History Film / SisterAct

Two films that star Creator/WhoopiGoldberg as Deloris Van Cartier, a Reno lounge singer who pretends to be a nun (for reasons specific to each movie) and introduces excitement into the formerly-solemn local church music.

The first ''Sister Act'', directed by Emile Ardolino and released in 1992, Deloris witnesses her [[TheMafia Mafioso]] boyfriend Vince [=LaRocca=] (Creator/HarveyKeitel) commit a murder. She enters WitnessProtection and is forcibly inducted into an abbey as "Sister Mary Clarence". The only other person at the abbey who knows her true identity is the Mother Superior (Creator/MaggieSmith). Deloris has to follow the vows of poverty, obedience, and chastity, and getting up at 5 AM and working hard. Eventually, she becomes the leader of the abbey choir, and she decides to [[BlitheSpirit make some improvements by combining spirituals and R&B]], and the lively new music brings newcomers into the church. However, her newfound visibility does no favors for why she entered the abbey in the first place...

A sequel followed in 1993, ''Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit'', directed by Creator/BillDuke. Deloris takes her story to Las Vegas and her show becomes a hit. One night, her old friends from the convent pay her a visit, and they tell her that the Catholic school where they've been teaching (which happens to be Deloris' own alma mater) is slowly going under. Deloris agrees to return as Sister Mary Clarence and [[SaveOurStudents teach the music class to a large group of very disinterested teenagers]] (led by a young Music/LaurynHill). After a series of pranks being pulled on her, she strikes back in her own way and humbles the kids so that she can work with them. She decides to form the kids into a choir, singing the same sort of music from the previous film and entering a choir competition in hopes to convince the archdiocese that the school is worth funding.

A third film is currently in the works, with Goldberg returning, set to premiere on Creator/DisneyPlus.

!!The first film provides examples of:

* AnswerCut: This is how the convent is revealed to be the last place where Vince would look for Deloris.

* BecomingTheMask: A variation. While Deloris certainly never takes vows or becomes an "official" nun, she does slowly lose her snarky, self-absorbed attitude as she stays in the convent. By the end of the film, she's become a genuinely kind, compassionate person--much like the other nuns. It's best summarized when, in the final scene, Reverend Mother declares that, for all intents and purposes, Deloris ''is'' Sister Mary Clarence (see EvenEvilHasStandards below).

* ImGoingToHellForThis: Mary Lazarus believes sneaking ice cream into the convent is an indulgence, however...
-->'''Sister Mary Lazarus:''' This is a sin, it's a wicked indulgence. ''[beat]'' Didn't they have any butter pecan?
* ILied: Reverend Mother says this after the monsignor reminds her of her "vow of hospitality to all in need." Bonus points for ''that'' being the lie, as she just didn't want to put up with Deloris.
* IgnoringBySinging: Used by the BigBad's lawyer when his client is blatantly discussing plans to have Deloris murdered.

* LastSecondWordSwap: ''Bless you.''

* [[StraightMan Straight Woman]]: Mother Superior is this to a tee, with some [[DeadpanSnarker snark]] to boot.

--> '''Deloris''': I got two words for you, Vince.
--> '''Reverend Mother''': Mary Clarence!
--> '''Deloris''': (''after a {{Beat}}'') Bless you.

--> '''Reverend Mother:''' Girl groups?! Boogie woogie on the piano?! What were you thinking?!
--> '''Deloris''' I was thinking more like Vegas, you know? Get some butts in the seats.
--> '''Reverend Mother:''' And what next? Popcorn? Curtain calls? This is not a theater or a casino.
--> '''Deloris:''' Yeah, but that's the problem. See, people like going to theaters, and they like going to casinos, but they don't like coming to church. Why? Because it's a drag. But we could change all that, see? We could pack this joint.
--> '''Reverend Mother:''' Through blasphemy? You have corrupted the entire choir!
--> '''Delores:''' How can you say that? I worked my butt off with these women! They've given up their free time to do this, and they're good! I mean, sister, we could, we could rock this place!
--> '''Reverend Mother:''' Out of the question! As of tomorrow, Mary Lazarus resumes her leadership of the choir.

