Where to watch Elmer Gantry online

Storyline

A charismatic charlatan begins a business — and eventually romantic — relationship with a roadside evangelist to sell religion to 1920s America. Based on Sinclair Lewis' novel of the same name.

Released

1960-07-07
Revenue

$10,400,000
Budget

$3,000,000
Runtime

2hr 26m
Genre

Drama
Status

Released
Language

English
7.7
Production

United Artists

Crew

Richard Brooks

Director

Richard Brooks

Screenplay

Bernard Smith

Producer

Keywords:

based on novel or book con man fraud kansas, usa religion preacher religious hypocrisy traveling salesman evangelist revivalism

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Movie Reviews

Reviews for Elmer Gantry

A Review by Geronimo1967 7

Written by Geronimo1967 on 2024-01-27

Burt Lancaster is on great form here as the eponymous quick-talking and charismatic hoover salesman who alights upon the successful industry... read more

A Review by Wuchak 7

Written by Wuchak on 2024-08-12

**_The story of traveling tent revivalists in 1920’s America_** A fast-talking salesman from Missouri (Burt Lancaster) is attracted to th... read more

**_The story of traveling tent revivalists in 1920’s America_** A fast-talking salesman from Missouri (Burt Lancaster) is attracted to the troupe of a winsome evangelist (Jean Simmons). Once he proves his abilities as a charismatic preacher, he joins the "road church" show, but a woman from his past threatens to shake things up (Shirley Jones). Arthur Kennedy plays a reporter who travels with the group by train. "Elmer Gantry" (1960) was based on less than one-fourth of the 1927 book by agnostic-turned-atheist Sinclair Lewis. It makes fundamental changes to the two main characters by painting them sympathetically and therefore less one-dimensional and more interesting. This makes the movie better than the novel (at least the parts on which it was based). I should point out that Jean Simmon’s character, Sharon Falconer, was inspired by the notable-but-controversial Aimee Semple McPherson. It goes without saying that the film must be interpreted separate from the novel. The message is somewhat ambiguous and leaves it up to the viewer to draw their own conclusions, which is a sign of quality art IMHO. While it’s clearly not anti-Christian, it criticizes how revivalism can attract charismatic people of dubious credentials and questionable morality, which naturally results in troubles that could’ve been avoided with a little wisdom. The movie version of the title character is a fascinating study. At the beginning he clearly basks in partying in a bar at Christmas, but is willing to drop everything in order to passionately help a worker for the Salvation Army acquire donations. Why? Shortly later, he’s traveling penniless and shoeless, but is drawn to the lively worship at an all-black assembly where the congregants stare at him curiously, until he happily joins in the singing of “Canaan Land” to show that he’s really just one of them, despite his skin-color: A poor man seeking the Creator and salvation or redemption. The movie’s basically a story about people in positions of influence vacillating between carnality and spirituality, a condition of which most viewers can relate. But, as Jim Lefferts (Kennedy) points out: "We don't like our gods to be human." While the flick definitely has its points of interest, such as the milieu of 1920’s Middle America and Shirley Jones never looking better, "The Apostle" with Robert Duvall is a less artificial experience that addresses some of the same issues more effectively. It’s ironic that Sinclair Lewis made his character Elmer Gantry have a weakness toward booze seeing as how the author perished in 1951 due to advanced alcoholism. At 2 hours, 26 minutes, the film’s overlong by about half an hour. It was shot in the studio in Culver City and Hollywood, as well as the Columbia/Warner Brothers ranch in Burbank, except for the Tabernacle sequence filmed in Santa Monica. GRADE: B-/B

Read Full Review (The thoughts and opinions expressed here are solely those of the reviewer.)

A Review by CinemaSerf

Burt Lancaster is on great form here as the eponymous quick-talking and charismatic hoover salesman who alights upon the successful industry that is "Sister Sharon" (Jean Simmons). She preaches the word of God with a piousness that he finds...