As a history lesson, it’s not likely that Black Robe will improve on the sketchy, inaccurate and romantized notions about the Native Americans of Northern America bequeathed to us by our school system. Set in 1634 at the establishment of Quebec by Champlain, Black Robe tells the story of a Jesuit missionary (Bluteau) determined to bring “civilization” and “the word of God” to the tribes who commute along the northern waterways. He is accompanied by a French adventurer (Young) and an Algonquian guide (Shellenberg) and his extended family. The tribe’s loyalty has been purchased at bargain basement rates, a fact the Indians come to resent as the priest whom they call Black Robe becomes more annoying. Tensions in the small troupe intensify when Young falls in love with Shellenberg’s daughter (Holt). Is there a homoerotic link between the young priest and the dark-eyed Frenchman? Maybe, but Beresford plays it so coy — there’s only flashing glances between the young men — that it’s hard to tell who’s got what for whom. It’s easier to figure out how the Jesuit manages to get so badly on the Algonquian’s nerves. They are communal; he is possessive. What he regards as evidence of his culture’s superiority — writing, Catholicism, etc. — they interpret as demoniacal. Worse, Shellenberg is having disturbing dreams about the creepy Black Robe. In response, his family members tell him to ditch the priest. Black Robe is about loyalty and communication and Beresford says the two don’t necessarily go together. There is also the ineffable variable of love. No great revelations here. What keeps Black Robe moving is the incredibly beautiful scenery and Shellenberg’s wonderful performance of a man in conflict with himself, his family, and his long held beliefs. Bluteau’s enervated performance is considerably less successful. Honestly, if the Jesuits were this wimpy, they would not have gotten as far as they did exploring new worlds and making converts, which, according to this movie, may very well have been better for so many of the indigenous cultures they visited. Black Robe covers some of the same ground as Dances with Wolves and has much in common with a superior Mexican film, Cabeza de Vaca. Beautiful to look at Black Robe seems to have more to say than it really does.
This article appears in November 22 • 1991 (Cover).