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While nothing ever seems to turn to synthetic cheese quite as quickly as Hollywood’s idea of “edgy,” Elmer Gantry retains much of its bitter taste after all these years. Could it be that in the time since its release the evangelical movement hasn’t just grown, but has shown to be a breeding ground for the morally bankrupt to trade-in on those seeking spiritual enlightenment through quick fixes and cash? You’d be absolutely correct. Think of every great scandal to rock a evangelical preacher – sex, drugs, booze, stealing, the list goes on. Elmer Gantry discussed the rot at its core long before men like Ted Haggard or Jim Bakker were rocking the news and tabloids.
Burt Lancaster, an actor who always thrust his whole body into a performance, had a real gift for playing the unscrupulous and con-men. Think of his work in Sweet Smell of Success or The Rainmaker. As the titular character, Lancaster deservedly won an Oscar. He lays the charm on so thick that we almost buy the bullshit that he’s peddling to everybody else. He makes Gantry less of a person than a powerful locomotive in the guise of a human. Trying to watch anyone else on screen while he is in the frame is an almost Herculean task.
While Jean Simmons as Sister Sharon Falconer turns in a complicated and much quieter character study. She creates a character that is consistently possessed by religious zeal. For her, this is no quick way to make money. This is a calling, and she is a prophet from on the mount who is actively seeking God’s graces and wisdom, and to share these gifts with her flock. Lust for Gantry becomes a religious movement, and she turns it inward and uses this emotion to help cement her self-immolation and self-divined sainthood. It’s an extraordinary piece of work that holds up nicely against Lancaster’s career defining work.
The real surprise of the entire acting ensemble though is Shirley Jones as the pastor’s daughter-turned-hooker because of her past relationship with Lancaster. I’ve known her primarily as Mrs. Partridge, and to see her so effectively play such a vicious and cold-blooded dramatic part was a true shock. Her steely-eyed look as she plays with hosiery is as enrapturing as her delivery of a monologue about how Gantry was the reason for her fall into disrepute. The way she lands the innuendo-laden "rammed the fear of God into me" is laced with acid even if she's laughing merrily along the way.
Elmer Gantry is limited from true greatness by director Richard Brooks’ occasionally flat eye. For every great shot, Simmons in near erotic passion while surrounded by flames or Jones’ disinterested fiddling with her hosiery, there’s long stretches where the camera feels too planted. Elmer Gantry is a punishingly long film, two-and-a-half hours, and the pacing often dips into a drag or self-righteous screed.
It sure does have sharp teeth, I will grant it that. A bulk of the film is about the ways that these three people con, love, fight, and forgive each other. Gantry’s a bull in a china shop, Sister Falconer’s a true believer, Lulu’s a scorned lover that’s pure flash, and we come to understand them as the movie goes on. While it may not be a first-rate classic, it is something of a minor one.
