Movie Review: Pius XII: Under the Roman Sun (2010)

Pius XII: Under the Roman Sun (2010) directed by Christian Duguay

This 200-minute made-for-TV movie (in two parts) depicts Pope Pius XII during World War II. He lives in Vatican City surrounded by Axis-controlled Rome. As the movie starts, the Germans are moving in since Mussolini is faltering and the Allies have landed on Italy. Part of the German's program is to deport Italian Jews to the German concentration camps. So both the war and the Holocaust loom over the city. The story isn't just about Pius XII. At least half the story follows three Jews who live in the Jewish Ghetto--two guys and a gal. At the beginning they have a love triangle--intellectual and supporter of the resistance Marco is the "nice guy" while black market profiteer Davide is the "bad guy." He's not so bad, though. He helps out people when he can. The girl is Miriam, whose father owns a bookshop with a secret printing press in the basement. In addition to producing propaganda, they can forge travel documents. As the Nazis clamp down, they are forced to flee, though our trio can't make it out of the city and have to hide in local monasteries and convents (which has been allowed by a direct order from Pius XII). The story goes on until the liberation of Rome by American troops in 1944.

James Cromwell (from Babe and L. A. Confidential) plays Pius XII and does a fine job showing both his inner conflict and his integrity. The three actors in the love triangle (which is fairly chaste and the romantic part resolves about half way through, leaving them to suffer under the German threats) are okay but their storyline is cliche and less interesting than the actual historical events. The Nazis characters run the gamut from fairly interesting to one-dimensional and wooden.

The history is accurate but occasional bits (like the flashback describing how a papal encyclical denouncing the Nazi government was distributed and received in 1930s Germany) feel more like an infomercial than good storytelling. At one point in the movie the Nazis plot to kidnap Pius XII but nothing interesting ever comes of it. The movie looks like it is trying to balance historical accuracy with an interesting story but overall doesn't hit the mark.

Surely this accurate depiction of Pius XII's actions to protect Jews during World War II is important but the movie isn't as satisfying as it could be.

Santa Maria in Cosmedin, Rome

Here's some Thanksgiving leftovers...a church in Rome! 

Santa Maria in Cosmedin is a famous church for what's on its porch--the Bocca della Verita. I've already posted about that here, but now let's go into the church!

Santa Maria in Cosmedin

In addition to the Bocca, the porch has a nice sign about the dress code. Churches in Rome all have a dress code and people have been put out before (in both senses of "put out"). Some places will provide wraps to improvise skirts or shoulder coverings. Since we visited in January, we were modestly and warmly dressed and had no worries.

This means YOU!

The church was built in the 500s with the bell tower and portico added in the 1100s. The church is fairly simple but has some fantastic mosaics inside. The main altar was fenced off when we were there but I was able to get a good side view. The canopy is quite nice.

Nave

Main altar

Side altar

Side altar

Floor mosaic

Mosaic picture

The church also has a crypt (always popular with the children) though little is down there other than a few altars and some empty niches.

Stairs to the crypt

An altar

Empty niches

The term "Cosmedin" is from the Greek kosmidion meaning "ornate." The church is Roman Catholic in the Greek-Melkite Rite. The Greek community of Rome has been worshiping at this church since it was first built.

Roman Bath Museum, York

In 1929, a major fire destroyed most of the Mail Coach Inn, a pub on St. Sampson's Square in York. When the owners decided to rebuild, they wanted to expand the cellar. Digging started and then stopped when they came upon the ruins of a Roman Bath! Naturally they changed the name of the pub and put a museum in downstairs.

Roman Bath pub

The pub sign!

A small staircase leads down into the museum where the remains of the bath can be seen. The Romans built a large fortress called Eboracum in AD 71 but these baths probably date from the 300s. It was a massive fort covering 50 acres and providing all the necessaries for 5000 soldiers. The bath house was probably quite sizable since it was used not only for bathing but as a spa, drinking house, and restaurant.

Stairs leading down

Non-vintage sign

The first room visible is the caldarium, or hot steam room. The floor was was raised and hot air blasted through from a furnace. The floor was covered with water which became very hot (the Romans wore wooden clogs to walk on the floor) and made the room steamy. The soldiers could hang out any time of day.

Caldarium

Mural showing what it was probably like back in the day

Around a corner is another room, the frigidarium, which was a cold plunge pool. Modern spa torture apparently began many, many years ago! Only a small part of the frigidarium is visible today.

Frigidarium

The museum is rather small and does not include the whole bath complex, only what's under the current day pub. The museum includes lots of displays of Roman armor (visitors can even try some on) and archeological discoveries, as well as the occasional replicas.

Weapons and armor to try out

Military outfit

A replica sword

A bigger replica sword

Old and new items

Roman tiles with stamps

Bust of a woman

Bust of a man

I felt the museum was a little overpriced for the size (it really is just two rooms) but it is still fun to see the ancient Roman ruins.

