The Name of the Rose

Buy This Item The Name of the Rose  Available from Amazon  Click 'BUY IT NOW' to get price.  on 11-29-2008     Jean-Jacques Annaud's <I>The Name of the Rose</I> is a flawed attempt to adapt Umberto Eco's highly convoluted medieval bestseller for the screen, necessarily excising much of the esoterica that made the book so compelling. Still, what's left is a riveting whodunit set in a grimly and grimily realistic 14th-century Benedictine monastery populated by a parade of grotesque characters, all of whom spend their time lurking in dark places or scuttling, half-unseen, in the omnipresent gloom. A series of mysterious and gruesome deaths are somehow tied up with the unwelcome attention of the Inquisition, sent to root out suspected heretical behavior among the monastic scribes whose lives are dedicated to transcribing ancient manuscripts for their famous library, access to which is prevented by an ingenious maze-like layout. <p> Enter Sean Connery as investigator-monk William of Baskerville (the Sherlock Holmes connection made explicit in his name) and his naive young assistant Adso (a youthful Christian Slater). The Grand Inquisitor Bernado Gui (F. Murray Abraham) suspects devilry; but William and Adso, using Holmesian forensic techniques, uncover a much more human cause: the secrets of the library are being protected at a terrible cost. A fine international cast and the splendidly evocative location compensate for a screenplay that struggles to present Eco's multifaceted story even partially intact; Annaud's idiosyncratic direction complements the sinister, unsettling aura of the tale ideally. <I>--Mark Walker</I> Reader Reviews In my opinion, this was a great adaptation of Eco's masterpiece. I am one of those quirky Eco fans out there, that loved the ending of this film much better than the ending of the book. The atmosphere, the photography, the brilliant dialogue of the characters, and the beautifully constructed soundtrack by James Horner made this a very surreal view of the Middle Ages, like no other film has ever been able to demonstrate to me. Sean Connery is brilliant in his role as William of Baskerville and Christian Slater, as his young novice, form a picture perfect duo in a world of the Inquisition and it's suppresion of knowledge. This film is a must for anyone that is interested in the Middle Ages. The dialogue has several lines that will leave you pondering on them long after you have seen the film. Great movie, one of the overlooked gems of the time.

The Name of the Rose Available from Amazon Price: Click 'BUY IT NOW' to get price. Updated on 11-29-2008.

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