THERESEMOVIE.COM "Therese" opened yesterday at Dole Cannery Signature theaters and will remain at least through Thursday. The film tells the story of the 19th-century French nun St. Therese of Lisieux.

Fans help bring film
about saint to Oahu

St. Therese generated interest
on a 2000 tour of her remains

A lobbying effort by local fans of a well-known Catholic saint has succeeded in bringing a 2004 movie about her life to a Honolulu theater.

"Therese" opened yesterday at Dole Cannery Signature theaters and will remain at least through Thursday, according to a theater spokeswoman. The movie was produced and distributed by Luke Films, an independent company.

The film tells the story of St. Therese of Lisieux, also known as "The Little Flower." The 19th-century French nun wrote of her internal struggle against spiritual emptiness and her "little way" of becoming close to God by doing the simplest daily tasks as perfectly as possible for the glory of God.

Therese Martin had a mystical conversion experience when she was 14, and was 24 when she died of tuberculosis in 1897. She became known as a spiritual voice to ordinary people when her journals were published. Her autobiography, "The Story of a Soul," is still available in bookstores.

She was canonized in 1925. Her popularity continues, and her fans included Pope John Paul II, who in 1997 declared her a Doctor of the Church, a title reserved for people who were outstanding witnesses to Christian belief and practice.

STAR-BULLETIN / 2000 Rosemarie Lopes-Bane venerated the remains of St. Therese of Lisieux at Star of the Sea Church in January 2000. The bones were brought here as part of a national tour.

Among the Hawaii fans who sought to bring the movie here were the nuns at the Carmelite convent at St. Stephen Diocesan Center, members of the religious order to which St. Therese belonged. Sister Agnes Marie Wong spoke to film director Leonardo DeFilippis to urge its distribution here.

"The devotees of St. Therese in Honolulu, by demonstrating their willingness to help us promote the film, made booking 'Therese' at Dole Cannery a very easy decision for us," said Luke Films publicist Ben Peterson. "The people of Honolulu have responded -- that is the key to the success of any independent film."

Peterson said the movie was scheduled to open in 30 theaters yesterday, the largest distribution since its Oct. 1 premiere. "Therese" has not been a box office success, grossing less than $3 million in its first six months, according to film industry statistics.

Therese is played by Lindsay Younce, 22, whose prior acting experience was in amateur theater in Vancouver, Wash. Others in the cast are not well known.

Hawaii residents demonstrated their interest in St. Therese of Lisieux in January 2000 when a reliquary containing some of her bones was brought here as part of an international tour. Thousands of people walked past the closed box to pay their respects while it was displayed for three days at Star of the Sea Church.