Leeds City Museum, England

Leeds has a fine museum in the heart of the city that includes exhibits on the ancient world, the modern world, life on earth, and the story of Leeds. On our visit, we saw everything but the story of Leeds. We'll have to go back (without the children!). Here's what we saw.

The Leeds City Museum, with some of the 2013 Christmas Market outside

Our first stop was naturally the cafe for a snack and a bit of a warm up (we visited in late November). After that, we looked around the Life on Earth exhibit on the ground floor. The exhibit had plenty of stuffed and unstuffed animals as well as interactive exhibits that J and L enjoyed.

L interacts!

An unstuffed animal!

Upstairs is an exhibit of items collected by seven local people. The collection was wide-ranging, including Roman statuary, china porcelain, and other nicknacks.

Caligula bust

Nero bust

Stained-glass coats-of-arms

Further upstairs is the Ancient Worlds and Special Exhibitions. When we visited, the special exhibit was Through the Magic Mirror: The World of Anthony Browne, who is a Yorkshire children's author and graduate of Leeds College of Art. Plenty of children's activities were available but not many photographic opportunities, except for children who wanted to hang out in a cage with a gorilla from one of Browne's stories.

Shooting the sign for the exhibit is allowed

J tries to escape the cage!

The Ancient Worlds exhibit shows a variety of items from Rome, Greece, and Egypt.

The Wolf and Twins mosaic depicts Romulus and Remus suckled by a she-wolf. The legend goes that they were abandoned in the Tiber River but came ashore and were raised by a she-wolf. They went on to found the city of Rome. The mosaic is from the Roman ruins in Aldborough, which the Romans called Isurium Birgantum.

The Wolf and Twins, circa 300-400 AD

Some busts from that period are also on display.

Roman heads

One interactive exhibit here is archeology-based. Patrons can try to reconstruct pottery from the various bits that have been dug up.

We do this all the time at home

Another exhibit has a Roman altar used by a local family in Catterick, North Yorkshire, at the end of the second century. The inscription translates as "To the mother goddesses of the household, Julius Victor willingly and deservedly fulfilled his vow for himself and his family."

Roman Altar circa 200 AD

The Greek exhibit includes various gravestones and tomb doors. The dead were washed and a coin put in their mouths to pay Charon to ferry them across the river Styx to the realm of the dead.

Greek tombstones, from 400 to 100 BC

Greek Tomb Doors circa 200 BC

This copy of the Rosetta Stone shows a decree from Pharoah Ptolemy V on taxes and putting up statues. The stone is significant because, after its discovery in the 1800s, French scholar Jean-Francois Champollion used it to decipher Egyptian hieroglyphics, which had been untranslatable until that time.

Copy of the Rosetta Stone, circa 196 BC

The Egpytian samplings also include a variety of jewelry and figurines.

Egyptian jewelry

Egyptian figurines

The star of the exhibit is the Nesyamun, a 3000 year-old mummy. Pictures weren't allowed but visiting the museum is worth it just to see the mummy up close. The corpse is out of the sarcophagus and many of the linens have deteriorated, leaving a spooky-looking mummy. J and L were still in the Special Exhibit, which was probably good for them. Also, Mommy and I might have a hard time explaining a mummy to them.

Gesu, Rome

The Gesu was the first Jesuit church built in Rome. Construction went from 1568 to 1584 and reflects the Baroque exuberance of the Counter-Reformation period. The church is a little bit plain on the outside but astonishingly beautiful on the inside.

Gesu, Rome

Exterior statue with the triumph of learning over ignorance

A statue with the triumph of love over hate

The nave is large and airy with a wonderful pulpit in the middle for preaching the Word to the gathered faithful.

Nave

Pulpit

The ceiling frescoes are wonderful, especially the Triumph of the Name of Jesus by Il Baciccia. The picture spills over from the border and onto the rest of the roof.

Triumph of the Name of Jesus

Several of the side altars are splendid, including the Chapel of Sant'Ignazio (St. Ignatius, founder of the Jesuits, who is buried there).

Holy Cross chapel

Altar of St. Francis Xavier with a relic

Chapel of Sant'Ignazio

The Sant'Ignazio is flanked by two wonderful statues depicting Religion Defeats Heresy and Hatred and the Triumph of Faith over Idolatry.

Religion Defeats Heresy and Hatred

Triumph of Faith over Idolatry

The main altar is also quite glorious in the back of the church with the Glory of the Mystical Lamb fresco by Bacicci.

Main altar

Fresco of the Glory of the Mystical Lamb

The side altar to the right of the main altar has many relics of Jesuit saints and some fine statues too.

Some reliquaries and one statue

The church is definitely worth visiting when in Rome!