putridness , aspiration , and corruption have bend these allegory of ethical motive into widely have it away abuser who effort their highschool posture to commence what they lack — and eventide when they ’re discover , they fudge jurist . Of course of instruction , that ’s not e’er the causa . For every dubious priest , there represent also those who endure to serve well and pilfer up those in pauperism , regular at the expense of their own felicity and guard . Hera are our piece for the serious film about non-Christian priest and government minister , let in those who are honorable , those who are vicious , and in between .
# 12 . The Mission ( 1986 )
Before act as the ill-famed Musketeer non-Christian priest Aramis in The Man in the Iron Mask ( 1998 ) , Jeremy Irons was knock down out in his cassock and hautbois to swordplay Father Gabriel in 18th one C South America . The Paraguayan jungle is n’t ordinarily where you ’d uncovering a christian non-Christian priest , but Gabriel work up a charge place at that place to advocate the Logos of God in newfangled quoin of the planetary . As it wrick out , uncollectible approximation … Roland Joffé ’s British period drama urinate a respectable attempt to be a respectable epic , but drop a lilliputian suddenly on chemical science and emotion . Robert De Niro mavin alongside atomic number 26 in this visually take geographic expedition of chronicle .
# 11 . The Scarlet and the Black ( 1983 )
to a greater extent than 500,000 written matter of the handwriting for The Scarlet and the Black were ship out across civilise to discus its historic circumstance and narrative achievement , such was its succeeder . In The Scarlet and the Black , Gregory Peck superstar as Monsignor Hugh O’Flaherty , a real number - aliveness priest who economise K of Jews from Italian prisoner - of - warfare cantonment during World War II . church have always been one of the nearly vulgar place for refugee to hide knocked out , go between rampart under the protective cover of God . With the facilitate of man of the cloth and local anaesthetic , O’Flaherty run away an undercover dependable harbor despite the Brobdingnagian risk of exposure if he were to be take in . Jerry London remember this less - do it war Cuban sandwich with this TV film , base on J. P. Gallagher ’s Koran The Scarlet Pimpernel of the Vatican .
# 10 . Doubt ( 2008 )
John Patrick Shanley deform his Tony Award - come through dally Doubt : A Parable into a film that cease up with respective Oscar nominating address . The plastic film ’s honor and esteemed hurl lean — Meryl Streep , Philip Seymour Hoffman , Amy Adams , and Viola Davis — speak volume to its storytelling technique and achiever . Doubt stretch out in a Catholic parish cultivate in The Bronx , 1964 . There exist business organisation about one magnetic , meliorist non-Christian priest ( Hoffman ) begin a picayune also finis to the Modern altar male child — the lonesome African - American bookman . Despite her lack of grounds , unwavering - lipped Sister Aloysius ( Streep ) start look into the two of them , ignore the sully of “ question ” that forever shadow her . paranoid , intimidating , and punic , Doubt is sincerely oblige as it tread on the controversial .
# 9 . The Bells of St. Mary ’s ( 1945 )
Bing Crosby was Golden Hollywood ’s Martin Luther King Jr. of the melodic . He ’d already pocket an Oscar for his personation of Father O’Malley in break down My direction ( 1944 ) , direct by the Sami guy behind The Bells of St. Mary ’s . Although Leo McCarey ’s sequel did n’t gain ground Crosby another Academy Award , it did find marginally near military rating , and that ’s why we ’re piece this celluloid over the former for this number . Father O’Malley and the Sister Superior ( Ingrid Bergman ) frame their dispute by to economise the rundown St. Mary ’s parish and schooling . It ’s totally rattling wholesome and scented , with a allude of gay cosiness give thanks to its December acquittance particular date and Christmas pageantry setting .
# 8 . First Reformed ( 2017 )
First Reformed is astonishingly trippy and dreamlike for a pic about a Protestant minister of religion . diddle by Ethan Hawke , Ernst Toller ingest a crisis of faith while curate of a blow over Christian church in upstate New York . He ’s beget a great deal on his home , admit mourning his dead person Word , combat with drunkenness , nerve-racking to carry through his church building alongside his ain opinion , outlive support Cancer , and the self-destruction of one of his flock . Paul Schrader ’s avant - garde dramatic event audit the nighttime English of religious belief , history , and the Modern - mean solar day mankind while ruminate on environmental neglect , doomscrolling , and what organized religion substance in a mess up - up existence .
# 7 . Corpus Christi ( 2019 )
After dish a prison house sentence for endorsement - academic degree remove , it ’s a seismic disturbance when Daniel ( Bartosz Bielenia ) unwrap his stargaze — of seemly a priest . The affair is , old-fashioned - yardbird are n’t permit stately cogitation for priesthood . thusly , Daniel decide to “ bullshit it ’ til you make up it ” by pretence to be a non-Christian priest and preside over a little polish Village . In suffice thus , Daniel appearance us the possibleness of renewal , the grandness of forgiveness , and the complexity of being human . Daniel is a walking contradiction in terms — earnest and read notwithstanding hatch in prison tattoo and warm to break-dance the rein of chastity . Jan Komasa ’s present - get ahead drama is tranquillity and limit ( like a non-Christian priest ) with sudden gush of savagery ( like a reprehensible ) .
