The Monk

A Dark yet Beautifully Illuminated Gothic Tale
Matthew G. Lewis wrote this cult classic THE MONK in 1796, and while it was a scandalous work at the time it has survived as a window into the depravity of certain orders of the church. It is particularly timely as a film now, released amidst the scandals of the Catholic Church. Dominick Moll transforms this story in to a film so reminiscent of 16th century Spain in deco and costumes (Maria Clara Notari and Bina Daigeler), music (Alberto Iglesias), and atmospheric cinematography (Patrick Blossier) that the few lapses the story takes form the novel simply do not detract from the visual beauty of this film.

The film opens with an old beggar dropping off an infant on the church steps of a Capuchin monastery in 16th century Spain. The friars raise the child, convinced he is a miracle from the Virgin Mary and at age 18 Ambrosio (Vincent Cassell) takes the vows and becomes a sanctified Capucin monk, but not just a monk but also one blessed with righteousness and distance from...

What a tragedy
Classic quality- start to finish. Smooth and credible, great character development. Well cast and staged. Tragedies are not as popular as comedies, but substantially more useful.

Saintly Monk Breaking Bad
Monty Python taught that "nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition," but here is a film suggesting that the Inquisition, when most needed, tends to show up too late.

17th Century Spain. Ambrosio is left, as an infant, on the steps of a Capuchin monastery, where, after a time jump, he has evolved into their most powerful preacher (Vincent Cassel). Villagers, aristocrats and farmers gather from miles around to hear his homilies. He is the most revered man in the region.

Ambrosio listens--with perhaps excessive interest?--to a man's confession of rape and incest. He delivers soul-shaking sermons with shocking brevity, then breaks off abruptly, reminding me somewhat of Peter Finch's Jeremiads in NETWORK. He turns monastic rules upside-down to welcome a masked stranger into their midst, an individual who cannot participate in canonical activities because of the wax mask that hides the professed burns on his face.

The masked stranger, Valerio, has mysterious...

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