2004 New Video Group
The South Bronx is known for its colourful characters, but Sister Helen might be the most colourful of all. She’s the most unusual 69 year old nun you’ll ever meet, come to dislike, and then love. She swaggers like Frank Sinatra, smokes, curses and can be tough as nails, especially to those she loves and cares for. In this compelling documentary about Sister Helen Travis, we find someone who knows what it takes to get through to even the worst alcoholics. Why? Because she has walked in their shoes.
“We drank enough. We drank plenty. I won’t deny it. Seven days a week. I think with some people, and apparently I’m in this category, they need a crisis in their life. And I got my crisis. I was married, had three children. My oldest, Thomas…he was 15 and stabbed to death. Once my first boy died, I looked at myself differently. I made a lot of mistakes in my life.”
As we find out, after her husband died of alcoholism, she stopped drinking and became a Benedictine nun. She soon found herself running a 23-bed shelter for drug addicts and alcoholics in one of New York city’s most poverty-stricken areas. We’re never told how she became a religious, or how she was selected to administer such a complex community project. Perhaps it doesn’t matter. Maybe God selected her because no one else wanted the job. Fortunately or unfortunately, Sister Helen – like thousands of others serving on the frontlines with the homeless – seems unprepared for what she finds every day, is usually without support or supervision, and only seems to learn by making mistakes as she goes.
Sister Helen is not one to shy away from challenges. She relentlessly stands up for what she believes in, usually giving the men in her care the second, third and fourth chance that someone must give them. Her “guys”, most of whom are hardened and hopeless, often don’t know what to make of her unorthodox methods. In the end, they are grateful for her tough love, as crazy as it is.
Whether you like Sister Helen as a human being or not, her story grabs your attention and keeps it. The 90 minutes zip by, as the documentary’s fly-on-the-wall approach draws us in and keeps us tightly clutching our seats as we wait to see what this nun and her unlikely sons will do next. Amidst the surprising twists and each new crisis, we witness funny and sad repartee. There is no normal here. Sister Helen and the cast of residents in her home experience the unexpected every day – and it seems to keep them as entertained as we are.
That said, sometimes this film is hard to watch, crossing back and forth between gritty realism and other scenes that seem to be almost surreal. At times, it’s hard to believe we are watching real people.
One thing we can be certain of is that Sister Helen is not your average nun. Perhaps she’s a saint…but don’t expect the Vatican to recognize her in your lifetime.
Sister Helen received the Director’s Award for Best Documentary at the Sundance Film Festival and was an Emmy Award nominee. Rotten Tomatoes gives it 92% on the Tomatometer. Locke Reviews gives it an unqualified high-five.
Watch a clip from Sister Helen
