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Elmer Gantry

Elmer Gantry

Drama · 1960

A charismatic charlatan begins a business — and eventually romantic — relationship with a roadside evangelist to sell religion to 1920s America. Based on Sinclair Lewis' novel of the same name.

Movie details

Elmer Gantry

“If there was a dollar to be made—Gantry would make it … If there was a soul to be saved—Gantry would save it …”

1960 Drama 2h 26m

Critical arithmetic

The consensus, allegedly.

IMDb

7.7 / 10

13.2K votes

Rotten Tomatoes

94 %

Tomatometer

TMDB

7.3 / 10

Community rating

External scores via OMDb · CC BY-NC 4.0. Values normalized for display; availability varies by title.

A charismatic charlatan begins a business — and eventually romantic — relationship with a roadside evangelist to sell religion to 1920s America. Based on Sinclair Lewis' novel of the same name.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over Elmer Gantry?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Richard Brooks

Written by

Richard Brooks

Burt Lancaster

Burt Lancaster

Elmer Gantry

Jean Simmons

Jean Simmons

Sister Sharon Falconer

Arthur Kennedy

Arthur Kennedy

Jim Lefferts

Dean Jagger

Dean Jagger

William L. Morgan

Shirley Jones

Shirley Jones

Lulu Bains

Patti Page

Patti Page

Sister Rachel

Edward Andrews

Edward Andrews

George F. Babbitt

Court is in session

Put Elmer Gantry on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Prestige Tourist

“Ambition earns the room.”

The film reaches for consequence and scale, accepting the risk of seriousness instead of shrinking from it.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“Importance has entered the chat.”

The production keeps announcing its significance, as though awards-season posture were proof of insight.