Sean Connery plays William of Baskerville, a 14th-century Franciscan monk sent to solve a murder mystery in a Benedictine abbey in Northern Italy. He arrives with his young novice, Adso of Melk, played by Christian Slater. A young illuminator has apparently killed himself ahead of a major Church conference, and William gains permission from the worried Abbot to look into it. What follows is a labyrinth of dead monks, a forbidden library full of lost books, and a shadowy conspiracy within the monastery walls.
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The Murder Mystery
The murders come fast. One monk dies, then another, then a third. Each corpse shows blackened fingers and tongue, and each death points toward a missing book. William and Adso follow the clues while the Abbot watches nervously. The pattern holds: a death, a clue, a step closer to the truth.
Salvatore, a hunchback who speaks gibberish in several languages, becomes a central figure. William notices that Salvatore uses the word “penitenziagite,” a term tied to a heretical sect. He suspects Salvatore and his handler, Remigio da Varagine, are involved in the killings. The suspicion grows as more monks die.
Adso’s side story adds color. He meets a peasant girl who sneaks into the abbey to trade sexual favors for food. She seduces him and they sleep together. This subplot gives the film some warmth amid the cold corridors of the abbey, though it does little to move the murder investigation forward.
The Forbidden Library
The heart of the film is the abbey’s forbidden tower. Inside sits one of the greatest libraries in all Christendom, filled with dozens of works by Classical masters like Aristotle. These books were thought lost for centuries. The library stays hidden because its pagan knowledge clashes with Christian doctrine.
William finds the library through deduction. He follows the clues left by the dead monks, tracing the blackened fingers back to a specific book. Finding that book becomes the key to stopping the murderer. The library itself is a character, vast and silent, holding secrets the Church would rather forget.
Bernardo Gui and the Inquisition
F. Murray Abraham plays Bernardo Gui, the Inquisitor summoned for the conference. He arrives late in the story and presses William to hand over the case. Gui wants to prosecute those he deems responsible for the deaths, and his presence curtails William’s investigation.
Gui is the film’s antagonist, a man of authority who stands against William’s search for truth. Their conflict drives the final act, with William fighting to keep his inquiry alive while Gui tries to shut it down. The tension between the two men gives the film its dramatic weight.
The Cast and Its Chemistry
Connery gives a strong performance as William of Baskerville. He plays the monk with intelligence and resolve, never letting the character slip into caricature. His William is a thinker, not a fighter, and Connery sells that with quiet intensity.
Slater is adequate as Adso of Melk. He plays the novice as curious and innocent, which fits the role. The chemistry between the two leads works well enough, though the film leans heavily on Connery to carry the narrative.
Michael Lonsdale plays the Abbot, a nervous figure caught between the murders and the approaching conference. He does not get much screen time, but his worried presence adds to the film’s uneasy atmosphere. Feodor Chaliapin Jr. plays Jorge de Burgos, and William Hickey plays Ubertino da Casale. Both deliver solid supporting work.
Ron Perlman plays Salvatore, the hunchback. He is memorable, a strange figure who speaks in gibberish and carries dark secrets. His scenes with William are among the film’s best.
The Library Sequence
The sequence in the library is the film’s high point. William walks through rows of ancient tomes, discovering works by Aristotle and other Classical masters. The scene captures the wonder of discovery, even as the abbey around him falls into chaos.
The library also represents the danger of knowledge. The books are forbidden because they come from pagan thinkers, ideas the Church finds hard to reconcile with its teachings. William’s investigations are curtailed by Gui’s arrival, and the library remains a place of both revelation and repression.
Where It Falls Short
The film drags in stretches. Some scenes feel padded, with conversations about theology and politics that do not advance the mystery. The pacing slows near the middle, and the audience loses focus.
The ending feels rushed. After building the tension for an hour and a half, the film resolves the murders quickly, almost too quickly. The resolution is satisfying on its own terms, but it does not match the care the film showed in setting up the puzzle.
The film also leans on exposition. Characters explain things to each other that the audience has already seen, which slows the pace further. Some of the supporting cast, especially the minor monks, blend together, making it hard to remember who did what.
The 1986 Release
The Name of the Rose was released in 1986, directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud. It was an international co-production between West German, French, and Italian companies, filmed in Rome and at the former Eberbach Abbey in the Rheingau. The film received mixed to positive reviews from critics and won several awards, including the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role for Sean Connery.
| Film Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Director | Jean-Jacques Annaud |
| Writers | Gérard Brach, Andrew Birkin, Alain Godard, Howard Franklin |
| Runtime | 130 minutes |
| Genre | Drama, Thriller, Mystery |
| Tagline | “Who, in the name of God, is getting away with murder?” |
| Comparison of Lead Performances | ||
|---|---|---|
| Actor | Role | Performance |
| Sean Connery | William of Baskerville | Strong, intelligent |
| Christian Slater | Adso of Melk | Adequate, supportive |
| F. Murray Abraham | Bernardo Gui | Solid, menacing |
| Ron Perlman | Salvatore | Memorable, strange |
The film is a worthy adaptation of the novel. It captures the intellectual rigor of the source material and builds a convincing world of medieval monasteries and forbidden knowledge. Connery’s performance anchors the film, carrying the weight of the mystery with dignity.
The library sequence is a standout, a moment of genuine wonder in an otherwise plodding narrative. The film’s strengths are real, but they are unevenly distributed across its runtime.
| Scene | Contribution |
|---|---|
| Opening death of the illuminator | Sets up the mystery |
| Discovery of the blackened fingers | Traces the murders to a missing book |
| Library sequence | Climax of discovery and dread |
| Arrival of Bernardo Gui | Curtails the investigation |
| Resolution of the murders | Ends the mystery |
The film’s weaknesses are structural. The middle section drags, the exposition piles up, and the ending rushes. These flaws keep the film from greatness, even as its best moments shine brightly.
The Name of the Rose is a flawed but engaging adaptation of the novel. Connery’s performance, the library sequence, and the intellectual mystery justify a watch. The pacing issues and rushed ending hold it back. For fans of historical thrillers and murder mysteries, it remains a worthwhile entry in the genre.
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