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Don't Deliver Us from Evil

Name: Don't Deliver Us from Evil
Director: Joël Séria
Released: 1971
Duration: 102 min

Representation Score

5.9/10

Fair

1971

Unrated

Director

Joël Séria

Runtime

102 minutes

Average Rating

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New Showbiz Analysis

Joël Séria’s film is a provocative social satire that focuses on the subversion of traditional hierarchies. It excels at deconstructing religious and gendered power dynamics, using the protagonists' rebellion to challenge the moralism of the era. The film's strength lies in its intentionality, replacing rigid institutional authority with a nuanced understanding of human ability to act. However, the narrative remains limited by its homogeneous cast, reflecting a specific, localized French provincial setting. Ultimately, the work is a study in moral relativism. It succeeds in framing traditional authority as an obstacle to individual liberation, though it lacks significant racial or ethnic breadth.

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Category Breakdown

Does Don't Deliver Us from Evil have LGBTQ+ representation?

Good

The film challenges traditional social structures by focusing on sexual exploration that goes beyond conventional norms. It uses behaviors that deviate from typical societal expectations to disrupt the social order in a provincial setting.

How does Don't Deliver Us from Evil portray gender?

Good

Anne and Lore play significant roles in driving the story by actively challenging religious and social mandates. Their actions highlight female desire and intellect as powerful forces against patriarchal and ecclesiastical control.

How racially and ethnically diverse is Don't Deliver Us from Evil?

Limited

The film is set in a localized French provincial context with a relatively homogeneous cast. It does not intentionally integrate diverse ethnic or racial identities.

How does Don't Deliver Us from Evil represent religion and culture?

Excellent

The narrative portrays the Catholic Church and provincial customs as hypocritical structures meant to be mocked. It emphasizes secular, personal experiences over religious or communal stability.

Does Don't Deliver Us from Evil include disability representation?

Minimal

There are no specific instances of visible or invisible disabilities featured in the film.

Present on Screen

Strong challenge to gendered power dynamics through high women's ability to drive the story.
Effective criticism of religious and institutional authority.
Sophisticated use of sexual exploration to challenge social norms.

Limited or Absent

Lack of racial and ethnic diversity within the cast.
Limited representation of different physical or cognitive abilities.

Official Synopsis

Anne and Lore, neighbors and best friends, barely into their teens, board at a convent school where they have taken a vow to sin and to serve Satan. Anne keeps a secret diary, they read a salacious novel, they get a classmate in trouble, they spy on the nuns, they set aside their communion wafers; they make a pact of devotion.

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