Pilgrimage is set in Ireland during the thirteenth century and follows a group of monks, including Spider-Man, and The Punisher/Shane from The Walking Dead as they try to bring a relic safely to the Vatican. The movie has critical flaws because it is a thoughtful movie, but fails to strike a balance with its action and intrigue that borders on cliché.
Pilgrimage’s overarching theme is how people choose to relate to God based on a spectrum of fear and faith. What is the best way to walk according to Gods will on earth as it is in heaven? There are some who do not believe and just cynically use Him as a bargaining chip to manipulate others and get more power. There are some who try to believe, but are uncertain of the right way to go. There are some who do believe in God, but have a rigid view of how to serve Him. One character keeps saying that he hears the bells when swords are clashing and calls it a miracle. I could not decide if he was being facetious or was being genuine, but I believe that it is the latter. If you are aligned with God, then even an objective evil is classified as good. Then there are some who believe in God, but actively compare and question others’ interpretation of what God wants with what he knows about God.
What Pilgrimage does well is further distinguishing God as a character in the film from people’s conceptions of Him. The movie clearly tries to signal that He shows his approval or disapproval based on the weather, appearance of mist or light and certain casual moments become pivotal events that enable the characters to move forward and avoid harm. I was pleased with how the movie landed in terms of what God wanted, but was annoyed that when the characters discuss the opening scene and we see more, it stops short of what they allege happened. Show nothing or everything. I do think that it was apt for the movie to use the two men with daddy issues to have the most problematic relationship with God. The contempt that they show their fathers reflects their distorted view of God.
Pilgrimage is a gorgeous movie. The acting is solid, but Richard Armitage may be cursed because he is a good movie, but his movies are never the complete package. I also like Jon Bernthal, but which came first, the character or the casting because I don’t think that it was a coincidence that the only American actor is playing a character that only speaks one word. You can probably predict what that one word is going to be. The problem with watching a lot of movies is that whether or not the film that you are currently watching intends to make references to the actors’ previous work, viewers can’t help but make them. I just kept thinking about The Walking Dead in a good way during all his scenes: CLEAR, the way that Rick deals with pedophiles.
I love action, but the whole contrived setup was predictable. There was one thread that was left hanging: was the water tainted and could it explain how two characters acted throughout the rest of Pilgrimage? I have no idea. I think that it was ambitious to have the characters speak the language that they would have actually used during that time, but English as the common tongue ruined it so they should not have bothered. If there is one lesson that you should take away from the film, never go on a road trip with a leader wearing all white—he clearly knows nothing and is ill prepared. There are no women in the movie so I was very concerned that someone was going to rape Tom Holland’s character, which did not happen, but there are some inadvertent sinister moments that make it seem plausible. If you are just waiting for the fight scenes, just advance the movie a little over forty minutes and start watching. At one point, the relic reminded me of football, which was unintentionally funny. At its nadir, Pilgrimage reminded me of Hammer of the Gods, which is not a compliment
Pilgrimage is an ambitious film that ultimately fails to meet its lofty goals of melding philosophical considerations with action and adventure, but has enough solid moments to make it worth a viewing if you like the cast and the subject matter. Give it a chance, but don’t expect to be blown away. Measured expectations are key.