For Greater Glory: The True Story of Cristiada (2012) on Netflix
A government crackdown on Mexico's Catholic faithful sets off a rebellion. General Enrique Gorostieta, an agnostic, leads the Cristeros, and young José Luis Sánchez joins the fight.
- Netflix3.9/5
- IMDb6.6/105,671 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes20%
Trailer
Plot summary
Mexico's 1917 Constitution carries provisions against the Catholic Church, and when Plutarco Elías Calles becomes president, his government moves violently against the country's faithful. Federal forces burn churches, kill priests and peasants, and leave bodies hanging from telegraph poles as a warning. Father Christopher, a Catholic priest, is murdered, and thirteen-year-old José Luis Sánchez witnesses the killing. He joins the Cristeros, the rebels who call themselves soldiers for Christ and fight with the cry Viva Cristo Rey, meaning Long live Christ the King. Their leader is Enrique Gorostieta, a retired general and an agnostic, who takes the boy on as his protégé.
Cast
Show all 20 cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about For Greater Glory: The True Story of Cristiada (2012)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Peter O'Toole's work in For Greater Glory, an epic historical war drama based on the events of the Cristero War, was his last film appearance released in his lifetime.
- The film was the directorial debut of Dean Wright, who had been a veteran visual effects supervisor on films including The Two Towers in 2002 and The Return of the King in 2003.
- At one point the director recreates a famous photograph of the bodies of executed Cristeros hanging from telephone poles, although in the film they are seen from a moving train.
- The film had a robust opening in Mexico, taking first place in gross admissions at the box office and second in total receipts behind Titanic 3D, and by May 11, 2012 it had grossed $2.2 million.
SPOILER
The film's young hero is executed when he resolutely defends his faith; Pope Benedict XVI beatified the real José in 2005, along with 12 other martyrs of the religious persecution.
