The Monk

Plot synopsis:
An abandoned baby is taken in by a Spanish monastery, and raised as a monk, christened Capuchin Ambrosio. An exceptional preacher, Ambrosio is respected by all. One day a masked figure by the name of Valerio arrives at the monastery with his godfather, explaining the mask as necessary due to terrible burns inflicted on him in a fire that killed his parents. He expresses a desire to join the monastery which is initially shunned by several of the monks, however Ambrosio convinces them to not fear his differences, and to accept him.
Valerio later reveals to Ambrosio that he is actually a woman by the name of Matilda, and Ambrosio orders her to leave. As a last request she asks for a rose from his rose garden, and upon reaching in to pluck one for her, Ambrosio is bitten by a giant centipede. As he becomes delirious from the effects of the venom, he is seduced by Matilda and compromises his faith. Another lady, Antonia, who had recently heard him preach comes to the monastery to ask that Ambrosio see her sick mother. He complies and is told of a story by the sickly mother that she left a son Mateo that was lost years ago and this troubles her soul. Driven by a carnal lust for Matilda, Ambrosio transgresses and he is soon found desiring the innocent Antonia now. He also sees apparitions of the pregnant Nun he condemned to death by turning her over to the prioress.
Matilda recognizes Ambrosio's new interest in the fair Antonia and uses magic spells to help the monk in his pursuit of her. She resists and her rape by him and discovery of her murdered mother (at the hand of Ambrosio) leads to her insanity. As her mother dies, she utters the word "Mateo," indicating that Ambrosio now knows that he is the older brother of Antonia that was lost years ago. Returning to the monastery, Ambrosio is delivered to the Inquisition where he is condemned to death by starvation; escaping only by selling his soul to the devil in an effort to save Antonia. It later emerges that Matilda is an instrument of Satan in female form. The devil prevents Ambrosio's final repentance...

Tags: murder

Review:
"The Monk" could have been a great series for George Maharis. George Maharis gave a brilliant performance as Buz Murdock on "Route 66". For a short period in the 60's, all you could hear about was Maharis (sort of like Don Johnson or David Caruso in later years.) Maharis seemed to have a great future ahead of him. He had charisma and attitude to spare. In interviews, he seemed extremely sensitive and intelligent. When his movie career didn't quite take off, Maharis tried to return to series stardom-always a risky bet.Blake Edwards had created three great TV detectives: Richard Diamond, Peter Gunn and Mr. Lucky. Blake Edwards' Gus Monk could have been another classic, stylish hero. (Vince Edwards turned the role down due to another commitment, but said he loved the script.) The problem with this pilot wasn't Maharis. He looked incredible and his personality meshed with Monk. Given time and good writing, Maharis could have given the role real depth, as he did with Buz Murdock.The problem with this pilot was that producer Aaron Spelling just wasn't sharp enough. Maybe Herbert Brodkin ("Coronet Blue", "Shane") or David Susskind ("N.Y.P.D.") could have made it work. Or the great Blake Edwards.When "The Monk" didn't sell, Spelling came up with another series for Maharis called "The Most Deadly Game", a reworking of "Checkmate". The show was originally going to co-star Inger Stevens and Ralph Bellamy. Yvette Mimieux replaced Inger Stevens when she died. It was another viable premise and a fine cast, but again the execution was not as good as it should have been.Amazingly the great George Maharis never had another series. One of Hollywood's true unsolved mysteries.. hopeless. well, what did I expect in a 10 DVD set of "Specials"?, but I've seen a few others in a 10-pack that were really good. Not this one. There is a cute scene with a cat that drinks beer, but is uncredited. That has to be worth one rating point? And there are some neat shots of downtown San Francisco, and the marina area, and that gets the second rating point! but not much else to even comment on.Gus Monk flies back from... somewhere and is asked to help a hot- shot lawyer representing a syndicate hood with secrets. There are a few killings, a cop, an odd widow. I suppose it is just a TV pseudo- thriller. And, being San Francisco, they (the director/writer etc) put in a totally unbelievable car chase, ending in an unsurvivable crash, but of course, Monk walks away from it and goes on to solve all the mystery.. Pilot made with misguided hope.. This attempt to give George Maharis a series starring as Gus Monk, an unlicensed private investigator based loosely in San Francisco, falls flat due to its inordinate predictability and silly clichéd script, served up with the customary sprinkling of "guest stars" (Carl Betz, Janet Leigh) while being hindered by shoddy direction and a most critical factor: Maharis is not much of an actor. Undervalued cinematographer Fleet Southcott creates some interesting moments, and there are capable performances from William Smithers and Rick Jason as unsavoury types, but poor Maharis is the lead and when he is attempting a reaction to important plot elements, may they be dead bodies, or women involved in the goings-on, it is curtains for this effort.