You think you know the story. The blue-striped sari. The wrinkled, smiling face. The Nobel Peace Prize. For decades, the image of the nun from Skopje was the global shorthand for "living saint." But honestly, if you sit down to watch a documentary on Mother Teresa today, you’re going to run into two very different worlds. One side sees a woman who poured her life into the gutters of Calcutta; the other sees a "hell’s angel" who glorified suffering instead of curing it. It’s messy.
The most recent big-screen entry, Mother Teresa: No Greater Love (2022), produced by the Knights of Columbus, leans heavily into the former. It’s a film that tries to reclaim the narrative from the cynical internet age. Yet, to understand why people are still Googling her name in 2026, you have to look at the cinematic history that built—and then tried to dismantle—her legacy.
The Film That Started the Legend
In 1969, British journalist Malcolm Muggeridge traveled to India with a camera crew. He wasn’t exactly a fan of religion at the time. But what he captured in Something Beautiful for God basically birthed the modern saint icon.
There’s this famous bit of lore about "divine light" during the filming. The crew was shooting in the dark interior of the Home for the Dying. They didn't think the film would turn out. When it came back from the lab, it was strangely bright and clear. Muggeridge claimed it was a miracle. The cameraman, Ken Macmillan, later said it was probably just a new type of Kodak film they were testing. Regardless, that documentary turned Mother Teresa from a local Calcutta figure into a global superstar. Without that specific film, the Missionaries of Charity might never have become the multi-million dollar organization it is today.
It’s wild how much a single piece of media can change the course of history.
Why Critics Still Reference "Hell's Angel"
You can’t talk about a documentary on Mother Teresa without mentioning the 1994 polemic by Christopher Hitchens. It’s called Hell’s Angel. It’s brutal.
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Hitchens, an avowed atheist, teamed up with Tariq Ali to tear down the "myth." They didn't just question her methods; they accused her of being a friend to dictators like Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier and taking money from Charles Keating of the Lincoln Savings and Loan scandal.
Critics like Dr. Aroup Chatterjee, who grew up in Calcutta and wrote Mother Teresa: The Untold Story, have long argued that the documentaries people see in the West don't reflect the reality on the ground. Chatterjee provided much of the "evidence" for Hitchens, claiming the "Home for the Dying" lacked basic hygiene, painkillers, and actual medical care, despite the millions of dollars flowing in.
This tension is exactly why modern filmmakers struggle. Do you make a hagiography that inspires people? Or do you make a takedown that focuses on the lack of aspirin and the reuse of needles?
No Greater Love: The Modern Response
Fast forward to the 25th anniversary of her death. Mother Teresa: No Greater Love was released as a cinematic event. It wasn't just a biography. It was a travelogue showing how her sisters work today in places like Brazil, Kenya, and even the Bronx.
What makes this specific documentary on Mother Teresa interesting is the access. Director David Naglieri got into the archives and interviewed people like Father Brian Kolodiejchuk, the man who spearheaded her canonization process.
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The film addresses the "dark night of the soul" letters. For fifty years, Mother Teresa felt like God had abandoned her. She lived in a spiritual desert. For some, this made her a hypocrite. For others, it made her the ultimate human hero—someone who did the work even when she felt absolutely nothing inside.
What the Cameras Often Miss
There’s a nuance here that most 90-minute films skip over.
- The Political Context: Teresa was operating in a post-partition India that was suspicious of Western missionaries.
- The Catholic Identity: She wasn't a social worker. She said this herself, repeatedly. She was a missionary. Her goal wasn't just to "fix" poverty; it was to "be with" the poor.
- The Global Scale: The Missionaries of Charity have over 5,000 sisters today. That doesn't happen just because of a "marketing myth."
The cinematography in No Greater Love is objectively stunning. It uses 4K footage of the slums that makes the grit feel very real, but it frames that grit through a lens of hope. It’s the polar opposite of the grainy, cynical footage used in the 90s.
Navigating the Controversy
If you're looking for the "truth," you won't find it in just one film. You have to watch them in conversation with each other.
Watch the 1986 documentary Mother Teresa by the Petrie sisters for a look at her at the height of her fame. Then, read the critiques. Then, watch the 2022 film.
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Basically, the "science" of her sainthood is often at odds with the "management" of her clinics. In 2013, researchers from the University of Montreal and the University of Ottawa analyzed the documentation on her life. They concluded that her "hallowed" image didn't stand up to the facts regarding her "dubious way of caring for the sick."
But then you talk to someone like Jim Towey, who was her lawyer and friend. He’ll tell you she was a woman of immense humor and practical grit who did what the rest of the world refused to do. She picked up people who were literally being eaten by maggots. Does the lack of a modern hospital setup negate that act of mercy? That’s the question every documentary on Mother Teresa asks the viewer to answer.
Actionable Steps for the Curious Viewer
If you want to actually understand this woman beyond the memes and the headlines, don't just stream the first thing you see.
- Compare the Eras: Start with Something Beautiful for God (YouTube often has clips) to see the "miracle" that started it all.
- Check the Source: When watching No Greater Love, keep in mind it’s produced by the Knights of Columbus. It’s an "inside" look. It’s beautiful, but it’s biased.
- Read the Letters: Instead of a narrator telling you what she thought, read Mother Teresa: Come Be My Light. It’s her own words. It’s darker and more complex than any movie.
- Look for Independent Indian Perspectives: Search for interviews with people from Kolkata who aren't part of the church. Their views are often far more nuanced than the "Saint vs. Villain" binary we have in the West.
The reality is that Mother Teresa was a person of extremes. She lived in a way that most of us find uncomfortable. Whether you see her as a radical servant or a misguided fundamentalist, the films about her life serve as a mirror. They reflect what we believe about suffering, charity, and what it means to be a "good person."
Don't settle for the simplified version. The real story is in the contradictions. Go watch the footage of her 1979 Nobel acceptance speech. She talks about abortion as the greatest threat to peace. It’s uncomfortable, it’s controversial, and it’s pure, unfiltered Teresa. That's the woman who changed the world, for better or worse.
How to Find These Films
Most of these documentaries are available on major streaming platforms or through Catholic-specific media outlets like Formed or EWTN. No Greater Love often has special screenings in parishes and local theaters during the anniversary of her canonization in September. Check your local library for the older Petrie sisters' documentary, as it remains one of the most balanced archival records of her daily life.