Benedetta

"Director Paul Verhoeven’s lesbian nun drama pushes the envelope on sexuality"

VARIETY
  • Archive - Festival 37
  • Director: Paul Verhoeven
  • France 2021
  • 131 minutes
  • French
  • Subtitles in Hebrew, English

In the late 15th century, with plague ravaging the land, Benedetta Carlini joins the convent in Pescia, Tuscany, as a novice. Capable from an early age of performing miracles, Benedetta’s impact on life in the community is immediate and momentous as she suffers from disturbing religious and erotic visions.

Benedetta, a delirious, erotic, and violent melodrama, has already caused a stir when screened in the program of the Cannes Festival this year. Celebrated genre auteur Paul Verhoeven shocks us with his wildly entertaining tale of religious hypocrisy and sexuality in religious service.

Filmography: Elle (2016), Black Book (2006), Starship Troopers (1997), Showgirls (1995), Basic Instinct (1992), Total Recall (1990), RoboCop (1987).


  • Director Paul Verhoeven
  • Production Saïd Ben Saïd, Michel Merkt, Jérôme Seydoux
  • Script David Birke, Paul Verhoeven, based on the book by Judith C. Brown
  • Cinematography Jeanne Lapoirie
  • Editing Job Ter Burg
  • Music Anne Dudley
  • Festivals Cannes, New York
  • Actors Virginie Efira, Charlotte Rampling, Daphné Patakia, Lambert Wilson, Olivier Rabourdin
  • Source The Festival Agency, Paris