The Agony and the Ecstasy (1965)

User Rating:

6.9/10   

Director:

Carol Reed

Writers:

Irving Stone (novel)
Philip Dunne (screen story and screenplay)

Release Date:

7 October 1965 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | History

Tagline:

From the age of magnificence comes a new magnificence in motion pictures

Plot:

The biographical story of Michelangelo's troubles while painting the Sistine Chapel at the urging of Pope Julius II.

Plot Keywords:

Pope | Michelangelo | Painting | Sistine Chapel | Italy

Awards:

Nominated for 5 Oscars. Another 2 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Charlton Heston	...	Michelangelo
Rex Harrison	...	Pope Julius II
Diane Cilento	...	Contessina de'Medici
Harry Andrews	...	Bramante
Alberto Lupo	...	Duke of Urbino
Adolfo Celi	...	Giovanni de' Medici
Venantino Venantini	...	Paris De Grassis
John Stacy	...	Sangallo
Fausto Tozzi	...	Foreman
Maxine Audley	...	Woman
Tomas Milian	...	Raphael

Also Known As:

Irving Stone's The Agony and the Ecstasy

Runtime:

138 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Latin

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (Westrex Recording System) (70 mm prints) | Mono (35 mm prints)

Certification:

Spain:T | Australia:G | Finland:S | UK:U | USA:Approved | Iceland:12

Filming Locations:

Dino De Laurentiis Cinematografica Studios, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company:

International Classics

Trivia:

The material used as the wet plaster that drips into the mouth of Michelangelo (Charlton Heston) was chocolate pudding.

Goofs:

Factual errors: Michelangelo was a homosexual, yet in the movie he seems to like women.

Quotes:

Contessina de Medici: Your question insults us both!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Undergrunnen (1966)

excellent historical drama

I would be more generous than Maltin was with this one. I watched it again recently on tape and my impression improved over my first viewing. The production values are sumptuous, and the construction of a 1:1 mockup of the Sistine Chapel by Dino deLaurentis is a story in itself, evidently. Heston is pretty good as Michelangelo but is, I think, overshadowed by Harrison, who is just marvelous as Pope Julius (a previous commenter remarked on the historically inauthentic absence of his beard; in addition, Julius was too old & inform too ride a horse into battle, but insisted on leading while carried on a litter). The conflicted interplay between Julius & Michelangelo is the core of the film, of course, and the script does its job well in this regard, particularly in the closing dialogue. It is interesting, though, to see how the movie dances around the issue of Michelangelo's purported homosexuality. We are so much more frank today (not necessarily for the better), and one shudders to consider how a contemporary movie would treat this subject (not that there's a chance in hell of a major movie being made today on the subject of the creation of one of the masterworks of West's artistic inheritance). If any movie definitely needs the letterbox format to show it off at its best, it is this one, so watch for it on AMC where it is often shown that way.