User reviews

I enjoyed this film, which I believe was a one-hour bio on the Protestant reformer who predated Luther and the rest by about a hundred years.

It's kind of funny watching trained English stage actors play the parts of simple farmers and priests. Also, the cinematography was a little weak. But I believe that this was intended, so as to keep the movie simple and to the point about an idealist reformer. So although the film quality drops the rating, the story makes up for it.

It's strange to think that religious freedoms that we take for granted, like being able to read Scripture in our own tongue, cost the lives of dedicated and idealistic people hundreds of years ago. With this mindset penultimately installed in the viewer at film's end, John Hus is burned at the stake in 1415 while singing a hymn, another once-banned practice.

Back in the days when most of the population could not read or write folks in power knew knowledge was a dangerous thing. Even knowledge of the scriptures was not really good because you could find verses in the Bible that could justify all kinds of actions. So the bible was held for the priest and the scripture was doled out in bits and pieces so that the message was assured.

Not only that the Bible was only printed in Latin and only the church used Latin. People like John Wycliffe, Ulrich Zwingli, and the subject Jan Hus did not think this should be so. Only Hus paid with his life.

A pious man and a pious priest and there's a difference, Hus also had certain doctrinal disputes with the church. He got burned at the stake for said differences.

Rod Colbin does a fine job as the older Hus who stood up against tyranny of the mind. It's a good film and a reminder that people like Hus exist.

A shortest bio of John Hus, who watched the classic version of 1955 can see the gap between these two versions, somehow the messages is the same, in this picture already begins John Hus arrested at Constance monastery on Germany, when the council of Constance was ongoing, through some many flashbacks he got reminiscences from past years, when he decides to be a priest, preaching on church and becoming the favorite thinker of the Emperor of Bohemia, as hard follower of John Wycliffe, he dares faces the Catholic Church when the clerics were selling indulgencies for wealthy sinners upon large amount of money that could allow to them be accept in the heaven, even staying in the hell, also he enforced performs the holly mass in the native language, instead on Latin as usually, such thing was deemed as blasphemy, also he states that anyone could be get in touch with Jesus itself without any go-between of the Church, he was claimed heretic on trial at Constance, however the Pope was willing to give the amnesty if he denied on public his beliefs, which was promptly refused by the holly man, he was burning on fire on July 06 of 1415, one hundred year ahead on Germany the Church try out make the same with Martin Luther, without any success!!

Resume:

First watch: 2020 / How many: 1 / Source: DVD / Rating: 7

Jan Hus was one of my childhood heroes. Not exactly for religious reasons ( in an Greek Orthodox country as Romania , under Ceausescu regime , it is difficult to imagine attraction for Reform ) but for courage to not deny his personal convictions . And, sure, for a 12 years old boy matters, for his atrocious death.

Few lines in history school book are resurrected by this film. A film wise crafted, correct , proposing questions more than a biography.

A universitarian in Prague . His vision about the Church purpose. His powerful truth about be real Christian. And the reaction of Church , state, ordinary people.

Interesting for fair construction and for the touch of time, it is one of films proposing questions and remembers, not made for convince and for controversions but as simple confession about a mission , freedom , duty and the very high price for them.

Not perfect - Marvin Miller is far to be the best Sigismund of Luxemburg - but useful for remind Constanz trial and the circles of late Middle Age circles of power.