A Man Called Peter
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Movie Reviews of A Man Called Peter
Movie Review: A Truly Inspiring Film
Summary: 5 Stars
Hollywood has rarely made such inspirational films as this classic Twentieth Century Fox release from 1955. Based on a true story by Catherine Marshall (which is even more inspiring), this was a very fine production that quickly convinces the viewer of the sincerity and devotion of Peter Marshall.
Years ago, when NBC first nationally televised the film on its "Saturday Night At The Movies," this writer first thought the film might be about Simon Peter, one of Christ's apostles. It quickly became apparent that it was a more modern story about a man who also received a dramatic calling from God to serve in the ministry. In the film we do not hear the voice of God. Peter Marshall (1902-1949) was a young Scotsman returning home from night school in a heavy fog when he heard a man's voice calling his name repeatedly. He stopped and looked around, then discovered he had almost plunged to his death at the edge of a steep cliff. The film, in which British actor Richard Todd played Peter, shows that the young man quickly recognized that God wanted him to go into the ministry and that he would have to leave his beloved Scotland for America.
The movie is generally faithful to Catherine Marshall's book. It shows how Peter worked at some odd jobs until he was able to enter a seminary to prepare for the ministry, in the Presbyterian church. He first served at a small parish in Georgia and then went to a much larger church in Atlanta; it was there that the young Catherine first saw him, while she was a college student. She, along with many other young people, recognized that Peter Marshall was unlike other pastors. He clearly had a personal relationship with God and he was able to show how to live a God-centered life. The word spread and his church was soon filled to capacity with many others standing outside the church, listening to his inspiring sermons over loud speakers.
The film, like the book, is also a love story and shows how Peter and Catherine (portrayed by Jean Peters in her final film before she married Howard Hughes) came to know each other, fell in love, and were married. They then moved to Washington, D.C., where he became pastor at the historic New York Avenue Presbyterian Church, often called "The Church of the Presidents." Indeed, as the film shows, Abraham Lincoln and his family worshipped at this church.
Peter had many progressive ideas and he challenged the church leaders in bringing the congregation into the twentieth century. The film shows how this was not an easy task. The results, of course, were quite dramatic and, once again, Peter faced a standing-room-only church with people standing outside. The church services were broadcast on radio and, in the late 1940's, they were also recorded on pioneering Ampex tape recording equipment (giving us today an opportunity to hear the voice of the real Peter Marshall, beginning with the historic Caedmon albums released in the 1950s).
One of the more memorable moments of the film shows Peter preaching at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis on the morning of the attack on the naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. At the last moment, Peter scrapped his sermon and preached a message which proved much more appropriate for the young men who would soon go off to war.
Following his wife's serious illness, from which she miraculously recovered, and his own heart attack, Peter was appointed chaplain of the U.S. Senate. As chaplain, he was asked to give the prayer at President Harry Truman's only inauguration, on January 20, 1949, which was the first to be televised. That event is not shown in the film, but Catherine mentions it in her book. Only a week after the inaugration, Peter was stricken again and, after saying "see you in the morning," he was taken to the hospital and never came home again.
The film was directed by Henry Koster, who had directed Fox's 1953 adaptation of the Lloyd Douglas novel "The Robe" (the first film released in CinemaScope), and the story was treated with remarkable respect. An added ingredient was the moving musical score by Fox's musical director, Alfred Newman, who also wrote the music for "The Robe." The film is not pretentious or overly sentimental; it is quite genuine and it gives a good idea of the remarkable Peter Marshall.
The only unanswered question, which has intrigued many of us, is why Peter died at the age of 46, in the midst of a very effective and powerful ministry. Catherine Marshall published many of her late husband's sermons and it's clear that they are still very relevant and very moving; they speak with a powerful voice that can still be a great help and inspiration. Fortunately, the movie includes excerpts from several of his sermons and, given Richard Todd's competent delivery, they again bring to life the words of one of the twentieth century's most memorable ministers.
Movie Review: Plenty of sermons with a bit of sickness
Summary: 5 Stars
I saw the movie A MAN CALLED PETER when I was young and recently thought I should own the DVD and listen to the recording of a sermon by Peter Marshall that was a special feature on the DVD. There are plenty of sermons in the movie itself, including a sermon for the cadets at the naval academy in Annapolis on December 7, 1941 delivered before the attack on Pearl Harbor but emphasizing how meaningfully death could become our own world in a way that this world never will be. Peter Marshall was chaplain for the U.S. Senate, where he offered daily prayers that strove to be relevant to the kind of things that happen in Washington, D.C., from 1947 until the heart attack which killed him in 1949. Seeing the movie in a theater as a child, I was impressed by the idea that people who work hard are bound to die young and go to a well-deserved rest. I have certainly not been working hard enough for anything like that to happen to me, but I can appreciate this movie as an intellectual exercise in reflecting the spirit of the times in which the United States became a great power but faced mounting confusions about how to remain one.
On a personal level, Catherine Marshall is a major character in the movie, and she was author of a book that the movie is based on. At the beginning, she is merely a college girl going to church and listening to sermons, but remembering much more than most of us are capable of. That part of the plot reminds me of some themes of the `somebody's miracle' CD which Liz Phair released in 2005. The ironic first song, "leap of innocence," includes the dreadful lines, "I had so many friends in rehab. A couple who practically died. Anyone can tell you were my instrument. He said, I understand you. You want to play me." God and the Marshalls triangulated that theme marvelously.
