Holy Days is a movie based on a story by much-loved author, Joy Cowley. Joy knows what makes a good story and this movie has these elements in spades – sharply drawn characters, a suspenseful plot, and buckets of humour.
The film is set in 1970s New Zealand. Young Brian is devastated by the loss of his mother and determined to stop his dad from marrying the new woman in his life. Convinced he can reach his mother through prayer and penance, Brian finds refuge at a run-down convent with three delightfully eccentric elderly nuns. But when he overhears plans to shut the convent down and split the Sisters apart, Brian sparks an unlikely mission: escape to the Southern Alps to find a former nun-turned-lawyer who might just save them all. Brian believes this is the miracle he’s been praying for, a chance to reunite with his mother on the sacred mountain, Aoraki.
Brian and the Sisters “borrow” their local priest’s Holden station-wagon and dash off on a madcap road-trip south. The Sisters have not left the convent in decades. Their journey is full of colourful encounters as they do whatever is required to reach their destination.
The stakes are raised once they reach the Southern Alps and Brian heads into the mountains in search of his mother. The Sisters risk everything to follow him. More suspense is added when the Sisters learn they have only a short time to get back and prevent the demolition of their convent. The drag-race back up the island to meet the deadline is a highlight of the movie.
The story takes place in a recognisably Catholic world. The bishop is in cahoots with a developer so a bit of a baddie, the priest bumbles along but finds his redemption, the Sisters embrace life wherever it may take them.
With Joy Cowley the funny and the profound mix together so naturally. Beneath all the hijinks and comedic twists and turns of the movie, there is the underlying message that life is full of little miracles that give zest to everyday living and draw us into the grand mystery of life. Brian learns from his faith-filled Sister companions, nothing is to be feared, not even death.
With its polished production values and top-drawer acting, Holy Days is a triumph. The three Sisters are totally convincing and Elijah Tamati is a star as young Brian.
Holy Days is a movie with heart – entertaining, suspenseful and surprisingly moving.
Holy Days is in cinemas now.