--> ''(Lt. Souther sees the convent and Deloris, attempting to hide her face on the news)''
--> '''Lt. Souther:''' I'll kill her. I'll kill her myself!
--> ''(Lt. Souther shows up at the next mass)''
--> '''Deloris:''' What are you doing here?
--> '''Lt. Souther:''' How come I saw you on TV?
--> '''Deloris:''' That was not my fault. These people just showed up. But it's been really good for the convent.
--> '''Lt. Souther:''' You're supposed to be hiding out. Remember? Bullets flying through the air at you. Ring a bell?
--> '''Deloris:''' Yes. But I can't talk about it now because I have a show in five minutes.
--> '''Lt. Souther:''' Listen to yourself. This is not a career opportunity.
--> '''Deloris:''' You don't have to tell me that. This would not be the place to begin a career.

!!The second film provides examples of:
* AccidentalMisnaming[=/=]MaliciousMisnaming:
** Mr. Crisp at first has difficulty remembering the "Clarence" in Sister Mary Clarence. Once he learns she is not a real nun, he stops trying to remember her given pseudonym and just calls her "Sister Mary Fake."
** Mary Clarence returns the favor by calling him "Crispy." As does the Reverend Mother in her last parting shot to him!
* ArcWords: "If you want to be somebody, if you want to go somewhere, you better wake up and pay attention."
* AsTheGoodBookSays: Father Ignatius tries to encourage Mary Clarence by quoting from the Bible, "O ye be of strong will." Mary Lazarus follows up by saying, "And ye better be as tough as nails too."
* BanisterSlide: Mary Clarence does one of these.
* BigBad: It is obviously clear that Mr. Crisp doesn't care about the children or school and he wants it closed.
* BreakingTheFourthWall:
** When Frank-ay and Maria overhear the nuns mentioning that "Sister Mary Clarence" has a past in Vegas, they give the camera synchronized confused looks and say, "Vegas?"
** And of course the camera mob during the closing credits....
* ComicallyMissingThePoint: When Mary Clarence sits down on the seat with glue, all the students cry out a whispered "Yes" and respond excitedly when she talks about "fusion." She thinks the students are saying "Yes" because they agree with her love for Music/TheSupremes. Only later does she realize they are celebrating their successful prank against her.
* ComplimentBackfire: Reverend Mother tells Deloris that she is an example of how "a sow's ear can be turned into a silk purse." Deloris wouldn't have phrased it that way.
* ContinuityNod:
** Sister Mary Clarence's cover is blown when [[spoiler: Mr. Crisp finds a copy of ''Rolling Stone'' magazine with Deloris on the cover]], which appeared during the credits of the first film.
** At the end of the cast's performance of "Shout", which is used alongside the closing credits of the first film, Sister Mary Lazarus screeches "now wait a minute!" This is used once again to start the cast's performance of "Ain't No Mountain High Enough", which is used alongside the closing credits of the second film.
** Deloris' horrified reaction upon first seeing her students, leading her to leave the room and slam the door shut almost as soon as she opens it, ironically echoes the way Reverend Mother in the first film initially reacted to ''her''.
* CoolOldLady: Many of the nuns who sing "[[Music/TheTemptations Ball of Confusion]]" at the retirement home definitely count as this.
* CrowdSong: The movie ends with the whole cast singing "[[Music/MarvinGaye Ain't No Mountain High Enough]]."
* DemotedToExtra: Outside the finale, the Reverend Mother only appears in five scenes in the movie.
* DrivesLikeCrazy: Father Thomas, who somehow was the designated driver even if he doesn't have a license.
* EducationMama: [[spoiler: Initially,]] Rita's mom does not bless her choir participation. It's made quite clear, albeit obliquely, that the reason she disapproves of her daughter's desire to sing and instead tries to force her to focus only on education is not a general "pull yourself up by your bootstraps" or "you have to have better opportunities and do better than I did" mentality, but because her husband tried the same path, failed utterly, and died leaving the family destitute. So it isn't that she disparages Rita's dream, but that she finds it [[SillyRabbitIdealismIsForKids impractical]] and [[ThisIsReality unrealistic]] and is afraid that pursuing it could cost Rita the same as happened to him.
* EveryoneHasStandards:
** However unruly and eccentric most of the other students are in their own ways, many of them still find Jamal's Afro-pride speeches OTT and ridiculous. Also, as troublesome as Rita is, she does help stop a fight between Jamal and Frankie by pushing the former down onto his seat.
** When Rita rebels against Mary Clarence's "new way", i.e. that they will actually have genuine lessons, no one else in the hitherto unruly class joins her.
* FailedASpotCheck: The friars apparently never met or heard of Deloris van Cartier, despite being in the same city as the convent she previously stayed in and working with the same nuns as she did. Were there no conversations about Deloris before the nuns decided to recruit her? The Pope personally requested a concert from Deloris' choir while he was in San Francisco! Given that, Mr. Crisp should have heard of her as well.