One of the characters in the movie, a Senator Harvey, thwarts the plans of the timber interests who want to create a few more millionaires by clearing some forests, when he votes against a land bill to save thousands of farms that could have been destroyed by floods in subsequent years. It is nice to know that people making movies in 1955 were smart enough to include a few lines about facing the wind, like the second song on the Liz Phair CD about `wind and the mountain,' where she sings, "You're gonna right another wrong. And sometimes I am inspired. You're gonna raise your hand and say I don't understand. And there are days when you get an answer. There are days when you find your answer."
The movie includes a sermon on Elijah telling the chosen people, "Choose to serve the Lord." A little fire from heaven helped the people at Mt. Carmel make that choice, and sarcastic comments about the 450 prophets of Baal who could not call down fire from heaven certainly helped Americans learn how a super power could act on a good day, when the future seems like nothing but easy cakewalks. We have built an incredibly complex military base for carrying out whatever destructive tasks we can imagine, but have been lacking enough foresight to figure out what we will do when the people we borrowed money from ask us to actually pay for it. As Liz Phair put it:
And the wind that I'm in
Screams on me
Screams on me
Howls around me
Howls around me
And I feel like I am a naked man
I've got nothing and no one
In a stranger's land
And the wind will do me in.
Movie Review: Hollywood makes a movie about a pastor - and does a very good job
Summary: 5 Stars
Peter Marshall was not an extraordinary man or preacher but the biography his wife wrote about him struck a nerve with returning GI's in the late 40's and early 50's. These were men who had had enough of the horrors of war and who were seeking the stability of church and family life. The book became an enormous bestseller (it was in the top ten for 120 weeks). Anyone reading it today may wonder what the fuss was all about. There are plenty of dedicated men in ministry who preach as well or better than Marshall did and yet no one writes books about them. What made the book a phenomenon was its perfect timing. People were hungry for a contemporary masculine Christian role model and Marshall had just passed away in 1949. Marshall was handsome, charming, athletic, manly, and a "pick yourself up by the bootstraps" success story (he worked himself out of poverty in his homeland of Scotland and ended up US Senate chaplain). He made faith and reverence appear to be essential character traits of the well-rounded, fully developed man. Women were attracted to him; men aspired to be more like him. Sounds good to me.
We don't expect Hollywood to make a good film about a Christian pastor. Oh, they can handle the big epics all right; glitz and spectacle are right up their alley. But a film about a man of faith - a man who has very little that is spectacular happening on the surface of his life - this is not something that Hollywood shows much interest in. Hollywood actually pulls it off here. Here's a film that is never sanctimonious, usually entertaining in a light drama sort of way, always sincere, and sometimes quite moving (Marshall's sermon on the afterlife given at Annapolis is truly affecting. I don't think that I will ever see a more sincere presentation in film of the hope of Christianity. The actor did a magnificent job). AMCP is full of sunlight and goodness. It's impressively filmed in expensive Cinemascope (the dvd presentation is wide screen).
I could complain about a few things (Jean Peters gives a silly talk about women's equality and how it supposedly has led to lower morals) but only a few. This is a good film. Recommended.
Movie Review: Wholesome & inspiring biography
Summary: 5 Stars
Hollywood doesn't make many movies like this anymore! Richard Todd powerfully portrays the Rev. Peter Marshall in this biographical film that follows Marshall from his humble beginnings as a sea-loving laddie in Scotland to his years of service in America, first as a pastor and then as Senate chaplain.
The film features several of his sermons, including one delivered to the U.S. Naval Academy on December 7, 1941, just before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Todd delivers these eloquent messages with zeal and potency. He also shows that Marshall was more than just a good preacher. Long before "seeker-sensitive" became the buzz-word of the day, Marshall wasn't afraid to defy traditions (such as ditching the clerical collar) and try different methods of outreach. Still, his ringing message never wavered, an example that the "felt needs" crowd of today could learn from!
Parents looking for wholesome and character-building entertainment for their family have a gold mine in this story. Issues like humility, yielding to God, patience through trials, godly courtship (illustrated by Marshall's relationship with his wife-to-be Catherine, wonderfully played by Jean Peters), and laying aside sinful habits are woven throughout. There's more Christian content in this Hollywood production than in most "Christian" films! The only minor criticism I would lodge is that the Gospel is never presented as explicitly as I would like.
Although it's an older film and may feel a bit dated (Marshall and his wife are shown sleeping in separate beds!), "A Man Called Peter" is nonetheless an inspiring portrait of a man of faith and character. Highly recommended.
Movie Review: PETER ON DVD A SPIRITUAL EXPERIENCE!
Summary: 5 Stars
The wait for the CinemaScope version of "A Man Called Peter" on DVD is over! I can now retire my VHS "Pan&Scan" copy. The DVD transfer is beautiful -- but it is the script, the marvelous performances of Richard Todd and Jean Peters that bring to life the inspiring sermons of Dr. Peter Marshall. Amazingly, 25% of the films 119 minutes consists of excerpts from his sermons. It was a daring step for a studio take. (Notice the included Trailor which goes out of its way not to show any preaching being done from the pulpit.) Todd's delivery can only be discribed as "inspired." Speaking of sermons, there is a wonderful bonus included on this DVD -- a rare audio Easter sermon with the voice of the actual Peter Marshall, that was recorded in 1944. Running almost 26 minutes, it is wonderful to be able to hear him speak. It was recordings such as this, that played a major part in Samuel G. Engel, the film's Producer, taking the daring step of using the sermons as the film's hightlight. This is a DVD not to be missed -- and you just may want to pick up a few extra copies for gifts to special people in your life. Thanks to Fox for making this one available!