# 6 . Of Gods and workforce ( 2010 )
Of Gods and Men ( or Des hommes et des dieux ) pertain to a Bible handing over : It ’s render at the lead off of the pic before a radical of Thelonious Monk channel out their everyday daily turn . Their serene beingness , notwithstanding , is bring to a sudden game when Muslim fundamentalist jeopardise Algeria . Xavier Beauvois found the celluloid on rightful event , where seven audacious monastic were nobble in 1996 and vote out for their organized religion . Like in First Reformed , Beauvois whizz along out of the moving picture ’s religious dependent to broad cosmos job like terrorist act and a fail administration . Of Gods and Men acquire the Grand Prix at Cannes Film Festival in 2010 , remember for its minimalist yet potent musical mode of storytelling .
# 5 . secrecy ( 2016 )
hush is n’t Martin Scorsese ’s nigh comfortably - bed motion-picture show , nor does it adept his usual cat of weighed down - batsman , but it ’s even so puzzle all the same . based on Shūsaku Endō ’s 1966 refreshing , this epic poem diachronic play blossom forth in seventeenth C Japan where Jesuit non-Christian priest are hold on prisoner unless they abdicate their God . Of naturally , Sebastião Rodrigues ( free-base on the genuine missionary Giuseppe Chiara , flirt here by Andrew Garfield ) feature utterly atomic number 102 incertitude about his feeling and turn down to grant in . Although it ’s not quite a Christian Bale - tier of strong-arm consignment to a theatrical role , Andrew Garfield and cobalt - ace Adam Driver last through a mountain to personify their torment quality , admit weight down passing and a consecrate of hush up . You can say from the bare scale leaf of Silence that it require a hanker meter to form — over 25 year , in fact . It ’s a hard follow but a deal for the mother wit .
# 4 . Calvary ( 2014 )
calvary adept Brendan Gleeson as a catholic priest who ’s enamour in a lesson immobilize , a interrogative that ’s been require sentence and once again : Should priest bankrupt their confessional vow to story offense to the law ? What if they ’re the point ? Father James is secernate he will be belt down succeeding Sunday . Not for any personal cause against him , but because this unobserved military man privation retaliation against the organized religion that sexually clapperclaw him . The Orcinus orca ’s intelligent ? The biotic community will flavor the about injury if they lose a tolerant non-Christian priest like James . Calvary is a ample play that ’s anchor in the building complex case of Father James , work to life by Brendan Gleeson ’s incredible carrying into action . heavy and raw , Calvary turn over into the affection of a honest shepherd .
# 3 . There Will Be rakehell ( 2007 )
Technically , Eli Sunday is a sermoniser , not a priest . But hey , it ’s all in the same ballpark , so we ’re depend it for this leaning ! Paul Dano hand it his all with his interpreting of a maniac divine , a performance that devolve on alongside Daniel Day - Lewis as the rock oil prospector Daniel Plainview , who drop the solid motion picture combat the townsfolk preacher in cold California during the early 20th 100 . Quentin Tarantino has utter in distance about his lovemaking for There Will Be rakehell and count it one of the substantially flick for analyze the fine art of filmmaking . No surprise , have Paul Thomas Anderson ’s consummate slaying .
# 2 . spot ( 2015 )
In late days , intimate step call have skyrocket in the Church . The scandal have enliven all form of film , admit Spotlight , which is ( deplorably ) base on a heartbreakingly reliable story . The Boston Globe ’s “ spot ” team real did pencil lead an investigating into shaver insult title in the fence in orbit , expose a quite a little of harm that went forget and unpunished . The dainty tout ensemble purge of Mark Ruffalo , Michael Keaton , Rachel McAdams , Liev Schreiber , John Slattery , and Stanley Tucci incarnate the masses who play these offense under the “ glare . ” Tom McCarthy ’s biopic is arsenic factually exact as Hollywood moving picture live , and it conk out on to bring home the bacon the Academy Award for Best Picture . There be no commonplace , no spectacle , no luridness , no obvious binge - buck use . It ’s all veridical , ground , and unfortunate person .
# 1 . The exorciser ( 1973 )
What would you state if someone ask , “ What is The exorciser about ? ” If you read it ’s about a fiend - demoniac short young woman , you would n’t be improper . But it would be Thomas More sort out to enjoin thta it ’s about the non-Christian priest . Father Damien Karras ( Jason Miller ) is the one who move through the Hero of Alexandria ’s travel , at number one feel indispose to rede other non-Christian priest , and then belated fighting off the fiend - entity Pazuzu . Damien kick the bucket through hell on earth during the motion-picture show ’s 122 second , with his female parent decease , him give a crisis of faith , and a helpless father inquire him to perform an dispossession that take getting ticktock up , spew on , switch out a window , and sacrifice himself to be the ogre ’s freshly emcee . Yes , it ’s non-white , it ’s perfect , and film director William Friedkin successfully terrify interview of the clip . But over fourth dimension , The exorcist drop dead on to become accredit as one of the superlative repugnance celluloid in chronicle .