Movies - The Saint

Home > Listing Index > Movies > The Saint (film)

	Movies - The Saint

The Saint is a 1997 film based on the character of Simon Templar created by Leslie Charteris in the 1920s for a series of books published as "The Saint." The character was initially featured in a series of Hollywood movies made between 1938 and 1954. In the 1960s, a popular British television series called The Saint (with a catchy introductory song) featured a then relatively unknown actor named Roger Moore as Simon Templar. Moore went on to play a similar role when he became the long term replacement for Sean Connery as James Bond. The film stars Val Kilmer, Elisabeth Shue, and Rade Serbedzija. It was directed by Phillip Noyce and written by Jonathan Hensleigh .

It should be noted that in this version, Kilmer's character does not claim to be the Simon Templar created by Charteris. He is, in fact, an orphan whose name is unknown, and has created a parallel life in the image of his childhood hero, whose adventures he read about. He refers to himself as Templar only during a childhood flashback sequence.

Plot

Simon Templar is a professional thief nicknamed "The Saint." To throw off law enforcement, he assumes the names of dead saints, who are people recognized by the Roman Catholic Church as having verifiably witnessed three miracles. Templar's usual modus operandi is mentioning that he was named after a saint.

Templar is hired by Ivan Tretiak, a Russian dictator-turned-billionaire oil baron who once again has his eye on the presidency of the Russian Federation, to steal the formula for cold fusion being developed by the eccentric Dr. Emma Russell. Theoretically, cold fusion could create heat and energy from open air, and it would be cleaner than petroleum and safer than nuclear power. And it would be far, far more inexpensive.

The deal would put Templar at the $50 million mark in his Swiss bank accounts and allow him to retire from the life of thievery.

However, Tretiak wants the formula solely to prevent Dr. Russell's theoretical design from becoming reality, and to aid this, he has engineered a heating oil shortage during the harsh Russian winter to force the Russian people to side against the nation's honest president.

Templar, in the guise of St. Thomas More, has developed a crush on Dr. Russell, but he reluctantly steals her formula and turns it over to Tretiak. However, the formula is incomplete, and Tretiak's becomes intent on capturing both Templar and Russell to force her to complete it. However, Templar, normally a loner, and Dr. Russell have fallen in love with each other. Templar then has to save both of them while having Tretiak exposed as a criminal.

As Dr. Russell works to complete the formula, Templar confronts the president in his home and tells him to admit to Tretiak's accusations publicly. However, it is Tretiak who is exposed as the fraud as the failed cold fusion reactor Tretiak presents as evidence begins working.

Ironically, the man who is known as "The Saint," arguably becomes one for witnessing three miracles: falling in love, doing something for reasons other than money, and for a man who made stealing his life's work suddenly discovering that fighting for what's right is far more satisfying than money.

Cast

Val Kilmer
- Simon Templar
Elisabeth Shue
- Dr. Emma Russell
Rade Serbedzija - Ivan Tretiak
Valeri Nikolayev - Ilya Tretiak
Henry Goodman
- Dr. Lev Botvin
Alun Armstrong - Inspector Teal
Michael Byrne - Vereshagin, Tretiak's Aide
Yevgeni Lazarev - President Karpov
Irina Apeksimova - Frankie
Lev Prygunov - General Sklarov
Charlotte Cornwell - Inspector Rabineau

The voice of Roger Moore, who played Simon Templar in the 1960s TV series, can be heard on a radio.

Production history

Paramount's attempt to make a film of The Saint started with the powerhouse above-the-line team of Robert Evans as producer, Steven Zaillian as writer and Sydney Pollack as director. Ralph Fiennes - hot from Schindler's List
and Quiz Show - was offered $1 million for the lead, but eventually passed. In a 1994 interview for Premiere magazine, Fiennes said the screenplay - racing fast cars, breaking into Swiss banks - was nothing he hadn't seen before.

[ Visit the complete Wikipedia entry for The Saint (film) ]

This page is based on the copyrighted Wikipedia article The Saint (film); it is used under the GNU Free Documentation License. You may redistribute it, verbatim or modified, providing that you comply with the terms of the GFDL.

Movies - The Saint

Plot

Cast

Production history

Searches on eBay

Related searches on eBay