''The Cardinal'' is a 1963 American

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

produced independently, directed by

Otto Preminger Otto Ludwig Preminger ( ; ; 5 December 1905 – 23 April 1986) was an Austrian Americans, Austrian-American film and theatre director, film producer, and actor. He directed more than 35 feature films in a five-decade career after leaving the the ...

and distributed by

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc., Trade name, doing business as Columbia Pictures, is an American film Production company, production and Film distributor, distribution company that is the flagship unit of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group ...

. The

screenplay A screenplay, or script, is a written work produced for a film, television show (also known as a '' teleplay''), or video game by screenwriters (cf. ''stage play''). Screenplays can be original works or adaptations from existing pieces of w ...

was written by Robert Dozier, based on the novel by the same by Henry Morton Robinson. The music score was written by Jerome Moross. The film's cast features Tom Tryon,

Romy Schneider Rosemarie Magdalena Albach (23 September 1938 – 29 May 1982), known professionally as Romy Schneider (), was a German and French actress. She is regarded as one of the greatest screen actresses of all time and became a cult figure due to ...

and

John Huston John Marcellus Huston ( ; August 5, 1906 – August 28, 1987) was an American film director, screenwriter and actor. He wrote the screenplays for most of the 37 feature films he directed, many of which are today considered classics. He rec ...

, and it was nominated for six

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence in ...

. It marks the final appearance by veteran film star Dorothy Gish, as well as the last big-screen performance of Maggie McNamara. The film was shot on

location In geography, location or place is used to denote a region (point, line, or area) on Earth's surface. The term ''location'' generally implies a higher degree of certainty than ''place'', the latter often indicating an entity with an ambiguous bou ...

in: Rome, Vienna, Boston and

Stamford, Connecticut Stamford () is a city in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States, outside of New York City. It is the sixth-most populous city in New England. Stamford is also the largest city in the Western Connecticut Planning Region, Connecticut, Weste ...

. Robinson's novel was based on the life of Francis Cardinal Spellman, who was then Archbishop of New York. The

Vatican Vatican may refer to: Geography * Vatican City, an independent city-state surrounded by Rome, Italy * Vatican Hill, in Rome, namesake of Vatican City * Ager Vaticanus, an alluvial plain in Rome * Vatican, an unincorporated community in the ...

's liaison officer for the film was Rev. Dr. Joseph Ratzinger, later to become

Pope Benedict XVI Pope BenedictXVI (born Joseph Alois Ratzinger; 16 April 1927 – 31 December 2022) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 19 April 2005 until his resignation on 28 February 2013. Benedict's election as p ...

. The story touches on various social issues, such as:

interfaith marriage Interfaith marriage, sometimes called interreligious marriage or mixed marriage, is marriage between spouses professing and being legally part of different religions. Although interfaith marriages are often established as civil marriages, in so ...

, sex outside marriage,

abortion Abortion is the early termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. Abortions that occur without intervention are known as miscarriages or "spontaneous abortions", and occur in roughly 30–40% of all pregnan ...

, racial bigotry, the rise of

fascism Fascism ( ) is a far-right, authoritarian, and ultranationalist political ideology and movement. It is characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural social hie ...

and war.

Plot

The film is shown as a series of memory flashbacks during a formal ceremony where the protagonist is instituted as a

cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal most commonly refers to * Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of three species in the family Cardinalidae ***Northern cardinal, ''Cardinalis cardinalis'', the common cardinal of ...

. A newly ordained

Irish Catholic Irish Catholics () are an ethnoreligious group native to Ireland, defined by their adherence to Catholic Christianity and their shared Irish ethnic, linguistic, and cultural heritage.The term distinguishes Catholics of Irish descent, particul ...

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

, Stephen Fermoyle ( Tom Tryon), returns home to Boston in 1917. He discovers that his parents are upset about daughter Mona ( Carol Lynley) having become engaged to marry a Jewish man, Benny Rampell ( John Saxon). Stephen and his Irish Catholic family will only permit Mona to marry Benny if he becomes a Catholic or agrees to raise any children as Catholic, as demanded by the

papal bull A papal bull is a type of public decree, letters patent, or charter issued by the pope of the Catholic Church. It is named after the leaden Seal (emblem), seal (''bulla (seal), bulla'') traditionally appended to authenticate it. History Papal ...

'' Ne Temere'' (superseded in 1970). Benny does not agree and leaves to serve in

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. Mona seeks Stephen's counsel as a priest. After he tells her to give Benny up, she runs away and becomes promiscuous. Concerned about the young priest's ambition, the Archbishop of Boston (

) assigns Stephen to an out-of-the-way parish where it is hoped that he will learn humility. There he meets the humble pastor, Father Ned Halley ( Burgess Meredith), and Fermoyle observes the unpretentious way in which he lives his life and treats his parishioners. Father Halley is very sick with

multiple sclerosis Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease resulting in damage to myelinthe insulating covers of nerve cellsin the brain and spinal cord. As a demyelinating disease, MS disrupts the nervous system's ability to Action potential, transmit ...

