Although this movie was made at the dawn of the 1960s, I find out to be steeped in the style and tradition of the classic Hollywood era of the 1940s. This may owe in part to its source material dating from the 1920s, but this movie is even shot in a way that was becoming increasingly outdated by 1960, with just a handful of sets that are used mostly as backdrops to the powerful (today we'd call it overacting) performances of the actors.
Elmer Gantry is thus one of the last good films to be built in the epic tradition of old Hollywood, the style that arguably came to its high point with _Citizen Kane_. In many ways this film echoes Orson Welles's landmark film, following the rise of an ambitious protagonist and the romantic entanglements that prove his downfall. While this movie fails to achieve as much as Kane, it doesn't fall nearly as short as you'd think judging by how Elmer Gantry is largely forgotten today.
I don't want to dwell on the moral and religious message of Elmer Gantry because ultimately it is just a work of fiction. The religion depicted in this movie is no more real than the city of Zenith, supposed capitol of the Midwest, where most of the action takes place. I don't think religious beliefs, or lack thereof, should be any real barrier to enjoying this movie.
It is perhaps forgotten because it hasn't aged quite so well. Revivalism itself has become watered down and mainstream, and is not particularly controversial, either you like it or you don't. There is a bit of food for thought here but it's nothing earth-shattering.
There were some interesting parallels to a more obscure film, _A Face in the Crowd_ (1957). Although that movie is lower budget, black and white and much more negative, it is a superior film to Elmer Gantry in telling the "rise and fall of a folksy con man" story. It also aged much better, Gantry's bashing of revivalism seems largely irrelevant today, while _Face in the Crowd_'s musings on the power of media to amplify shady messages and characters remain quite provocative 50 years later.
Elmer Gantry is thus one of the last good films to be built in the epic tradition of old Hollywood, the style that arguably came to its high point with _Citizen Kane_. In many ways this film echoes Orson Welles's landmark film, following the rise of an ambitious protagonist and the romantic entanglements that prove his downfall. While this movie fails to achieve as much as Kane, it doesn't fall nearly as short as you'd think judging by how Elmer Gantry is largely forgotten today.
I don't want to dwell on the moral and religious message of Elmer Gantry because ultimately it is just a work of fiction. The religion depicted in this movie is no more real than the city of Zenith, supposed capitol of the Midwest, where most of the action takes place. I don't think religious beliefs, or lack thereof, should be any real barrier to enjoying this movie.
It is perhaps forgotten because it hasn't aged quite so well. Revivalism itself has become watered down and mainstream, and is not particularly controversial, either you like it or you don't. There is a bit of food for thought here but it's nothing earth-shattering.
There were some interesting parallels to a more obscure film, _A Face in the Crowd_ (1957). Although that movie is lower budget, black and white and much more negative, it is a superior film to Elmer Gantry in telling the "rise and fall of a folksy con man" story. It also aged much better, Gantry's bashing of revivalism seems largely irrelevant today, while _Face in the Crowd_'s musings on the power of media to amplify shady messages and characters remain quite provocative 50 years later.