The Name of the Rose (1986)
"Der Name der Rose" (original title)

An intellectually nonconformist monk investigates a series of mysterious deaths in an isolated abbey.

Director:

Jean-Jacques Annaud

Writers:

Umberto Eco (novel), Andrew Birkin (screenplay),

Stars:

Sean Connery, Christian Slater, Helmut Qualtinger

Won 2 BAFTA Film Awards. Another 13 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sean Connery	...	William of Baskerville
Christian Slater	...	Adso of Melk
Helmut Qualtinger	...	Remigio da Varagine
Elya Baskin	...	Severinus
Michael Lonsdale	...	The Abbot
Volker Prechtel	...	Malachia
Feodor Chaliapin Jr.	...	Jorge de Burgos
William Hickey	...	Ubertino da Casale
Michael Habeck	...	Berengar
Urs Althaus	...	Venantius
Valentina Vargas	...	The Girl
Ron Perlman	...	Salvatore
Leopoldo Trieste	...	Michele da Cesena
Franco Valobra	...	Jerome of Kaffa
Vernon Dobtcheff	...	Hugh of Newcastle

Storyline

1327: after a mysterious death in a Benedictine Abbey, the monks are convinced that the apocalypse is coming. With the Abbey to play host to a council on the Franciscan's Order's belief that the Church should rid itself of wealth, William of Baskerville, a respected Franciscan monk, is asked to assist in determining the cause of the untimely death. Alas, more deaths occur as the investigation draws closer to uncovering the secret the Abbey wants hidden, and there is finally no stopping the Holy Inquisition from taking an active hand in the process. William and his young novice must race against time to prove the innocence of the unjustly accused and avoid the wrath of Holy Inquisitor Bernardo Gui.

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Plot Keywords:

abbey | death | monk | franciscan | novice | 

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Taglines:

Sie glaubten an Gott und waren des Teufels.

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery | Thriller | Crime

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

West Germany Italy France

Language:

English Latin

Release Date:

24 September 1986 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Name of the Rose

Filming Locations:

Abruzzo, Italy

Box Office

Budget:

$17,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$7,200,000 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Neue Constantin Film, Cristaldifilm, Les Films Ariane

Technical Specs

Runtime:

130 min

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) Dolby (35 mm prints)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Jean-Jacques Annaud admitted to casting the ugliest actors he could get because he wanted the characters to appear "real", based on the men in the village where he lived. When he returned to his village, some of the men asked him if he really considered them to be as ugly as the actors, and he said, "Yes."

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Goofs

At several points in the film, individuals enter another's cell (room) rather freely. In ancient religious rules, entering another monk's cell without permission was normally forbidden, even punishable by excommunication.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Voice of Adso as an Old Man: Having reached the end of my poor sinner's life, my hair now white, I prepare to leave on this parchment my testimony as to the wondrous and terrible events that I witnessed in my youth, towards the end of the year of our Lord 1327. May God grant me the wisdom and grace to be the faithful chronicler of the happenings that took place in a remote abbey in the dark north of Italy. An abbey whose name it seems, even now, pious and prudent to omit.

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Crazy Credits

The opening credits read - A palimpsest of Umberto Eco's Novel The Name of the Rose

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Connections

Referenced in Enemy at the Gates (2001)

User Reviews

"The step between ecstatic vision and sinful frenzy is all too brief."

The film opens in 1327, with a Franciscan monk and his young novice arriving to a remote abbey in the dark north of Italy to participate in a crucial debate between the emissaries of Pope John XXII and leaders of the Franciscan order, to decide whether the church should take vows of poverty or wealth...

After a series of murders—attributed to the presence of a supernatural force— that are taking place within the cold walls of the godforsaken battlement, Brother William of Baskerville (Connery) ends up undertaking an investigation to solve the secrets surrounding these unexplainable crimes… All of them bearing blackened fingers and blackened tongues…

What follows, brings William face to face with Bernardo Gui (F. Murray Abraham), the sadistic Grand inquisitor—appointed by the Pope to hunt down and free the Church of heretics—who sees the abbey enshrouded in a terrifying mystery and the devil roaming behind every foul deed… Gui burns every last suspected devil-worshipper in the village, forcing Baskerville to uncover the truth before innocent blood is shed…

As always, Connery lends dignity, intelligence as the acute and prudent monk who has knowledge, both of the human spirit and the wiles of the evil one… Connery plays his role with gusto…

Newcomer Christian Slater plays Connery's faithful sidekick, Adso, the youngest son of the Baron of Melk who sure does like to watch his master at work… One night—expressing fear and confusion— he gets feminine carnal delights from a peasant girl, 'a creature that rose like the dawn, was bewitching as the moon, radiant as the sun, terrible as an army poised for battle…'

For a moment, Ron Perlman steals the show as the heretical hunchbacked monk named Salvatore who is ugly yet phenomenal… His scenes with Abraham are stirring…

"The Name of the Rose" is atmospheric, but disturbing at many levels… Some might say, contradictory, leaving plenty of twists and turns unresolved and unexplained, but the film was a smash hit in Europe… Annaud succeeds in capturing the claustrophobia and panic of being truly lost in the menacing, creepy Dark Ages…