. Fermoyle learns humility from him and his housekeeper, Lalage ( Jill Haworth). Meanwhile, Mona becomes pregnant out of wedlock. Stephen, his brother and Benny find Mona in agony because her

pelvis The pelvis (: pelves or pelvises) is the lower part of an Anatomy, anatomical Trunk (anatomy), trunk, between the human abdomen, abdomen and the thighs (sometimes also called pelvic region), together with its embedded skeleton (sometimes also c ...

is too small for a large baby. She is taken to the hospital, where the doctor tells Stephen that it is too late to perform a

caesarean section Caesarean section, also known as C-section, cesarean, or caesarean delivery, is the Surgery, surgical procedure by which one or more babies are Childbirth, delivered through an incision in the mother's abdomen. It is often performed because va ...

and in order to save Mona, the head of the baby must be crushed. Stephen will not allow the doctor to do so, because according to Catholic doctrine, the baby may not be killed. Mona dies giving birth to the child, Regina. Racked with guilt over the death of his sister, Stephen suffers a crisis of

faith Faith is confidence or trust in a person, thing, or concept. In the context of religion, faith is " belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion". According to the Merriam-Webster's Dictionary, faith has multiple definitions, inc ...

, so he is transferred to Europe and made a

monsignor Monsignor (; ) is a form of address or title for certain members of the clergy in the Catholic Church. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian ''monsignore'', meaning "my lord". "Monsignor" can be abbreviated as Mons.... or Msgr. In some ...

, but he is unsure of how committed he is to a life in the clergy, and he travels to Vienna, taking a two-year sabbatical by working as a lecturer. There he meets and enters into a relationship with a young woman, Annemarie (

). Stephen does not violate his vows. Stephen's vocation calls him back to Rome and the church. The

returns him to the United States on a mission in the

American South The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, Dixieland, or simply the South) is census regions United States Census Bureau. It is between the Atlantic Ocean and the ...

to assist a black priest named Father Gillis ( Ossie Davis) who is opposed by the

Ku Klux Klan The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to KKK or Klan, is an American Protestant-led Christian terrorism, Christian extremist, white supremacist, Right-wing terrorism, far-right hate group. It was founded in 1865 during Reconstruction era, ...

. After successfully handling the assignment, Stephen is consecrated as a bishop, with Father Gillis present for the consecration. Stephen is sent back to

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

to persuade a cardinal not to cooperate with the

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

government, with a threat of a world war looming over all. He and the cardinal ultimately must flee for their lives. He manages to see Annemarie one last time after she has been imprisoned by the Nazi authorities. After the success of the missions on which the Vatican had sent him, he is elevated to the

College of Cardinals The College of Cardinals (), also called the Sacred College of Cardinals, is the body of all cardinals of the Catholic Church. there are cardinals, of whom are eligible to vote in a conclave to elect a new pope. Appointed by the pope, ...

. On the eve of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, a ceremony is held in which Stephen formally becomes a cardinal. He warns about the dangers of

totalitarianism Totalitarianism is a political system and a form of government that prohibits opposition from political parties, disregards and outlaws the political claims of individual and group opposition to the state, and completely controls the public s ...

and pledges to dedicate the rest of his life to his work.

Cast

Background

The script was credited to Robert Dozier, but featured uncredited contributions by Ring Lardner Jr. who worked with Preminger in developing characterizations and story structure.

Saul Bass Saul Bass (; May 8, 1920 – April 25, 1996) was an American graphic designer and Academy Awards, Oscar-winning filmmaker, best known for his design of motion-picture title sequences, film posters, and logo, corporate logos. During his 4 ...

was not only responsible for designing the film's poster and advertising campaign, but also the film titles, during which Bass transforms a walk through the Vatican into an abstract play of horizontal and vertical lines.

Release

The film had its world premiere at the Saxon Theatre in Boston, Massachusetts. It was the first film to be shown in 70 mm despite being shot on

35 mm movie film 35 mm film is a film gauge used in filmmaking, and the film standard. In motion pictures that record on film, 35 mm is the most commonly used gauge. The name of the gauge is not a direct measurement, and refers to the nominal width of the ...

for some roadshow releases, using a "print-up" ( blow up) process.

Reception

Box-office performance

''The Cardinal'' was the 18th highest-grossing film of the year. It grossed $11,170,588 in the United States, earning $5.46 million in domestic rentals.

Critical reception

Accolades

Honors

The film was nominated by the

American Film Institute The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the History of cinema in the United States, motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private fu ...

for its AFI's 100 Years of Film Scores list.

Preservation

''The Cardinal'' was preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2012.

Notes

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cardinal, The 1963 drama films 1963 films American drama films Best Drama Picture Golden Globe winners Films featuring a Best Supporting Actor Golden Globe winning performance Films about Catholicism Films about Catholic priests Films based on American novels Films directed by Otto Preminger Films scored by Jerome Moross Films set in Boston Films set in the 1910s Films set in the 1920s Films set in the 1930s Films set in Vatican City Films shot in Massachusetts Films shot in Rome Films shot in Vienna Films with screenplays by Ring Lardner Jr. Columbia Pictures films 1960s English-language films 1960s American films