* FantasyForbiddingFather: Rita's mother is determined to squash her dreams of becoming a singer. She won't even allow her to join the school choir as an extra curricular because she thinks she should be spending all her time studying to get into a good college. Nevermind that it's a constructive hobby that keeps Rita from running the streets, or that colleges look favorably on students with extracurriculars on their records.
* FiveFiveFive: Shows up when Rita is filling out her permission slip.
* FullNameUltimatum: ''Rita Louise Watson!''
* FunnyBackgroundEvent: After the rap segment in "Joyful Joyful", we see one of the boys run like a bunny to get back into his position in the choir.
* GenreShift: The first movie is a WitnessProtection comedy, while the sequel is a SaveOurStudents dramedy.
* HenpeckedHusband: A non-spouse example, the priests are all practically under Mr. Crisp's foot.
* HeyLetsPutOnAShow: While the choir competition in the sequel isn't created or put on by Deloris and the other nuns, it otherwise fulfills this trope, seeing as it a) gives the students confidence in themselves b) proves the school is and can be successful again and c) convinces the archdiocese [[SaveOurStudents not to close it]].
* HiddenDepths: The seemingly useless and indifferent Rita has a deeply spiritual side and a beautiful singing voice.
* ImADoctorNotAPlaceholder: Father Thomas once tells Deloris that he has a message for her despite working for the Catholic Church, not for [=FedEx=].
* IncrediblyLongNote: Ahmal at the end of "Oh Happy Day"
-->'''Ahmal''': "When Jesus '''''waaaaaaaaaaashed''''' my sins away!"
* InnerCitySchool: The main setting of the second movie, with mostly African-American students and a [[TokenMinority few Hispanic and white kids]].
* InsistentTerminology: At the end of the film, the kids find out that she worked in Vegas, and they ask her about whether she was a Vegas showgirl.
-->'''Deloris:''' Let's get one thing straight... I am not, nor have I ever been, a Las Vegas showgirl. I am a headliner!
* MalcolmXerox: Wesley, or as he prefers to be called, "Ahmal M'jomo Jamaael," which means "He who is spirited."
* NailsOnABlackboard: This is how Deloris gets the students' attention.
* NoodleIncident: Apparently, the Reverend Mother and Father Maurice caused Bishop O'Malley a lot of problems.
* PassingTheTorch: In the first film, Deloris gets to know the sweet, ShrinkingViolet novice Mary Robert, helping her to find her voice (literally) and become confident in herself. In the sequel, Mary Robert performs something of the same role (and even lampshades it to Deloris) for Rita.
* PopCulturalOsmosisFailure:
** Tyler has never heard of Music/TheSupremes, but he does at least know who Diana Ross is. Justified that he's just a teenager unfamiliar with 1960s girl groups.
** Maria somehow made it through pre-school and elementary school without learning "Mary Had a Little Lamb."
* PrettyFlyForAWhiteGuy: Frank-ay (ayy-oh-ayy) is actually a pretty good rapper.
* PreviouslyOn: The events of ''Sister Act'' are summed up with a medley at the beginning of the sequel.
* SaveOurStudents: Deloris' nun friends ask her to help turn around the choir of the Catholic school she attended as a child. Also overlaps with SavingTheOrphanage, since thanks to the greedy superintendent, if Deloris can't turn the problem class around, the archdiocese is going to close the whole school and have it torn down to make, yes, a parking lot.
* SoProudOfYou: Rita's mother says this to her at the end of the movie.
* SpontaneousChoreography: Technically averted, since some of the students are briefly shown practicing the dance moves when they first arrive at the competition. Still, it's hard to imagine how they would've done all those moves in the choir robes.
* TeasingTheSubstituteTeacher: Deloris is technically a ''new'' teacher rather than a substitute, but the dynamic with her students for the first few classes is the same. She has zero control of them and they have zero respect for her; they brazenly tell her that her class is a "bird course" they expect to pass with no effort, and ultimately humiliate her by spreading superglue on her desk chair. It's only when she lays down the law that they show her some begrudging respect, and not until their first concert that they begin to have genuine affection for her.
* TravelingAtTheSpeedOfPlot: Rita's mother doesn't know that Rita has gone to the competition until she gets home, several hours after the class has left, and yet she's still able to make the 376-mile trip to Hollywood in time for the competition, conveniently arriving and taking her seat just seconds before her daughter begins singing on stage.
* VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory: The movie was inspired by the life a choir teacher called Iris Stevenson who caught the school board in order to stop layoffs.
* WhoopiEpiphanySpeech: The sequel is pretty much one long one of these. (Incidentally, they ''work''.)
* AWildRapperAppears: "Who Got the Flo?" and the rap sequence in "Joyful, Joyful".
* YourMom: When Deloris first meets the students, they are trading a series of these jokes.

