(There are Spoilers) Very disturbing film about a Catholic boarding school that may very well offend some viewers in its depiction of the schools Latin teacher Father Goddard, Richard Burton. It's not what Father Goddard does but how he's manipulated and later drove to the brink of madness and suicide that's so disturbing. All this while Father Goddard is trying to help one of his students Benji Stanfield, Dominic Guard, who had gone astray from the schools teachings to the point of murder.
Being looked upon as his best pupil Father Goddard has Benji set up, to all the students in his Latin class, as an example of what a good and intelligent young man should be. This has the nerdy and crippled Arthur Dyson, David Bradley, always try to hang out with Benji in order that some of his popularity with both the administrators and students in the school would rub off on himself. Benji tolerates the odd-ball Dyson up to a point but gets a bit turned off by his always, through no fault of his own, screwing things up for him in his fumbling and butterfingered ways.
It's when Benji doing his morning run, which the lame legged Dyson couldn't participate in, runs into this easy rider type hippie Blakey, Billy Connolly, that he starts to change for the worst. Blakey putting ideas into Benji's head about drugs and sex, together with his hippie girlfriend Louella(Sharon Duce), that has Father Goodard put his foot down and forbid Benji never to see Blakey again. Benji trying to mend fences with Father Goodard asks him to receives his confession which the Father reluctantly does and gets all the steamy and unholy details of his relationships with both Blakey and Louella.
Father Goddard not being able to really do anything since the things that Benji confessed to him are between him and Benji, and God, tries in a round about sort of way to get the young man back on the right track. Benji who was getting fed up with the restrictions of his Catholic faith, in how it keeps him from doing the things that he really wants to do, starts to play games with the concerned Father Goddard. Benji goes out and committing a number of horrendous acts that included the murder of his good friend Blakey, who was about to leave him. Confessing those acts, or crimes, to Father Goddard Benji knows full well that he couldn't tell the police or even have him expelled from the school.
Playing Father Goddard for a fool Benji starts to enjoy his driving the very serious and strict man almost insane. Running to where Benji told him that he buried the murdered Blakely Father Goddard only finds out that the whole story about murdering him was a joke. Later Benji again confesses that this time around he really did in fact murder Balkey and when the now almost hysterical Father Goddard goes to the place where Benji told him that Blakey was buried he indeed finds the man dead and buried! The movie then takes a sudden U-turn when it comes out, with yet another confession on Benji's part, that the lame and dejected Dyson was also a victim of Benji's insanity. These revelations drives Father Goddard over the top which is exactly what Benji was planning to do to him right from the start. Bringing Father Goddard to the brink of condemning himself, in the Catholic tradition, to eternal damnation or, in the eyes of the law, a life behind bars in either a prison or mental institution.
The movie has a very out of left field surprise ending where we see what was really behind all this manipulating of poor Father Goddards mind. This act of revenge and jealousy that went as far as driving the man to not only lose his faith and sanity but his life as well. Father Goddard demise came about by him innocently going along with those who were using him and his good will, in helping them, for their own sick selfish and ungodly purposes.
Being looked upon as his best pupil Father Goddard has Benji set up, to all the students in his Latin class, as an example of what a good and intelligent young man should be. This has the nerdy and crippled Arthur Dyson, David Bradley, always try to hang out with Benji in order that some of his popularity with both the administrators and students in the school would rub off on himself. Benji tolerates the odd-ball Dyson up to a point but gets a bit turned off by his always, through no fault of his own, screwing things up for him in his fumbling and butterfingered ways.
It's when Benji doing his morning run, which the lame legged Dyson couldn't participate in, runs into this easy rider type hippie Blakey, Billy Connolly, that he starts to change for the worst. Blakey putting ideas into Benji's head about drugs and sex, together with his hippie girlfriend Louella(Sharon Duce), that has Father Goodard put his foot down and forbid Benji never to see Blakey again. Benji trying to mend fences with Father Goodard asks him to receives his confession which the Father reluctantly does and gets all the steamy and unholy details of his relationships with both Blakey and Louella.
Father Goddard not being able to really do anything since the things that Benji confessed to him are between him and Benji, and God, tries in a round about sort of way to get the young man back on the right track. Benji who was getting fed up with the restrictions of his Catholic faith, in how it keeps him from doing the things that he really wants to do, starts to play games with the concerned Father Goddard. Benji goes out and committing a number of horrendous acts that included the murder of his good friend Blakey, who was about to leave him. Confessing those acts, or crimes, to Father Goddard Benji knows full well that he couldn't tell the police or even have him expelled from the school.
Playing Father Goddard for a fool Benji starts to enjoy his driving the very serious and strict man almost insane. Running to where Benji told him that he buried the murdered Blakely Father Goddard only finds out that the whole story about murdering him was a joke. Later Benji again confesses that this time around he really did in fact murder Balkey and when the now almost hysterical Father Goddard goes to the place where Benji told him that Blakey was buried he indeed finds the man dead and buried! The movie then takes a sudden U-turn when it comes out, with yet another confession on Benji's part, that the lame and dejected Dyson was also a victim of Benji's insanity. These revelations drives Father Goddard over the top which is exactly what Benji was planning to do to him right from the start. Bringing Father Goddard to the brink of condemning himself, in the Catholic tradition, to eternal damnation or, in the eyes of the law, a life behind bars in either a prison or mental institution.
The movie has a very out of left field surprise ending where we see what was really behind all this manipulating of poor Father Goddards mind. This act of revenge and jealousy that went as far as driving the man to not only lose his faith and sanity but his life as well. Father Goddard demise came about by him innocently going along with those who were using him and his good will, in helping them, for their own sick selfish and ungodly purposes.