Le moine

In December 1595, a baby is left at the Capuchin monastery just outside of Madrid. The monks debated and decided to raise the boy in the monastery. He would become their best orator Ambrosio (Vincent Cassel). The church is packed as his brand of strict faith inspires the congregation. Only his actions may lead him down a thorny path.

Vincent Cassel has a natural intensity. This could have been a very powerful and profound movie. The story is there to put on film. But this movie has little movement. Most of the time, the characters do not move at all. It is all talk, and some of it is confoundingly slow. Other than two or three exchanges, most of the dialog could have been slash in half.

The story is there. If starving a pregnant nun to death in a dungeon cell isn't compelling, then I don't know what is. The problem is everything in between. And the twist is as telegraphed as they come. This could have been a great character study as this man get more outrageous as the movie goes along. Instead, Cassel isn't allow to physically act. There is a good story but this isn't a good film. It's a promise unfulfilled.

Historical and monastery- or palace-related films are usually catchy and intense as both external and internal reclusion provide sufficient basis for these - particularly together with religious mystique. Le moine is a good example here, but not among the finest: its run is sometimes protracted, many supporting actors are unvaried (female ones, above all) and the ending does not summarize all "loose ends" recognised during the film. As of today, the issues approached do not awake the same feelings as centuries ago when the novel The Monk: A Romance was written by Matthew Gregory Lewis (1796) - at least in agnostics like me.

The gem of the film is undoubtedly the star Vincent Cassel as Capucino Ambrosio (= the Monk); he outperforms his counterparts and there are scenes where his presence could have been more visible (well, usually I am not so much into so-called solo films).

Thus, as for tenseness and uniformity of characters, Le moine leaves to be desired; e.g. The Name of the Rose is better.

Dominik Moll makes few movies : this is only his fourth feature film in 17 years. But his themes are always very consistent. And his latest choice, "The Monk", Matthew G. Lewis's 18th Century cult novel, cherished by the Surrealists, appears as particularly relevant in the wake of "Intimacy", "Harry, He's Here To Help" and "Lemming". It is a good pick because the book's fiendish subject allows the director to go further into the issue he has explored in his two former movies : evil lurking behind the reassuring codes of polished society. The only real differences with his former works are that "The Monk" is a period film (the scene is set between the late 16th Century and the early 17th Century) and the first one made by the gifted French director outside France (it is filmed entirely in Almeria and Madrid, Spain), which only brings added value to his questioning : what more fertile soil is there indeed for evil to flourish than the cult of austerity and purity in a society permeated with religiosity? The strange thing is that "The Monk", with such potential assets, failed to draw large audiences as well as to get good reviews. Most critics even hammered the film, going as far as to call it a bomb. But is it really such a bad work? Personally, I do not think so. For sure, "The Monk" is not the masterpiece it could have been. Its main flaw may be that the film is too wise, more illustrative than really profound and unsettling (Ken Russell's 'The Devils", or even Stephen Frears's "Dangerous Liaisons", were much more troubling and inspired), but as it is, it does not deserve such rough treatment. The critics' excessive harshness may simply be due to expectations set too high and disappointed. For despite being too controlled, Dominik Moll's last effort IS a finely crafted film with beautiful, well-framed images (some, like Ambrosio preaching to his ravished congregation, even have the splendor of a Spanish painting of the time) , high quality sound design, and a very good (though occasionally a bit invading) score by Alberto Iglesias, well-chosen locations and a good cast. Brother Ambrosio, the Capuchin friar of the title, is aptly played by Vincent Cassel, who makes you believe throughout that he is this austere and uncompromising man of God who believes only in virtue and has no doubt he will remain safe from evil and lust. Also to be noted are Catherine Mouchet, moving as an ailing woman who suffers without losing her dignity, and young Camille Japy, whose presence in the role of the ingénue untouched by evil is refreshing.

When leaving the theater you may feel slightly frustrated for, yes, "The Monk" lacks a little intensity, but slightly only, as you will just have seen an interesting, well-made film. Not such a bad experience after all.

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 temptation. Scores come to the monastery to simply see him and have him hear their confession. His beneficence to a young nun (Roxane Duran) who has become pregnant is cancelled by the abbess of the nunnery (Geraldine Chaplin) and evil begins to shroud the film. A young monk Valerio (Déborah François) is brought to the monastery masked to apparently cover the brutal burn wounds on his face, but in actuality Valerio has healing powers, is able to heal Ambrosio's frequent severe headaches, and finally reveals to Ambrosio that there is a women beneath that mask. From this point the near holy monk Ambrosio falls from grace and descends into seduction, depravity, satanic secrets and murder.

Yes, there are lapses in the story that beg explanation but the atmosphere created by the cinematic team and the performances by Vincent Cassell and the rest of the cast more than make this a fine cinematic achievement.

Grady Harp

I don't understand the bad reviews and low ratings for this. Its the best movie I have seen in a while . Full of Gothic imagery and the wonderful acting skills of Vincent Cassel .Lots of other interesting characters and wonderful shots of the countryside of Navarra ,Spain also. I throughly enjoyed every minute of it myself. I haven't read the book so I'm not going to go into that side of it. I gave this a 9 and its rare enough I would rate a movie that high. Normally I don't bother writing reviews but I felt I had to say something here as "The Monk " is getting slated unfairly in my opinion. Don't be put off by the ratings here is all Im saying. This movie is more than worth watching.