!!The stage musical provides examples of:


* AdaptationalLocationChange: The musical is set entirely in Philadelphia, instead of the Witness Protection moving Deloris from Reno to San Francisco like in the movie.
* AdaptationExpansion: The musical necessarily does this with more characters getting their own musical numbers, including Mother Superior, Curtis, Lt. Souther, and even Curtis' henchmen.
* AdaptationNameChange:
** Deloris' real name is Doris Wilson with Deloris Van Cartier being a stage name.
** The musical changes the name of Vince [=LaRocca=] to Curtis. In the original West End production he was Curtis Shank; in the Broadway version, he was Curtis Jackson.
* AdaptationPersonalityChange: The Mother Superior is even more of a DeadpanSnarker in the musical.
* AdaptationRelationshipOverhaul: In the musical, Delores and Lt. Eddie Souther went to high school together, where she called him "Sweaty Eddie." During the story it's also more heavily implied that they're developing romantic feelings for each other.
* AmbiguouslyGay: The two antique-dealing bachelors who want to buy the convent.
* BigEater: The musical version makes clear Sister Mary Patrick is one. The lyrics to "How I Got the Calling" specify she found God's vocation through food, such as seeing "the face of Jesus in a coconut cream pie."
* CantGetAwayWithNuthin: When Deloris and the nuns sneak to a bar across the street on her first night, they almost run into Curtis' goons.
* {{Confessional}}: Mother Superior accidentally confesses to Deloris rather than Monseigneur O'Hara in one.
* ConscienceMakesYouGoBack: Deloris goes to stay with Eddie after Curtis finds out she was in the convent but then goes back to the nuns because they need her to help them perform for the pope.
* DisappearedDad: Deloris' father left when she was a child.
* DisguisedInDrag: Curtis' goons sneak into the convent while dressed as nuns.
* DoNotCallMePaul: Deloris hates Eddie calling her Doris.
* DoomMagnet: Sister Mary Lazarus joined the sisterhood for protection after her family started dying off in accidents, culminating in her hometown being hit by a tornado.
* DoorstopBaby: Sister Mary Robert was left in the convent as a baby.
* EveryoneWentToSchoolTogether: Deloris and Lt. Eddie Souther were in the same class.
* IWantSong: "The Life I Never Led" is Sister Mary Robert singing about things she can't do because she's a nun.
* ItKindOfLooksLikeAFace: In "How I Got The Calling", Sister Mary Patrick said she became a nun after seeing Jesus, Mary and various saints' faces in food.
* MusicalWorldHypothesis: People now randomly burst into song as well as having realistic rehearsals and performances.
* {{Nepotism}}: Curtis' idiot nephew, [=TJ=] works for him.
* PistolWhipping: The nuns knock Curtis' mooks out with their own guns.
* PragmaticAdaptation: The "Deloris getting the nuns to improve the neighborhood" and "Mother Superior threatening to quit" subplots are dropped. Deloris is seen by Curtis on [=TV=] because the nuns singing made the news.
* PromotedToLoveInterest: Eddie to Deloris.
* QuirkyMiniBossSquad: Curtis' goons, Joey, [=TJ=] and Pablo.
