High drama abounds in the Cold War drama “The Shoes of the Fisherman.” Anthony Quinn plays a Russian Catholic priest who is released from a twenty-year imprisonment in a Siberian prison camp. He then goes to Rome, where the Pope appoints him a cardinal, and, after a time, ascents to the papacy itself. He soon finds himself involved in international intrigue when a Soviet-Chinese feud threatens to turn into World War III.
Expert direction by Michael Anderson (“All the Fine Young Cannibals” 1960) holds the audiences attention throughout the nearly three hour running time of the picture. The excellent screenplay by Morris West was adapted from his 1963 novel of the same name. Filming on location at the Vatican and other high-grade production values account for two Academy Award nominations for Best Production Design and Best Original Score.
Co-stars include Laurence Olivier, Oskar Werner, David Jannsen, Vittorio De Sica, Leo McKern, John Gielgud, Burt Kwock, Clive Revill, and Isa Miranda. The watchable movie “The Shoes of the Fisherman” did not make enough cash at the box office to cover the costly budget, and therefore was a disappointment for producer George Englund and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
The Shoes of the Fisherman (1968)
cinema
My Review
High drama abounds in the Cold War drama “The Shoes of the Fisherman.” Anthony Quinn plays a Russian Catholic priest who is released from a twenty-year imprisonment in a Siberian prison camp. He then goes to Rome, where the Pope appoints him a cardinal, and, after a time, ascents to the papacy itself. He soon finds himself involved in international intrigue when a Soviet-Chinese feud threatens to turn into World War III.
Expert direction by Michael Anderson (“All the Fine Young Cannibals” 1960) holds the audiences attention throughout the nearly three hour running time of the picture. The excellent screenplay by Morris West was adapted from his 1963 novel of the same name. Filming on location at the Vatican and other high-grade production values account for two Academy Award nominations for Best Production Design and Best Original Score.
Co-stars include Laurence Olivier, Oskar Werner, David Jannsen, Vittorio De Sica, Leo McKern, John Gielgud, Burt Kwock, Clive Revill, and Isa Miranda. The watchable movie “The Shoes of the Fisherman” did not make enough cash at the box office to cover the costly budget, and therefore was a disappointment for producer George Englund and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.