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.

Effective Exploration of Faith Feels A Bit Bloated
Gothic thrillers these days are in fairly short supply, so I'd imagine fans of this unique sub-genre will possibly flock to pick up THE MONK. And why not? This R-rated story offers up some modest drama infused with a bit of carnal appeal (just a bit, though, and even I would've expected more). What might they find? Well, it's an exploration of one man's faith in a world more complex than he had imagined, one that even he took for granted. But isn't it always the case that the man who places himself so high must inevitably endure the hardest fall?

(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and characters. If you're the kind of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I'd encourage you to skip down to the last three paragraphs for my final assessment. If, however, you're accepting of a few modest hints at `things to come', then read on ...)

Brother Ambrosio (played by Vincent Cassel) is...

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