My favorite actor, or perhaps I should say that the actor for whom I have the most respect, is Cary Grant. And the reason is, that perhaps more than any other one actor, Cary Grant could shift from drama to comedy without any problem at all, and do both brilliantly. Although Jack Lemmon doesn't quite reach the peaks that Cary Grant did, it's close. I can think of comedies where Lemmon is brilliant. I can think of dramas where Lemmon is brilliant. But the problem with being particularly talented with comedy is that some people then mistake a film as being a comedy. That is true for this film. Is there humor in this film? Yes, a fair amount. But the story is one of tragedy. Instead of being deacons, young men are being kicked out of the seminary. And, one of the deacons who stands up for them, is also being kicked out of the seminary. Guilt by association. Guilt due to honesty. Meanwhile, a well-established popular priest (Lemmon) has sympathy for the deacon who will be removed because he spoke up, and Lemmon decides to help him...only to discover he doesn't have the strength within to do so because it threatens his own standing in his own church. So, this is a comedy? I don't think so.
Although I remember going to this film in 1984, apparently it did not do very well at the box office. Perhaps a large part of that is that the audience -- it would mostly interest Catholics -- was limiting. And that's a shame, because I've always felt this was one of Jack Lemmon's better performances. I would go so far as to describe it as "masterful", and to me, his last truly great dramatic role.
The young deacon -- Zeljko Ivanek -- is very impressive in this film. I always wondered what happened to him, but I see that he actually has been quite busy on television and Broadway...just not in things that I have watched. It takes a while in this film to see just how good he was, but once you get beyond the character's brashness, you see the sensitivity of the actor.
The other major role here is Charles Durning, who I first took real note of in "Queen Of The Stardust Ballroom", a teleplay. I have long felt him to be one of the finest character actors in recent screen history. Here he plays the "bad guy" -- the head of the seminary who is dismissing students. So you're not apt to be very sympathetic to his character, but he plays the role very well.
I should mention Louise Latham, who has a role here as the housekeeper at the rectory. It's not a major role, but I always enjoyed seeing this character actress on the big screen or on television.
I highly recommend this film for both the story and for the acting. And, it's on my DVD shelf.
Although I remember going to this film in 1984, apparently it did not do very well at the box office. Perhaps a large part of that is that the audience -- it would mostly interest Catholics -- was limiting. And that's a shame, because I've always felt this was one of Jack Lemmon's better performances. I would go so far as to describe it as "masterful", and to me, his last truly great dramatic role.
The young deacon -- Zeljko Ivanek -- is very impressive in this film. I always wondered what happened to him, but I see that he actually has been quite busy on television and Broadway...just not in things that I have watched. It takes a while in this film to see just how good he was, but once you get beyond the character's brashness, you see the sensitivity of the actor.
The other major role here is Charles Durning, who I first took real note of in "Queen Of The Stardust Ballroom", a teleplay. I have long felt him to be one of the finest character actors in recent screen history. Here he plays the "bad guy" -- the head of the seminary who is dismissing students. So you're not apt to be very sympathetic to his character, but he plays the role very well.
I should mention Louise Latham, who has a role here as the housekeeper at the rectory. It's not a major role, but I always enjoyed seeing this character actress on the big screen or on television.
I highly recommend this film for both the story and for the acting. And, it's on my DVD shelf.