Lucky 13

We sat holding our breath for the entire 85 minutes.  Parts of it had us in tears.  Our formerly-Wednesday-night-now-Tuesday-night-while-our-husbands-group group absolutely loved The 13th Day.  Buy this film and pass it around to all of your family and friends.

Ian and Dominic Higgins present the true story of Fatima artistically and authentically. They took great care to be as true to not just the facts, but to the people, as possible. The cast really delivered as well. I was most impressed with Jane Lesley's portrayal of Maria dos Santos, Lucia's obstinate, doubting mother who takes out her doubts on her daughter with vitriol. It's a hard thing to believe that Heaven would open up to the remotest, poorest parts of the world, and we in our warped little minds question whom Our Lady chooses, especially when they don't fit into the molds we've constructed of what a visionary should be.

Wherever Our Lady appears, we assume there will be some magical harmony; the dos Santos family, already poor, suffered immensely as thousands of people, ranging from devout believers to curiosity seekers, trampled their land. Many accused the children of lying, claimed that they were seeing the devil or were possessed.

Two died very young, Francisco at age 11 and Jacinta at age 9.  Jacinta was incorrupt when her body was exhumed. Lucia went to school, became a nun and then joined the Carmelite order. She died in 2005.