The Man from Rome

The Man from Rome

Year: 2023

Runtime: 107 mins

Language: Dutch

Director: Jaap van Heusden

ThrillerDramaComedy

A Vatican priest, known for his skepticism, is sent to the Dutch province of Limburg to examine claims of a miracle. While investigating, he finds himself increasingly involved in a succession of extraordinary occurrences that challenge his beliefs and threaten his faith. He must grapple with the possibility that the events are indeed miraculous, forcing him to question everything he thought he knew.

Tense
Mixed feelings
Moderately emotional
Medium intensity
Steady pacing
Moderate complexity

Warning: spoilers below!

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Timeline & Setting – The Man from Rome (2023)

Explore the full timeline and setting of The Man from Rome (2023). Follow every major event in chronological order and see how the environment shapes the story, characters, and dramatic tension.

Time period

Location

Seville, Spain, Vatican City

The story centers on Seville, where a historic church sits on the Bruner estate. The Vatican backdrop frames the investigation as ecclesiastical power clashes with secular wealth. The church and the Bruner estate become focal points where money, influence, and faith collide.

🕌 Historic Seville 🕍 Catholic Heritage 🏛️ Vatican City

Last Updated: October 01, 2025 at 09:48

Main Characters – The Man from Rome (2023)

Meet the key characters of The Man from Rome (2023), with detailed profiles, motivations, and roles in the plot. Understand their emotional journeys and what they reveal about the film’s deeper themes.

Father Quart

A Vatican special agent assigned to investigate the two mysterious church deaths in Seville. He is methodical, morally principled, and driven to uncover the truth behind the escalating conspiracy and to protect the church from scandal.

🕊️ Clergy 🕵️ Investigation ⚖️ Integrity

Pencho Gavira

An estranged banker husband who orchestrates a money-laundering scheme through his bank and uses pressure to push the Bruner family to sell the church. He is ruthless, calculating, and willing to menace the church to secure his financial ambitions.

💼 Wealth 🧠 Schemer 🖇️ Power

Macarena Bruner

Owner of the Bruner estate and defender of the church's legacy. She fights to keep the mass honoring the founder alive, positioning herself as a guardian of tradition against Pencho's financial machinations.

🏰 Estate 🛡️ Protector 👪 Family

Ferro (Bosch)

A priest who is actually a former Vatican agent named Bosch. He faked his death, living under the cloak of a church figure to cover up the Vatican's secret deposits and the broader conspiracy behind the murders.

🕵️ Spy 🕊️ Clergy 🧭 Deception

Gris Marsala

The head restorer of the church, who ultimately confesses to being connected to the three deaths. Her actions, whether direct or indirect, reveal how far people will go to protect or destroy the church.

🎨 Restorer 💀 Mystery 🗝️ Secrets

Last Updated: October 01, 2025 at 09:48

Major Themes – The Man from Rome (2023)

Explore the central themes of The Man from Rome (2023), from psychological, social, and emotional dimensions to philosophical messages. Understand what the film is really saying beneath the surface.

💰 Money Laundering

Pencho's bank money-laundering scheme is tied to the church and the estate, revealing how wealth can corrupt religious and civic institutions. The planned skyscraper is a cover to channel illicit funds, showing the scale of financial crime involved. The Vatican's hidden deposits, linked to criminal networks, threaten to explode into a global scandal.

⚖️ Power and Faith

Ownership of the church becomes a battleground between a wealthy family and the diocese, with the Bruner estate's future dependent on keeping a founder's mass alive. The Bishop pressures a sale to avert scandal while protecting the institution's riches. The potential sale could reshape the balance of religious authority and economic influence in Spain.

🕵️ Secrets and Identities

Father Ferro is revealed to be a former Vatican agent, Bosch, who faked his death to guard secret accounts. The discovery of the bank accounts would deepen the Vatican's exposure to a sprawling cover-up. The truth behind the murders tightens as old identities surface and loyalties are questioned.

🔎 Investigation

Quart and his team unravel a web of deceit surrounding three deaths in the church. The investigation uncovers the scheme, the fake death, and the conspiracy that ties church, state, and mafia finances. The final revelation advances a sense of justice as the perpetrators are exposed and the cash flows exposed.

Last Updated: October 01, 2025 at 09:48

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Explore Movie Threads

Discover curated groups of movies connected by mood, themes, and story style. Browse collections built around emotion, atmosphere, and narrative focus to easily find films that match what you feel like watching right now.

Institutional investigative thrillers like The Man from Rome

Tense procedurals where agents uncover corruption from within powerful systems.If you enjoyed the investigative core of The Man from Rome, you'll like these movies about agents and insiders uncovering deep-seated corruption and secrets within powerful organizations. They blend suspense with moral complexity in a steady, procedural narrative.

suspensefulinvestigativeinstitutionalmorally complexseriousproceduralfaith-challenging

Narrative Summary

These narratives typically center on a dedicated investigator methodically peeling back layers of deception and malfeasance within a rigid institutional structure. The protagonist often faces a personal crisis of faith or loyalty, questioning the very system they represent as the truth becomes more dangerous and morally ambiguous.

Why These Movies?

Movies in this thread are grouped by their shared focus on a tense, methodical investigation set against the backdrop of a powerful, secretive institution. They create a specific mood of serious, cloak-and-dagger suspense where the stakes are both professional and deeply personal.

Movies about a crisis of faith and conscience like The Man from Rome

Stories where characters face profound challenges to their core beliefs.If you were captivated by the priest's struggle with belief in The Man from Rome, explore these movies where characters face profound challenges to their core convictions. These films are serious, thought-provoking stories about questioning ideology, faith, and personal morality.

thought-provokingseriousfaith-challengingmoral ambiguityintrospectivedoubtsoul-searching

Narrative Summary

The central narrative pattern involves a character, often a figure of authority or strong belief, being confronted with evidence or experiences that directly contradict their worldview. The plot is driven by their internal struggle as they weigh skepticism against the possibility of the extraordinary, leading to a mixed or ambiguous resolution that reshapes their identity.

Why These Movies?

These films are united by their deep focus on a protagonist's internal, psychological journey of doubt and re-evaluation. The shared experience is one of serious, weighty contemplation, where the external plot serves to catalyze a fundamental internal crisis.

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The Man from Rome Summary

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