions about this moving story. Don't let it put you off.

This film about the amazing woman who has been called Mexico's 'Tenth muse' -- a reference to the title Plato bestowed on Sappho -- is a beautiful piece of film-making. Even considering the scenes that were meant to be outdoors, that were obviously shot on a sound stage, this is a lovely experience. The direction is superb, the acting amazingly sensitive -- I was enthralled, and I usually don't enjoy films with subtitles.

Sor Juana was an amazing woman -- intellectual, creative, always pushing her own boundaries, and brave. For a woman in her era (seventeenth century Mexico) to profess that women had just as much right to an education, to learning, as men, set her against some powerful forces -- mainly the hierarchy of the Catholic Church. Her courage and determination in the face of such opposition is inspiring -- it's easy to see why she's seen as a hero by so many.

The video states that the film is about hot lesbian love inside the convent walls. Wrong! There are a few implied moments but nothing graphic.
This film gives the viewer an accurate depiction of the life of one of the best authors of any genre of literature. I first saw this film in a Latin American literature university classroom. It is so good that I would like to show it in my high school classroom.
Sor Juana was quite adept at placing a mirror in front of the faces of the male hierarchy and they didn't like it. She paid for it and we gained from her pain.
There is great historical value in this biographical film as well. It gives the viewer an idea of what life was like during the Spanish Inquisition in "New Spain" or Mexico.
I know the vendors believe that sex will sell this film. But, they are billing it all wrong. It is an intellectual foreign film. Why cheapen it by giving potential buyers a deceptive description of the content?

The look of this film, with it's sumptuous use of color contrasts, is worth 5 stars. With rich shades of brown, it has the palette of a Rembrandt painting, and the beautiful soundtrack by Luis Maria Serra is a compliment to it.

The subject matter is captivating, not only for showing us some of the genius of Sor Juana Inés de la Cuz, but also for a view of the life in 17th century Mexico. Assumpta Serra is exquisite as Sor Juana, known as the "10th Muse" and one of the great poets of the Spanish golden era.

For anyone interested in the lives of women who have made their mark on this world, this is a must. I love the scene where she says : "Every theology is questionable, since it stems from reason and not from faith".

I must comment on the way this film has been packaged. It is asinine. Ignore it.

Maria Luisa Bemberg is another woman who is making a big mark on the world with her magnificent films. I also recommend her wonderful "Camila".

The "Tenth Muse" has finally been portrayed accurately. I've studyed the writings of Sor Juana for nearly a decade and continue to be impressed by her artistry. This film captures much of what I appreciate about her and her writing. It shows Sor Juana as a strong woman who is truly a master of her art and a master of herself. That may seem an odd thing to say, but being a master of oneself in the cloister of the 17th century convent is a feat worthy of mention.

For years there has been speculation that Sor Juana was, at the least, a sapphic poet, and probably a lesbian. Lets set the record straight. There is no direct evidence that Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz was a lesbian. Did she write love poems to the Marquesa de Mancera? Yes. Does that make her a lesbian? No. She was simply writing poems to, and for, a friend in a commonly accepted style. Other contemporary male poets also wrote love poems to the Marquesa. Does that mean they were in love with her. Not at all. It was a common practice and was done as a sign of devotion, of friendship, and often as an attempt to earn a pension from the noble family. Having now said that, is it possible that she was a lesbian? Of course it's possible. Does it matter? No! Sor Juana is one of the finest scholars and poets of the Americas. That's what's important.

I have to add to the previous comments. This is an excellent film that describes a woman's struggle to live a full human life in a time when women are not supposed to think, discover or invent anything. The movie has nothing to do with lesbianism but with intellectual isolation in a male society. There is no sex but a kiss. I think it is quite narrow minded to expect all the cultures of the world to follow puritanism.

In the other hand, this is not the first foreign movie that gets misleading advertising. If you get Babbete's Feast, you should skip the writing in the back as well. It is stupid.

Oh, and yes, this is not a spanish film but argentinian, by one of the best argentinian directors today. An earlier excellent movie she directed is called "Camila". Also controversial, and not sex oriented as some people would always think.

btw, what anglo americans call "spanish" language is really castillian. One of the maybe four different languages spoken in Spain is castillian, and castillian is what most countries speak in Latin America. But I think this bit of ignorance has taken over so far in pop culture that it would be hard to correct now.

Note: Spanish with English subtitles.

The obscure '95 film `I, The Worst of All' is visual poetry of the highest order. Based on the life of poet, scholar, feminist and Catholic nun Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz, director Maria Luisa Bemberg does a magnificent job at capturing contemporary life and attitudes inside and outside the convent in 17th century Mexico.

The majority of the storyline unfolds inside the cold, minimalist confines of the convent community. The stark visuals coupled with a shadowy, dark around the edges cinematic style creates an otherworldly atmosphere giving the production the feel of a stage play rather than a film.

The surreal nature of 'I, The Worst of All' can be fully appreciated in one particularly evocative and mesmerizing scene showing Sister Juana on her way to visit her dying Mother. As she rides methodically across the desert against the backdrop of a crimson sunset one feels as though they're watching the final brushstroke being applied to a Goya painting.

Assumpta Serna is magnificent in the role of Sister Juana; beautiful, beguiling, clever and highly intelligent, qualities that traditionally coincide with traits possessed by the serpent in the Garden of Eden. She is the perfect foil for the masculine hierarchy trying to silence the pen and tongue of the defiant and spirited nun.

Buy this one! A flawless production and a signature performance by Assumpta Serna make 'I, The Worst of All' a cinematic jewel that belongs in every serious DVD collection.

P.S.: Don't let the comment about lesbianism on the DVD case dissuade you from viewing this film, it simply isn't there. There is an intense and deeply profound relationship between Juana and her aristocratic patroness but whatever those feelings portend they are left unspoken and un-acted upon.

I first learned about Sor Juana while studying Spanish literature in Guadalajara, Mexico, and I fell in love with her poems. Recently, I became aware that there is a video about her life and I ordered it. I received it last week and since then I have watched it four times. I cannot add anything that hasn't already been said about how great the video is. For the ones that object about how it's packaged, I say, you'll quickly forget about it the moment the movie starts. Every frame is precious.

This movie is not at all what it is advertised to be. . .there is no lesbian content, and the picture on the back of the nun in question and another woman is that of her and her mother on her mothers deathbead. This is a great movie, though. It is not for someone with an underdeveloped mind, and it is very emotional. It tells of a time before the term "womens rights" was even considered. . .I cannot do it justice, but I do believe that this is a good movie. I was pleasently surprised.

If ever there was a movie to see--this is definitely it. If you can get over your initial disgust at the pornographic misrepresentation, which is an insult to the woman whose life inspired this film, you will blissfuly experience the brilliance that is the beauty of Sor Juana. This movie is without doubt the most moving and accurate portrayal I have ever seen in biographical films to date. The end was so moving (we--the Spanish class) were literally sobbing. "Su sangre fue nuestros sangre". As delicate as a Raphaelite painting and as bold as a Rodan sculpture, this depiction will leave you breathless at the fiery soul who was "The Tenth Muse of Mexico".