Noble
An award-winning film telling the inspirational story of Christina Noble who epitomises the fighting spirit of the Irish.
Christina Noble is a feisty Irish woman who in her forties travelled
to Vietnam inspired by a dream to go there and help homeless street
children. Attaching herself to an orphanage run by Madame Linh, she
eventually found funding for what would become the first of more than a
hundred such projects in that country and in Mongolia under the
umbrella of the Christina Noble Foundation. For this she was honoured
by both the Queen and the President of Vietnam. This fine achievement
was all the more remarkable because Christina had already had to
survive her own hardships. They included losing her mother when she was
ten, a neglectful alcoholic father and, later on, marriage to an
abusive Greek Cypriot. But worst of all was the interim period when,
separated from her siblings, she was brought up in an institution by
nuns who insisted that the child born to her after being gang-raped
should be adopted. In retrospect, it was probably these experiences
that spurred her on to do what she did for suffering youngsters in the
Far East.
Noble by name: Deirdre O’Kane as Christina Noble with two of her wards
Such
a story could have inspired a great film and deserved to do so, but
while one does not doubt the sincerity of Stephen Bradley, the
writer-director of Noble,
this picture fails to measure up. The tale is not told chronologically
even if it does start in Dublin in 1955 since we soon move on to Ho Chi
Minh City in 1989 and then keep cutting back and forth to fill in
earlier events in Ireland and in England. This proves rather
disruptive, but the real problem stems from the film’s tone. The harsh
realism of, say, The Magdalene Sisters
(2002) is missing entirely, and nor does Bradley succeed in emulating
the balance between popular appeal and depth of feeling present in Philomena
(2013). Instead, despite authentic Vietnamese locations and a spirited
performance by Bailey’s wife Deirdre O’Kane playing Christina in middle
age, Noble emerges as a
sentimentalised and unpersuasive account. Typical is the scene in which
applying to the Vietnamese authorities for a work permit Christina (who
as a child had been inspired by Doris Day) starts to sing to them. The
actual music score, much present and constantly seeking to manipulate
our emotions, adds to the sense of unreality in the telling of this
true story.
Since this could all be seen as a matter of taste, it is only fair to say that Noble
has won awards including four audience awards at festivals. This proves
that some people do respond positively to Bradley’s approach, one
epitomised by the tag line on the poster: ‘A dream that changed a
million lives’. Best test of all is your response to the written words
which, concluding the film, declare that ‘She still talks to God and
still loves Doris Day’. Íf that strikes you as touching and apt, you
may love this movie.
MANSEL STIMPSON
Cast: Deirdre O’Kane, Sarah Greene, Brendan Coyle, Liam Cunningham, Ruth Negga, Nhu Quynh Nguyen, Mark Huberman, Gloria Cramer Curtis, David Mumeni, Ngoc Tu’o’ng Le, Nguyen Khoa Tien Dat.
Dir and Screenplay (based on books by Christina Noble and her life story rights) Stephen Bradley, Pro Melanie Gore-Grimes and Stephen Bradley, Ph Trevor Forrest, Pro Des Cristina Casali, Ed Mags Arnold, Music Giles Martin and Ben Foster, Costumes Charlotte Walker.
Ansty Productions/Destiny films/The Irish Film Board etc-Miracle Communications.
101 mins. UK/Ireland. 2013. Rel: 12 February 2016. Cert. 15.