There Be Dragons

In 2002 Pope John Paul II canonized a priest by the name of Josemaria Escriva. Dubbed “the saint of the ordinary” Escriva started an organization known as Opus Dei (Latin for “Work of God”). Starting with just three men and enduring through the Spanish Civil War when priests were shot on sight, membership now consists of over 90,000 members worldwide. Escriva’s vision was that every man and women in their ordinary tasks of life are capable of representing Christ’s love to one another. The mission of Opus Dei is to help ordinary people turn their work and daily activities into opportunities for growing closer to God, serving others and improving society.
 
The revolutionary idea of Opus Dei came in a time of civil unrest, when a war was being fought not over land or property but over ideals. Fascism and Communism was challenging the status quo ripping families apart and setting brother against brother. In the middle of all this was a young priest speaking of faith, love and serving others.
 
To bring this story to us, Roland Joffe (The Mission) has combined historical events with a fictional tale to illustrate the scope of this man’s monumental deeds. In There Be Dragons, Dougray Scott plays a writer named Robert who comes to Spain to do research for his book on the famed priest. When he discovers that his estranged father came from the same small village as Josemaria, Robert seeks out his father, played by Wes Bentley, to get more information about Escriva as a young man. His father Manolo, who fought in the Civil War, never shared his memories of that time, but suddenly he’s willing to talk. In revealing how he and Josemaria chose different paths, Manolo is not only able to unburden himself of a guilty past, but reconnect with his son as well.
 
Set against the backdrop of the Spanish Civil War There Be Dragons follows the lives of these two childhood friends. Manolo, who is acting as a fascist spy infiltrating the communist party and Josemaria, a priest driven underground by hatred against the church. Also involved in this story is a charismatic communist leader named Oriol, played by Rodrigo Santoro. Manolo is smitten with a beautiful freedom fighter, but Iidiko (Olga Kurylenko) is enamored with Oriol. Manolo’s jealousy over the charismatic Oriol has him making some very poor decisions. On top of that is his hatred of the Communist Party. Their organization efforts lead to his father’s death and the destruction of their family’s business. Manolo is a angry young man. On the other side of the coin is Josemaria who spends his life serving God, holding mass and taking confession in secret while caring for the poor. Two boys from the same small village could not have turned out any more different.

When the film about Josemaria Escriva was first begun it was intended as a bio-pic, but when Roland Joffe came aboard he really wanted to show the magnitude and the scope of what Escriva was up against. There was such a backlash against the Catholic church that priests were being murdered and churches were being destroyed. Yet out of this, one man following the voice of God begins a simple straightforward mission that has thrived and lasted longer than the heyday of Fascism and Communism both. Charlie Cox, who portrays Josemaria Escriva plays him as a man full of love and compassion. He is fierce in his conviction, but he struggles with his anger over what is going on and the injustices taking place. By giving his anger to God and devoting himself to prayer he is able to lead by example inspiring a core group of men and women who spread his message all over the world.

Josemaria’s accomplishments are very inspiring and Roland Joffe has provided a dramatic stage to share this man’s story. His life is presented in a straight forward matter and the religious aspects are underplayed. Wes Bentley has the undaunting task of playing Manolo as both a young man and as an aged father alone with his bitter memories. But I believe that Charlie Cox has the toughest job. How do you portray a young man who grows up to be a saint? Luckily Charlie Cox got to view a lot of footage showing Escriva speaking in front of a crowd. He was known to be warm, funny and very much a man of the people. In that, Charlie Cox got it right.

Rating: First Run Get to know the people's saint