PARIS (OSV News) ─ With more than 400,000 viewers since its release as of Nov. 14, and counting, a new film about the Sacred Heart of Jesus has become an unexpected box office hit in France -- and a lightning rod for controversy.
"Sacré Coeur" has completely exceeded initial expectations with lines to theaters unseen in years ─ at the same time causing major controversies in France, including cancellation of the film's public transportation promotional campaign and its screening in France's second biggest city ─ all citing the secular nature of the country.
For many, however, the popularity of the film proves that France's Catholicism is back in the public square.
Released Oct. 1, the film subtitled "His Reign Will Have No End" focuses on the apparitions of Jesus to a French Visitation religious sister, St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, showing his heart to her between 1673 and 1675, in Paray-le-Monial, in the French region of Burgundy.
Produced to mark the 350th anniversary of the apparitions, the docudrama combines historical reenactments, testimonials and expert analysis. It gives ample space to accounts of personal encounters with Christ, often during adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.
The witnesses and speakers are very diverse, ranging from Father Matthieu Raffray, a traditionalist priest known for his strong views on social media, to prisoners, members of parliament and a former drug dealer from Bondy, a town in the northern suburbs of Paris known for its high crime rate.
The film's directors, Steven and Sabrina Gunnell, were inspired to produce the film after their visit to the Burgundy shrine. Steven is a former member of the French 1990s boy band Alliage. He converted to Catholicism and now works with his wife to produce films related to their deep Christian faith.
The film places great importance on the shrine of Paray-le-Monial. Entrusted to the Emmanuel Community since 1985, the shrine welcomes tens of thousands of pilgrims each year. It was the site of a highly successful jubilee celebration for the 350th anniversary of the apparitions from December 2023 to June 2025.
The jubilee was closely linked to the late Pope Francis' last encyclical, "Dilexit Nos," subtitled "On the Human and Divine Love of the Heart of Jesus Christ," published in October 2024.
The film's success came along with criticism ─ both from inside and outside the Catholic Church.
One common criticism of "Sacred Heart" from within the church is its omission of the Jesuits. The film features St. Alacoque’s spiritual director, Father Claude La Colombière ─ canonized by Pope John Paul II in 1992 ─ but never notes that he was a Jesuit. Several French Jesuits told OSV News they regretted this, emphasizing the Society of Jesus' key role in spreading devotion to the Heart of Jesus.
Today, the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network ─ rooted in Jesuit spirituality ─ includes over 22 million Catholics in 92 countries. The Jesuits interviewed said that acknowledging the society, along with other congregations tied to this devotion, would have shown that the Sacred Heart devotion is a vital movement within the universal church, not just a local phenomenon.
Outside the Catholic sphere, controversies rose to the level of "Christianophobia," in the director's own words, when public institutions such as town halls were reluctant to screen the film, as happened in Marseille.
The Oct. 22 screening at the Château de La Buzine ─ a municipal cinema ─ was canceled, citing a "violation of the principle of secularism" in a public space.
Le Monde reported that the screening had been canceled minutes before the premiere on the grounds that "a public facility cannot host screenings of a religious nature .
As the film was about to premiere Oct. 1 across France, MediaTransports, the advertising agency for SNCF and RATP, rejected their planned poster campaign in metro stations and train stations, citing the "religious and proselytizing nature" of the project, "incompatible with the principle of neutrality of public service," Le Figaro reported.
To add to a heated debate about "Sacré Coeur," on Oct. 29, Le Monde highlighted the "political" dimension of the film, while expressing its surprise at this "low-budget" nature which "should never have gone beyond the niche audience for which it was intended."
But for Father Pascal Ide, a priest in the Archdiocese of Paris known as an online film critic, "Sacré Cœur dusts off, decompartmentalizes, and depoliticizes a central truth of Christianity, which is that God became Heart."
A doctor of medicine, philosophy and theology, Father Ide expressed his enthusiasm for the film in La Croix on Oct. 29. "What touched me most was undoubtedly the person of Jesus and his intense desire to personally reach out to each person in the most intimate way, to experience an intense heart-to-heart connection," Father Ide said.
In a conversation with OSV News, he added: "The film is very rich. There is something for everyone. What is certain is that it has a considerable impact, which speaks volumes about the expectations of an audience that goes beyond practicing Catholics."
On Nov. 3, Le Figaro dedicated a full page to the phenomenon of the docudrama, saying that "This film reveals the discreet but real return of religion in French society."
Popularity of the film is so big, Le Figaro said, that "week after week, the lines grow longer in front of movie theaters -- which have been struggling since the beginning of the year."
La Croix praised the "unprecedented" popularity "for a documentary of this nature," saying that "the audience, which is growing thanks to word of mouth, is more diverse than the controversy surrounding the film's release would suggest."
For Catholic magazine "La Vie," "the primary key to success lies in the film itself," which the magazine described as "a popular catechism" with its own missionary dimension. Based on this observation, many bishops continue to promote it on their diocesan websites.
Le Figaro cited one of the viewers, Jean-Michel, saying: "This film goes beyond the scope of a simple documentary: It’s a real inner journey, an encounter with the living love of the heart of Jesus."
As the U.S. marks its 250th anniversary next year, the U.S. bishops will consecrate the nation to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The decision was taken during a Nov. 11 session of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' fall plenary assembly in Baltimore.
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Caroline de Sury writes for OSV News from Paris.
