Movie Reviews for The Name of the Rose

The Name of the Rose

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Movie Reviews of The Name of the Rose

Movie Review: Dank, Cold Life In A Medieval Monastery, With Murders Solved By William Of Baskerville
Summary: 4 Stars

"But what is so alarming about laughter?" asks William of Baskerville (Sean Connery) of the aged, righteous, milk-eyed monk, Jorge de Burgos (Feodor Chaliapin, Jr.). "Laughter kills fear," the Venerable Jorge snarls, "and without fear there can be no faith, because without fear of the Devil there is no more need of God."

The Name of the Rose is a fascinating, and at times confusing, overlay of murder and philosophical disputation that takes place in a frigid medieval monastery perched on a mountain in the year 1327. A young monk has been found, his body crushed and mutilated, on the rocks below a high window placed in a stone tower. The window, however, could not be opened and there was no access to the roof above. William of Baskerville, journeying with his young assistant, Adso (Christian Slater), is asked to find out what happened before a debate begins at the monastery between the monks and representatives of the Pope on the question of material wealth by the religious. Soon William, a Franciscan monk who takes pride in using his mind and not simply relying on belief, finds himself immersed in murder, with more gruesome deaths among the young monks, and even deeper mysteries hidden in the locked rooms of this secretive monastery. We also learn that the representatives of the Papal debate will be accompanied by Bernardo Gui (F. Murray Abraham) of the Inquisition. This raises the stakes not just for the monastery, but for William of Baskerville. "I too was an Inquisitor," he tells Adso, "but in the early days, when the Inquisition strove to guide, not to punish. And once I had to preside at a trial of a man whose only crime was to have translated a Greek book that conflicted with the Holy Scriptures. Bernardo Gui wanted him condemned as a heretic; I acquitted the man. Then Bernardo Gui accused me of heresy, for having defended him. I appealed to the Pope. I...I was put in prison, tortured, and... and I recanted." "What happened then?" Adso asks. "The man was burned at the stake and I am still alive."

Eventually the secrets of the monastery and the reasons for the murders, using deduction, logic and many questions, are uncovered by William...but not before hidden doors are opened, catacombs filled with the mouldering bones of deceased monks are explored and a musty, great library of parchment books is discovered in a labyrinth of stairways and rooms.

This is one of those movies that I like a lot but wish it had been just a little better. The mystery keeps building and the deaths are satisfyingly unpleasant. One monk is found head first in a vat of pigs blood, another in a tub of water scattered over with herbs. They all have ink stained thumbs and darkened tongues. But what I like best about the movie is its look, its grotesque recreation of squalid medieval life in a monastery. You can feel the lice and the fleas crawling and biting, smell the unwashed bodies and dirty woolen habits and cloaks, see the yellow, rotting teeth and red-rimmed eyes, sense all the suppressed sexual tension and, above all else, feel the dank, unremitting cold. There's almost no warmth. Noses run, hands are chapped. The faces of the cast are just as memorable, as uncomfortable to look at as the carved stone gargoyles found throughout. Malachio (Volker Prechtel), the librarian, with a scheming, unforgiving face like a skull; Brother Berenger (Michael Habeck), fat, bald and androgynous, who whips himself at night and stares at other young monks during the day; Ubertino of Casale (William Hickey), creased, wrinkled and eccentrically wise; Salvatore (Ron Perlman), a simple-minded, shuffling hulk who loves to catch and eat rats; the Abbot (Michael Lonsdale), a well-fed, slightly greasy man who is prepared to be supple in his conclusions; and, most of all, the Venerable Jorge, unforgiving and certain in his rigid beliefs.

For me, there are two drawbacks to the film. First, the plot lines could have been clearer. Second, two thirds of the way into the story the dispute involving Gui and the Inquisition brings the momentum of the movie to a halt, and we stay becalmed until we're back to William finally solving things. Those looking for the complexities, erudition and asides of the book will probably be disappointed unless they accept that books and movies are two very different mediums. The movie, for me, stands as a fascinating and grotesque look at a medieval way of life, combined with a clever, violent and even thoughtful mystery.

The DVD looks very good, but, as much of the movie was photographed to be dark and clammy, be prepared for gloomy, overcast scenes during day and lots of nighttime shots. It's not always possible for a clear look at what's going on. The extras include a commentary by the director, Jean-Jacques Annaud, a making-of documentary and an interesting discussion by Annaud of how he developed the look of the film.

For fans of Annaud (and Ron Perlman) his Quest for Fire is an interesting and at times amusing look at the adventures involving two, then three, early hominids.

Movie Review: We need more like this!
Summary: 5 Stars

This was one of the most underrated movies of the 80s; underrated because not many movie fans know how to appreciate an intelligent movie. While most movies grow more boring each time you watch them, this one gets better everytime.

Movie Review: Wonderful movie and read the book!
Summary: 5 Stars

Next to Braveheart, this is my favorite movie, and the book by Umberto Eco is the best mystery novel I've ever read, personally. It's a mystery drama in a setting of the dark ages of Europe in an ancient Abbey of the Italian Alps, 1327. Brother William of Baskerville (Sean Connery) finds himself investigating murders that happen over a seven day and night period. His tools are the logic of Aristotle, the theology of Aquinas, and the empirical insights of his own master; Roger Bacon. During his investigations he discovers that the Aedificum, is not only a massive towering library of the Abbey castle fortress, but a labyrinth of rising and falling staircases worthy of the hand of M.C. Escher. This labyrinth of books, hidden away from mankind, is a dangerous threat to the Church, so closely guarded, that he and his young novice, Adso Melk (Christian Slater) must first find their way into the library in order to find clues of the murders, but then must find their way back out with hard evidence of the killer, before the arrival of the infamous Spanish inquisitor, Benardo Gui (F. Murray Abraham). All at once exiting, intriguing, and horrific, The Name of the Rose will have you on the edge of your chair!!!
This is also, one of Ron Pearlman's first acting film rolls as Brother Salvatore`, the Hunchback of the Abbey, and his performance is outrageous! If you didn't know it was he, you might not recognize him because he's so ugly! It's his best performance to date.

Movie Review: The Name of the Rose
Summary: 5 Stars

The DVD was very good, however the first time service with Amazon.com was not good. The DVD showed up 9 days after I ordered it. You may want to think of another service than USPS, this should not be happening.
I have a son in CA and I get regular mail in 3 days from him as I discussed twice with your customer service people.

Thank you,
Barbara Huss