* RaceLift: Vince/Curtis is now black and Lt. Souther is white.
* RemakeCameo: Whoopi Goldberg has played the Reverend Mother in this a few times.
* SettingUpdate: Inverted; the film was set in the then-present, but the musical goes back to 1978, so that Alan Menken could do disco style songs. The physical setting also changes, with the story being transplanted from San Francisco to Philadelphia.
* SummonEverymanHero: The play starts with Mother Superior praying to God to save the convent. We then get a GilliganCut to Deloris performing on stage in a nightclub.
* TechnicianPerformerTeamUp: The Mother Superior of the convent is the Technician, as she is old-fashioned and believes in discipline and order in all things, including the choir and its song choices. Deloris, who's in witness protection as "Sister Mary Clarence," is the Performer--as a Vegas lounge singer, she knows how to wow a crowd and use choreography and staging in addition to rollicking music. Though they initially butt heads, they eventually [[IntergenerationalFriendship grow to respect each other]]; their healed relationship is demonstrated by the concert at the end of the film, which has the nuns sing "I Will Follow Him" in both Mother Superior and Deloris's styles (it begins as a traditional madrigal then transitions to a gospel performance).
* TitleDrop: Deloris' song, "Sister Act".
* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Philly cheese steaks for Deloris.
* VillainSong: "When I Find My Baby" is Curtis singing about how he's going to find and kill Deloris.

* PragmaticAdaptation: The "Deloris getting the nuns to improve the neighborhood" and "Mother Superior threatening to quit" subplots are dropped. Deloris is seen on by Curtis on [=TV=] because the nuns singing made the news.

* AccidentalMisnaming[=/=]MaliciousMisnaming: Mr. Crisp at first has difficulty remembering the "Clarence" in Sister Mary Clarence. Once he learns she is not a real nun, he stops trying to remember her given pseudonym and just calls her "Sister Mary Fake."

* ContinuityNod: Sister Mary Clarence's cover is blown when [[spoiler: Mr. Crisp finds a copy of ''Rolling Stone'' magazine with Deloris on the cover]], which appeared during the credits of the first film.

* EveryoneHasStandards: However unruly and eccentric most of the other students are in their own ways, many of them still find Jamal's Afro-pride speeches OTT and ridiculous. Also, as troublesome as Rita is, she does help stop a fight between Jamal and Frankie by pushing the former down onto his seat.

* FailedASpotCheck: The friars apparently never met or heard of Deloris van Cartier, despite being in the same city as the convent she previously stayed in and working with the same nuns as she did. Were there no conversations about Deloris before the nuns decided to recruit her? The Pope came to San Francisco specifically to hear Deloris' choir! Given that, Mr. Crisp should have heard of her as well.
** The Pope did not come to San Francisco specifically to hear the choir. He was in San Fran anyway and requested a concert.

