{"id":55867,"date":"2020-12-01T16:10:30","date_gmt":"2020-12-01T23:10:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=55867"},"modified":"2022-01-26T16:22:00","modified_gmt":"2022-01-26T23:22:00","slug":"elmer-gantry-1960","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=55867","title":{"rendered":"Elmer Gantry (1960)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;You&#8217;re amusing &#8212; and you smell like a real man.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Poster2.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Poster2-199x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"199\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-55874\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Poster2-199x300.jpg 199w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Poster2-85x128.jpg 85w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Poster2-179x270.jpg 179w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Poster2.jpg 375w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 199px) 100vw, 199px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nWhen smooth-talking salesman Elmer Gantry (Burt Lancaster) falls for a beautiful evangelist (Jean Simmons), he quickly finagles his way into a job with her revivalist group, which is being covered by a skeptical journalist (Arthur Kennedy) &#8212; but will Gantry&#8217;s past relationship with a prostitute (Shirley Jones) impede his chances at success with Sister Sharon (Simmons)?\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Arthur Kennedy Films <\/li>\n<li>Blackmail<\/li>\n<li>Burt Lancaster Films<\/li>\n<li>Dean Jagger Films<\/li>\n<li>Hugh Marlowe Films<\/li>\n<li>Jean Simmons Films<\/li>\n<li>John McIntire Films<\/li>\n<li>Journalists<\/li>\n<li>Missionaries and Revivalists<\/li>\n<li>Prostitutes and Gigolos<\/li>\n<li>Richard Brooks Films<\/li>\n<li>Shirley Jones Films<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nPeary doesn&#8217;t review this adaptation of <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Elmer_Gantry\">Sinclair Lewis&#8217;s 1927 satirical novel<\/a> in his <em>GFTFF<\/em>, but he discusses the lead performances in <em>Alternate Oscars<\/em>, where he names Simmons Best Actress of the Year. In describing Lancaster&#8217;s Oscar-winning title role, Peary notes that with his &#8220;booming voice, toothy grin, boundless energy, dauntless spirit, exaggerated gestures, two-fisted masculinity, the slickness of a snake-oil salesman, the showmanship of the Mighty Barnum&#8230;, and strong doses of tenderness and intelligence&#8221;, Lancaster &#8220;gave a bravura performance&#8221; worthy of acclaim (though Peary hands the actual Alternate Oscars award to Anthony Perkins in <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=5177\"><em>Psycho<\/em><\/a>). Regarding Simmons, Peary laments her (relative) career-long lack of recognition by Hollywood in terms of awards, and notes that she&#8217;d &#8220;been impressive since the mid-forties&#8221; but &#8220;peaked in <em>Elmer Gantry<\/em>, giving her most self-assured performance in her most difficult role&#8221; as a character based on <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Aimee_Semple_McPherson\">Aimee Semple McPherson<\/a>.  <\/p>\n<p>Peary writes that &#8220;it is the hard, naughty edge Simmons gives her character that makes her exciting&#8221;: while &#8220;Sharon&#8217;s a good person&#8221; (she&#8217;s a <em>true believer<\/em>, not a con-artist), &#8220;she&#8217;s no goody-goody, and no prude&#8221;; indeed, &#8220;she has as much fight in her as Gantry.&#8221; Simmons is indeed luminous and refreshingly tough &#8212; and is well-matched by finely cast Lancaster, who apparently stated, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/16632\/elmer-gantry#articles-reviews?articleId=218258\">&#8220;Some parts you fall into like a glove. Elmer really wasn&#8217;t acting. It was me.&#8221;<\/a> I&#8217;m less a fan of Shirley Jones&#8217;s Oscar-winning supporting performance as a blackmailing prostitute (Jones is trying a tad too hard to throw off her peaches-and-cream starring roles in <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=55235\"><em>Oklahoma!<\/em><\/a> and <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=55588\"><em>Carousel<\/em><\/a>): <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Jones2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Jones2-1024x591.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"369\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-55878\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Jones2-1024x591.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Jones2-300x173.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Jones2-128x74.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Jones2-768x443.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Jones2-1536x886.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Jones2-468x270.png 468w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Jones2.png 1791w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&#8230; but I appreciate Arthur Kennedy&#8217;s convincing portrayal as a journalist who finds himself more deeply involved in his story than he anticipated. Meanwhile, John Alton&#8217;s cinematography is beautiful, vividly bringing this specific era of American history to life.  <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Burt Lancaster as Elmer Gantry<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Lancaster2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Lancaster2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"1827\" height=\"1015\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-55870\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Lancaster2.png 1827w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Lancaster2-300x167.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Lancaster2-1024x569.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Lancaster2-128x71.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Lancaster2-768x427.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Lancaster2-1536x853.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Lancaster2-486x270.png 486w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Lancaster2-1038x576.png 1038w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1827px) 100vw, 1827px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Jean Simmons as Sister Sharon<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Simmons.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Simmons.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"1809\" height=\"1011\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-55871\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Simmons.png 1809w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Simmons-300x168.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Simmons-1024x572.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Simmons-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Simmons-768x429.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Simmons-1536x858.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Simmons-483x270.png 483w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1809px) 100vw, 1809px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Arthur Kennedy as Jim Lefferts<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Kennedy.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Kennedy.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"1821\" height=\"1017\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-55873\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Kennedy.png 1821w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Kennedy-300x168.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Kennedy-1024x572.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Kennedy-128x71.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Kennedy-768x429.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Kennedy-1536x858.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Kennedy-483x270.png 483w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1821px) 100vw, 1821px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>John Alton&#8217;s cinematography<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Cinematography2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Cinematography2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"1813\" height=\"1013\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-55872\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Cinematography2.png 1813w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Cinematography2-300x168.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Cinematography2-1024x572.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Cinematography2-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Cinematography2-768x429.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Cinematography2-1536x858.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Elmer-Gantry-Cinematography2-483x270.png 483w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1813px) 100vw, 1813px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nYes, once, for the lead performances. Nominated as one of the Best Pictures of the Year <em>Alternate Oscars<\/em>. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Categories<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Noteworthy Performance(s)<\/li>\n<li>Oscar Winner or Nominee<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0053793\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1960\/07\/08\/archives\/screen-a-living-actionpacked-elmer-gantrysinclair-lewis-story.html\">NY Times Original Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.filmsite.org\/elme.html\">FilmSite Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/16632\/elmer-gantry#articles-reviews?articleId=218258\">TCM Article<\/a><\/td>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;You&#8217;re amusing &#8212; and you smell like a real man.&#8221; Synopsis: When smooth-talking salesman Elmer Gantry (Burt Lancaster) falls for a beautiful evangelist (Jean Simmons), he quickly finagles his way into a job with her revivalist group, which is being covered by a skeptical journalist (Arthur Kennedy) &#8212; but will Gantry&#8217;s past relationship with a prostitute (Shirley Jones) impede his chances at success with Sister Sharon (Simmons)? Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors: Arthur Kennedy Films Blackmail Burt Lancaster Films Dean&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=55867\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-55867","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55867","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=55867"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55867\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":80652,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55867\/revisions\/80652"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=55867"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=55867"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=55867"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}