Simple
Courage documents the treatment of leprosy victims in Hawaii in the 19th and
early 20th century. More than 8,000 sufferers, mostly native, were banished to
an isolated peninsula and practically abandoned.Simple
Courage documents the treatment of leprosy victims in Hawaii in the 19th and
early 20th century. More than 8,000 sufferers, mostly native, were banished to
an isolated peninsula and practically abandoned.
One man, however, in a simple act of courage, took it upon himself to bring comfort to these hopeless people. He was Father Damien, a Catholic missionary from Belgium, who spent sixteen years caring for the "untouchables" until he himself succumbed to the disease. He transformed their prison into a place of decency and respect.
Using archival footage and moving interviews with survivors from the '30s and '40s, Simple Courage shows the emotional pain of banishment from their ancestral homes added to the ravages of the disease.
National Educational Film and Video Festival, 1994
EMMY Award, 1993
San Francisco Asian American International Film Showcase, 1993
Dreamspeakers Festival, Alberta, 1993
CINE Gold Eagle, 1992
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