[2][3] The script is by Sabrina B. Karine, Pascal Bonitzer, Anne Fontaine and Alice Vial, after an original idea by Philippe Maynial.

[4] Maynial took inspiration from the experiences of his aunt, Madeleine Pauliac, a French Red Cross doctor who worked in Poland after World War II.

In Warsaw, December 1945, a nun known as Sister Teresa approaches a young French female student doctor, Mathilde Beaulieu, serving with an army unit.

Later the Abbess discloses to Beaulieu that several nuns at the convent were raped by Soviet soldiers, relating that the experience was nightmarish, and they wish to keep this a secret.

Some of the pregnant nuns are reluctant to be examined intimately by the doctor, believing this will violate their vow of chastity.

The Mistress of Novices, Sister Maria, tells the doctor that every day she is reminded of these harsh events.

The novice replies, "Faith is 24 hours of doubt with one minute of hope", going on to describe her difficulties with the practice.

The Abbess is upset that she was lied to and tells the Mistress of Novices that she has been corrupted by "that French woman", who has brought scandal and disorder to the convent.

Meanwhile, Sister Zofia commits suicide by jumping from an upper ledge, dying shortly after her wounded body is discovered.

It occurs to her that the nuns could start raising many of these children and open an orphanage, thus avoiding questions about where the babies are coming from.

The final scene is three months later, with a photographer at the convent taking pictures of the nuns and happy orphans.

The site's critical consensus reads, "The Innocents isn't always easy to watch, but its nuanced exploration of complex themes -- and its refreshing perspective -- are well worth the effort.