Themes: Southern Gothic, Religious Zealotry, Cons and Scams
Main Cast: Brad Dourif, Ned Beatty, Harry Dean Stanton, Dan Shor, Amy Wright
Release Year: 1979
Country: WG/US
Run Time: 106 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG
Plot
Set in the Deep South during the postwar era, Wise Blood stars Brad Dourif as an aimless veteran, who decides to become a Bible-thumping preacher (for a questionable concern called "The Church Wihout Christ") principally because he hasn't anything better lined up. Dourif links up with a veteran of the hellfire-and-brimstone circuit, who for business purposes pretends to be blind. The older man persuades Dourif to blind himself for real so that he can truly "see the light" (yes, the movie is that weird). Director Huston, himself, appears as Dourif's grandfather. Adapted from the one-of-a-kind novel by Flannery O'Connor, Wise Blood was a noble experiment but a box-office failure-though, to be fair, Huston never set out to make a blockbuster from O'Connor's offbeat tale. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Review
This religious satire directed by veteran John Huston took no prisoners but failed to inspire a mass following. Wise Blood is a black comedy based on a quirky novel about the American South by Flannery O'Connor. Heavily atmospheric in its depiction of Southern culture and evangelism, it focuses on a a war veteran and drifter who decides to found a new religion, the Church Without Christ, which preaches a strange brand of fundamentalism and libertarianism. Huston masterfully focuses on the comic nuances of an American public that is ripe for evangelical exploitation. The superb, offbeat cast of Brad Dourif, Huston, Ned Beatty, Amy Wright, and Harry Dean Stanton created no buzz at the box office, but Wise Blood ranks as one of Huston's neglected gems. ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide
Mary Nell Santacroce - Landlady; John Huston - Grandfather; Dan Albright; Joe Dorsey; William Hickey - Preacher; Gladys Hill; Jerry Rushing; Stratton Leopold
Credit
Hans Brockmann - Associate Producer, Stratton Leopold - Casting, Sally Fitzgerald - Costume Designer, Tom Shaw - First Assistant Director, John Huston - Director, Roberto Silvi - Editor, Alex North - Composer (Music Score), Allan A. Apone - Makeup, Gerry Fisher - Cinematographer, Kathy Fitzgerald - Producer, Michael Fitzgerald - Producer, Sally Fitzgerald - Set Designer, Michael Fitzgerald - Screenwriter, Flannery O'Connor - Book Author
