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 murdersattributed 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 inquisitorappointed by the Pope to hunt down and free the Church of hereticswho 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 nightexpressing 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
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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
