Product Details

• Actors: Gregory Peck, Christopher Plummer, John Gielgud, Raf Vallone, Kenneth Colley
• Format: Color, NTSC
• Language: English, German, Italian
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Live / Artisan
• VHS Release Date: February 22, 1995
• Run Time: 156 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (95 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 630264366X
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #121,500 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

201 of 203 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent true life World War II suspense story!, July 1, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Lakewood, California, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Scarlet and the Black [VHS] (VHS Tape)

Gregory Peck and Christopher Plummer give outstanding performances as Monsr. Hugh O'Flaherty(Peck) and SS Col. Herbert Kapler(Plummer). The action and suspense of the movie keeps it going at a brisk pace. The story follows Peck as a Vatican official trying to save Italian Jews and Allied escaped POW's from the hands of the German SS. Plummers portrayal as Col. Kapler is both chilling and frightening, especially when he personally executes a Catholic priest who was caught helping the Resistance. Peck's portrayal of Father O'Flaherty is very moving to watch. The intelligence and compassion of this man truly shows through and shows how much Father O'Flaherty deserved the awards and decorations he received from the Allies after the war. And the ending is very surprising as well! It is also a plus having the movie shot in Rome where the actual events took place. A truly classic movie. I highly recommend it.

61 of 62 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best!, June 12, 2003

By 

D. G. Welch "DW" (USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Scarlet and the Black (DVD)

This movie never gets enough credit! This is one of the best war time movies ever and with Mr. Peck's passing this is a must see for Peck fans who have not seen this movie. Gregory Peck and Christopher Plummer in one of his best roles play a cat and mouse game during WW2. The acting is fantastic and there is a lot of suspense! A must see!

46 of 47 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars An edge of your seat thriller. . ., May 11, 2001

By 

David Zampino "21st Century Hobbit" (Delavan, Wisconsin) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Scarlet and the Black [VHS] (VHS Tape)

. . .all the more exciting because it's a (mostly) true story.

Let's begin with the cast. Gregory Peck, Christopher Plummer and Sir John Gielgud all together in the same movie? Just this cast alone would be enough to recommend this movie to most people.

And the filming? On location in Rome and the Vatican. Doesn't get much better than that!

Drama? Yes, it's there. Suspense? In SPADES! Pathos? Yup! Humor? Believe it or not, yes!

This movie, based on the true story of an Irish cleric in the Vatican will have you sitting on the edge of your seat. The ending will have you cheering and crying and shocked, etc. You will run the full gamut of emotions when viewing this film.

The only major difficulty? The "politically correct" portrayal of Eugenio Pacelli, aka Pope Pius XII. For me, a trained historian, this was a major flaw. The film's presentation of Pius was that of a weak man, unable to do much of anything, while the facts of the matter were quite different.

Regardless, though, this movie does rate as a "must see".