Elmer Gantry (1960)
Burt Lancaster is Elmer Gantry - salesman extraordinaire and he's moving from vacuum cleaners to the Word of God.
While selling some of his merchandise in a small midwestern town Elmer notices a prayer revival flyer on the wall. He becomes smitten with the woman on the flyer, Sister Sharon Falconer (Jean Simmons), and decides he will do whatever he can to get close to her. He worms his way into her inner circle with a bit of deception and begins touring with the group, eventually becoming the main draw with his hell and brimfire approach to preaching.
I was a bit annoyed with Lancasters portrayal early in the film. A bit too much teeth at the end of every scene. Not sure if I just got used to it or it started happening less often but once he started getting up on stage and preaching I didn't notice it as much and it's onstage when Lancaster really shines. He's a very believable preacher. His Academy Award was well deserved.
Jean Simmons is also very good as Sister Sharon Falconer, the revivals headliner and a true believer who aims to have her own church. She doesn't trust Elmer, seems to always be fighting off his advances but also see's how well he connects with the audience, spreads the word and...brings in cash.
The rest of the supporting cast is very good as well. Shirley Jones plays a prostitute who has a past with Elmer and could eventually be his downfall. Art Kennedy portrays a reporter travelling with the revival doing a story on Sister Sharon but eventually covering Gantry as well. Could his story ruin Sister Sharon and the revival? They both deliver some of the films more memorable lines.
There's a lot to analyze with this movie which is one of the reasons why I liked it so much. As far as Elmer is concerned he may not be the best messenger of the Word of God but does that kill the message? I got the impression that he really believes what he's preaching but at the same time can't (or won't) live up to those standards himself. For Sister Sharon, she see's Elmer for what he is (a bit of a shyster) but he's getting her closer to building her church. For Sharon, do the ends justify the means?
I really liked this and will rate it pretty high. This is going to be a tough HoF as I'll likely have
movies down at 5-6.