Genre: Drama, Murder, Suspense, Period Piece, Religion, Gore, Serial Killer, Infidelity, Gay/Lesbian
Tagline: The truth shall come to light
Plot: Set in England during the late 1300s, Paul McGuigan's THE RECKONING follows Nicholas (Paul Bettany), a young priest literally running from his past. After encountering a band of wandering actors, Nicholas is grudgingly allowed into the fold by the good-natured Martin (Willem Dafoe). When the troupe reaches an impoverished village, they get word of a strange murder and look into the story as the basis for a new play. However, Nicholas and Martin uncover more than they'd expected, and soon a deeper mystery emerges. Meanwhile, as Nicholas attempts to find justice, he also struggles to come to terms with his own troubled history.A medieval murder mystery in the vein of THE NAME OF THE ROSE, THE RECKONING is based on the Barry Unsworth novel MORALITY PLAY. Under the artfully somber direction of previous collaborator McGuigan, Bettany turns in an excellent performance as a guilt-ridden priest struggling to atone for his sins. In addition to Dafoe, the film also features fine supporting actors such as Brian Cox and Gina McKee. Utilizing its historical backdrop to the fullest extent, THE RECKONING immerses the audience in its medieval setting, revealing the period's many hardships and enhancing the drama of this intriguing, unfolding
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 Discussion forum for this movie
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 "The Reckoning" is a medieval mystery without a mystery. ... It's filled to the brim with talk of faith and morality, but, in the end, there's too many speeches, too much jabbering. Everything in this film is spelled out to the point of tedium.  -- (L.A. Daily News)
Paul McGuigan's "The Reckoning," adapted from Barry Unsworth's novel "Morality Play," has so many ideas working in it that they all but suffocate its thin plot.  --Jack Mathews (New York Daily News)
Beneath the ill-fitting title lies an intriguing if flawed medieval murder mystery.--Michael Rechtshaffen (Hollywod Reporter)
There are some rousing disquisitions on truth, freedom and the power of art, and then Martin says, with great portent, that he and his players are off to Durham to put on their next play, making ''The Reckoning'' feel even more like a television pilot.--A.O. Scott (The New York Times)
"The Reckoning" has just a little too much of the whodunit and the thriller and not enough of the temper of its clash between cultures, but it works, maybe because the simplicity of the underlying plot is masked by the oddness of the characters.  --Roger Ebert (Chicago Sun-Times)
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Paul Bettany
A Beautiful Mind, The Da Vinci Code, Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World |
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 | Marián Aguilera
Only Human, No debes estar aquí, Ciudad de los prodigios, La | | |
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| The idea is full of promise. But screenwriter Mark Mills and director Paul McGuigan make a schematic convolution of everything. The mystery as to who is behind all this? Well, it's no mystery. And everything is so portentous. --Desson Thomson (Washington Post)
The performances are good, if unspectacular; the actors aren't doing anything here we haven't seen them do in better films. That sense of been-there-done-that is what eventually sinks The Reckoning, though there's no denying that it's certainly a step inthe right direction for McGuigan. --David Nusair (Reel Film Reviews)
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