St. Francis (shown on television as Francesco) is, at its core, a biopic. The story starts with Francesco as a child, playfully hanging upside-down and confiding to his friend Chiara his new revelation: “It’s the sky that holds the world up.” With this bit of youthful wisdom, the friendship between the two of them blossoms in an incredible way. Flash-forward a number of years and we see Francesco all grown up (into Raoul Bova of Alien Vs. Predator and Under The Tuscan Sun fame). Having been separated from Chiara (the absolutely stunning Amélie Daure), he’s surprised to find that she is volunteering to help the leper community outside the city walls.

After a brief meeting with Chiara, and an almost-as-brief hunting expedition in which Francesco finds himself unable to kill a deer, he returns to find his homeland at war with Perugia. He joins up to fight for Assisi, but ends up taken prisoner in a highly unsuccessful battle. It is here that (in the movie anyway) he meets another prisoner who has a battered copy of the Gospels, translated into the common vernacular, and preaches to his fellow inmates. Francesco is entrusted with this book when the original owner is beaten to death for the heresies of preaching outside of a church and not in the language of the Mass. It is here that Francesco’s true spiritual enlightening begins.

Freed a year later by his father’s persuasion (and help from Chiara), Francesco’s nature has obviously changed. While some initially dismiss his behavior by attributing it to the conditions of the cell, his actions soon become a bother for his father. His father was always a particularly happy and wealthy clothing seller, and Francesco’s nature of taking his money and clothes and freely distributing them to the poor beggars of the area was the sort of thing that pushed him over the edge. Because of this, Francesco decides he has to renounce his father’s possessions and money and live in poverty as a beggar, doing work for the poor. The first act, which he believes was requested of him by God himself, is to restore a church for the poor. More acts are soon to follow, and as he performs more and more incredibly unselfish deeds, all the while living a life of complete poverty, more and more people follow him. Soon after, Francesco starts his own order. Chiara joins him and enters a convent from where she feels she can help.

Naturally, the film goes into much greater detail with its two-part, over three-hour running time. Most films fall apart by that length, and, if not for the excellent pacing and structure of St. Francis, as well as the acting, this probably would, too. Only adding to this fine film is the most incredible score that I have ever heard for a television movie, done by Carlo Siliotto. I’m not a score collector, but if it was available for purchase, I would in a heartbeat. This is a fine example of everything coming together perfectly in a film. I would not change a thing.

In going back to take screen captures for this review, I ended up watching the whole thing again. The acting is simply amazing. Raoul Bova seems born to play this role. He must have really gotten into character, because he’s a perfect fit for St. Francis. If you thought that James Caviezel was a powerful presence as Jesus in The Passion Of The Christ you will be amazed at Bova’s performance. Amélie (I really hope to see her in more films in the future) is also perfectly cast as Chiara, and her could-have-been love with Francesco is alternately beautiful, painful, and most importantly, believable. St. Francis was so believable, in fact, that I forgot at times that I was watching a movie. I became that immersed, and that is not something that frequently happens.

Certainly, a film of a religious nature is a bit unusual coming from director Michele Soavi, a director much more accustomed to thrillers like Uno Bianca or horror films such as Dellamorte Dellamore (Cemetery Man). Prior to St. Francis, the closest Soavi came to religion was a film called The Church, and it was more about demon resurrection than it was Sunday mass. So, it was a wonderful surprise to find that his ability to frame beautiful scenes isn’t restricted to genre films.

When all things are considered, the biggest reason I liked St. Francis is that it is not so much about God as it is faith. Watching the film, you will realize that, regardless of your own religious beliefs, the real Francesco di Bernardone was an incredible person who did incredibly real things and led an amazing life. This is really all the film tried to convey and it did this perfectly. St. Francis is a damn fine film.

The DVD Presentation
Near spectacular! You might expect over three-hours of video on one disc (plus extras) to look compressed as hell. Surprisingly, it does not. This is a fantastic, fantastic print. Little, if any, over-compression is visible. No damage exists that I can tell. Audio also is perfect. It is a Mono track, but all the music and sound effects are crisp and dialog is completely clear. This is one of the best transfers I have seen from NoShame.

And the Extras Are?
“Backstage” featurette – (9:31)
The sole video extra on this DVD, a short behind-the-scenes clip, does an admirable job for what it is. This is similar to a bit they show on American television to advertise for an upcoming special or mini-series. It is worth watching, though, since it features all-too-brief interviews with director Michele Soavi, and main actors Raoul Bova, Erica Blane and David Brandon.

Still Gallery– (1:55)
This is a collection of 23 stills presented with the score playing in the background.

Collectible Booklet –
As we have come to expect from NoShame, this booklet is excellent as always. In this one, we get a history lesson on the real St. Francis of Assisi. There are three short essays on the film from producer Pietro Valsecchi, director Michele Soavi, composer Carlo Siliotto, and a poem from actor Raoul Bova. Following this is a great chronicle (if a bit too opinionated) of St. Francis’ cinematic history by Richard Harland Smith. Finally, there are complete bios on Raoul Bova and Michele Soavi.

Of NoShame’s entire catalog, St. Francis (along with Padre Pio: Miracle Man) has the least amount of features. This is disappointing, and no doubt the reasoning behind this was due to such a long feature being on one disc. Still, the minor extra, accompanied by the always fantastic booklet, make for a satisfying package.

The Bottom Line
I am not overly religious, and I am certainly no saint, but I love a good film - and if that film happens to be religious, then so be it. St. Francis is a fantastic film; it is beautifully directed and brilliantly acted. It takes its subject matter seriously and concentrates on the mostly factual basis of his story. Most importantly, it does not attempt to preach to the audience. Thanks to NoShame’s DVD, I fell in love with St. Francis and I hope it receives a large audience in the U.S.