Billions of people all around the world cherish and venerate the Saints of the Catholic Church. Among the most popular is Saint Anthony of Lisbon. He is not only the highest regarded saint among Italian Catholics he is well regarded through the entire population of the church. His statues are prominently displayed in tens of thousands of churches and more Catholic homes that it would be possible to count. The city of San Antonio in Texas was named after this saint. Some four and a half million visit his basilica each year and his message has over 1.2 million subscribers. After attending a Catholic grade school and Jesuit university I have heard the story of Saint Anthony numerous times. While most of what is taught about him focuses on the mission work he did little is usually taught about him as a man. The bio-pic ‘Anthony Warrior of God’ by Italian film maker Antonello Belluco does just that. The film depicts the early life of Anthony and how he came to accept what he would see as his holy mission in life and his dedication to God. The film is not the strongest possible especially considering the popularity of the subject for so many people. It lacks the drive to hold the interest of the audience. It was originally given a limited release in Italy and was shown in the Busto Arsizio Film Festival and made a respectable box office. It is not a great biographical film but it will hold interest to the many faithful now that it is being released to DVD by Xenon Pictures through Lion’s Gate.

The film was written by Giovanna Caico and Antonello Belluco. Belluco also directed the film and this is his first time in both cinematic roles. His writing partner here, Caico, has over a decade of experience writing for Italian television. This may be partially the reason why the movie lacks the scope required for a big screen production. It has the feel of a made for television flick which is a shame. The film may adhere to the spiritual aspects of Anthony but like so many biographical movies plays rather loose and fast with the facts. This is normally a negative in most biographies but in this case considering all the people faithful to the saint a more factual approach should have been considered. Films and television shows based on religious figures are increasing in popularity now so it is understandable how and why this movie was made. The point is the facts here would have been interesting enough so that such dramatic license was unnecessary. There are some points where the story drags just about to a halt. This has the tendency to disrupt the flow of the story which never seems to get back on track. To their credit this is the first major film to cover the life of this beloved saint. They endeavor to show him as a man of faith but still very much a man. More could have been shown as to the events in his life that helped shaped his dedication to God not just the acts he performed on behalf of the people. You really can’t fault the writers too much here. There is such a precedence to spin history that the concept of a biography actually being a factual genre is all but lost. Unfortunately the real life is usually interesting enough to hold together as a movie.

Considering the limitations imposed by the script problems Belluco does a better job as a freshman director. He tries his best to get over the low points in the script by keeping he film moving forward ass much as possible. There is a great eye for setting up a scene displayed here and American audiences will especially appreciate the scenery which is occasionally breathtaking. The made for television feel does kick kin with the way close ups are included. He does have a keen eye for setting up a scene allowing the backgrounds to be integral to the presentation. Some may regard Belluco’s style as being a touch too artistic but it is consistent with much of Italian film making techniques.

The film opens with a elderly man dressed in monk’s robes softly praying before a display of human bones. The scene then shifts to a ship at sea riding the turbulent waves of a storm. A man is tossed overboard and washes up in Sicily; it is the year 1221. Bodies and debris from the ship are all around him on the beach. One man that he pulls to shore begins to stir. The men are Leonardo Fibonacci, a well known mathematician and a friar, Antonio (Jordi Mollà). Eventually they are discovered by some men on horseback and taken back to the town. The screener provided by the studio did not have a subtitle track so it was somewhat difficult to catch everything but the film is constructed in such a way that the gist was still possible to understand. In town a money lender, Telbaldo (Franco di Francescantonio) hears about the shipwreck and in hopes of salvaging any treasure sends out a pair of his subordinates, Baldrico (Matt Patresi) and Folco (Paolo De Vita). There search comes up empty. In the meantime Antonio has been slowly recovering from his ordeal. He begins to preach and to the amazement of all he has quite a knack for it. His sermons are gentle with a power that touches the people. Antonio travels to the north of Italy and meets up with man named Francesco (Michele Melega) and the men become friends. Eventually Antonio arrives at the town of Padova, the place that he would call home for the rest of his ecclesiastic career and life. Soon the church begins to recognize the abilities of Antonio and he is given charge of hospitality in an abbey. Also considered here is the extensive missionary work Antonio performed in remote parts of the known world. In all the film strives too hard to show the goodness of the man, that is self evident.

Here is a man who was made a Doctor of the Church and saint and remains one of the most beloved figures in history. The DVD is released through Xenon Pictures through Lion’s Gate. Without a doubt the film will appeal mostly to the faithful but it holds together fairly well as bio-pic.