‘The Innocents’ pauses with moments of tenderness

For those who crave cinema that is not funded by a comic-book company or packed with animated anthropomorphic critters, "The Innocents" opens Friday, Aug. 12, at the Cinema Art Theater near the Lewes Wawa and is obviously constructed for a decidedly different audience.

Based on true events, the film focuses on a convent of nuns who were sexually assaulted by Russian soldiers and are now in various stages of pregnancy. The nearby French Red Cross is tending to the wounded under the eyes of practicing nurse Mathilde (played by Lou de Laage) and Dr. Samuel (played by Vincent Macaigne).

Mathilde is approached by Irena (played by Joanna Kulig), a concerned nun who's desperate to find assistance for her fellow sisters. The reluctant Mathilde is soon overcome with the situation and finds herself acting as a surrogate midwife to the nuns while attempting to hold down her duties at the hospital and struggle to find sanity during such global unrest.

Director Anne Fontaine takes her time with the proceedings, and, as bleak as they may seem considering all the circumstances, there is still an element of hope that seems to beat ever-so-subtly under its surface. Religious faith comes under question throughout, but the film does not condemn characters who cling to it or characters who never subscribed to it. It's a delicate balance, but one that screenwriters Pascal Bonitzer, Sabrina B. Karine, and Alice Vial approach on a person-by-person basis.

The film does not pass judgment, but rather we see the internal conflict that resonates within each character after each heavy decision is made based on her own beliefs. Some remain firm to their convictions with devastating consequences. While for others, faith is the only thing that could provide hope in the endless barrage of atrocities.

"The Innocents" features long stretches of worldless action that require much heavy lifting from its uniformly superior cast. And despite the subject matter, it does pause on moments of tenderness and hope without sentimentality. Only within the film's final moments does it feel as though it may slightly betray its overall approach, but that small issue has little effect on the overall dramatic impact of the film.

And despite its setting and discussions of religious conviction, "The Innocents" is more a film about humanity, and just how its characters manage to survive through even life's darkest hours. "The Innocents" opens at the Cinema Art Theater Aug. 12.