* PrayerOfMalice: Played with during the climax. When the helicopter pilot refuses to fly the nuns to Reno, they pray, out loud and right in front of him in passive-aggressive fashion, that God will be kinder to him in his own hour of need than he was to them in theirs. They needle him by committee until he changes his mind.

* SpellMyNameWithAnS: Deloris van Cartier, according to the subtitles. While the surname was chosen, it seems that her given name was spelled that way even as a child.

* KitchenChase: After Deloris witnesses the murder, her getaway takes her through the casino's kitchen. It happens again during the climax, when she runs away from Joey and Willy (after a GroinAttack delivered during prayer), but rather than merely shoving her way through, knocking workers down, and causing all manner of messes, [[CharacterDevelopment this time she is more careful]] and stops to make (brief) apologies whenever she can't avoid someone.

* KitchenChase: After Deloris witnesses the murder, her getaway takes her through the casino's kitchen.

* MagicalNegro: Deloris, especially as the TokenBlack of the convent in the first film.
** This could be seen as an inverted MightyWhitey trope, since Deloris is the protagonist (unlike most MagicalNegro characters), and she takes over the choir by proving she is better at it than any other nuns.

* ChekhovsGun: The songs "My Guy" and "I Will Follow Him" that were sung by Deloris and her backup singers are used again by the nun's choir but with different lyrics and arrangements.

* FantasyForbiddingFather: Distaff example. Rita's mother is determined to squash her dreams of becoming a singer. She won't even allow her to join the school choir as an extra curricular because she thinks she should be spending all her time studying to get into a good college. Rita's mother doesn't realize that colleges are more likely to accept her daughter if she presents things like being in the choir.

* ActorAllusion: This isn't the first time Creator/HarveyKeitel played [[{{Film/Bugsy}} a mobster]].

* AbridgedForChildren: A one-act adaptation of the musical titled "Sister Act Jr." can be performed by schools. This version removes all references to guns (Ernie dies offstage in an ambiguous way, implied to have been thrown out a window), most death references except for Ernie's death, all uses of inappropriate language and Deloris's various blasphemous uses of God and Jesus's names in vain, and much of Curtis's threatening behavior in general. Some songs including "When I Find My Baby" are cut entirely, but Curtis now sings in "Lady in the Long Black Dress" instead of exiting the stage just before the song.

One of the most popular comedies of TheNineties, and up there with ''Film/Ghost1990'' as one of Whoopi Goldberg's most famous roles, with a cast of beloved character actors and a magnificently long-suffering Maggie Smith as the Mother Superior. The film also drew praise from both Catholics and actual nuns, as the film portrays Catholicism in general and nuns in particular as warm, welcoming, and human (as opposed to some of the other [[NunsAreSpooky popular]] [[NaughtyNuns portrayals]]). The biggest draw is probably the music itself, which reinterprets such classics as "My Guy" into a religious format. In 2006, the movie was [[ScreenToStageAdaptation made into a stage musical]], with songs by Music/AlanMenken.

* ImADoctorNotAPlaceholder: Father Thomas once tells Deloris that he has a message for her despite working for the Catholic Church, not for FedEx.

* PunBasedTitle: The term "sister act" originally comes from the vaudeville circuit, referring to a performance by two or more biological sisters. Here, it's used to refer to nuns.

* BigBad: Vince, who will do anything to stay out of prison, killing anyone who could rat him out including Deloris.

** Tyler has never heard of Music/TheSupremes, but he does at least know who [[FaceOfTheBand Diana Ross]] is. Justified that he's just a teenager unfamiliar with 1960s girl groups.

* PunBasedTitle: The term "sister act" originally comes from the vaudeville circuit, referring to a performance by two or more sisters in the biological sense. Here, it gets repurposed to refer to nuns.

* ImADoctorNotAPlaceholder: Father Thomas once tells Deloris that he have a message for her despite working for the catholic Church, not for FedEx.

* ImADoctorNotAPlaceholder: Father Thomas once tells Deloris that he have a message for her despite working for the catholic Church, not for Fedex.