The Prophet, the Gold and the Transylvanians
Encyclopedia
The Prophet, the Gold and the Transylvanians is a 1978
Romania
n film
directed by Romanian director Dan Piţa
. It is the first in a Red Western trilogy that also comprises The Artiste, the Dollars and the Transylvanians and The Oil, the Baby and the Transylvanians
.
It is spoken in English and Romanian.
, is ruled by Mr. Walthrope, a polygamous Mormon
prophet (Victor Rebengiuc
), his son the marshall (Gheorghe Visu) and their band of ruffians.
John Brad (Ovidiu Iuliu Moldovan
) is falsely accused of shooting in the back a gunfighter
(Ferenc Bács) sent against him by the prohet and has to flee.
Meanwhile, a train brings Jeff Groghan, a gunfighter called by Walthrope, and two Transylvania
n immigrants, Traian (Ilarion Ciobanu
) and Romulus Brad (Mircea Diaconu), who come to meet their brother John.
Traian speaks only Romanian and Romulus tries to get by with his dictionary.
On the station, Grogham is received with a gunfight and Traian has occasion to fire his Turkish gun, booty from the siege of Plevna.
Upon arrival to the saloon, Traian is invited to play poker
with Groghan, a former Confederate officer still in grey uniform and another man.
Traian manages to win many dollars and Bob (Ahmed Gabbany), the slave of the Confederate officer.
The fun is interrupted by the arrival of the prophet.
With very limited command of English, the Brads inform that they are looking for John, whose face they see in Wanted poster
s.
They are judged by the inicuous drunkard Dolittle (Vasile Nitulescu) who sentences them to hanging
but the prophet takes them to his farm, where they toil as farm hands.
The Brads and Bob escape and live in a hut under the Romanian flag where they fish and find gold nuggets.
John tries to organize the miners against the prophet who sets the prices and takes their gold away to Salt Lake City, but the miners prefer to let the things as they are.
Later, Walthrope's men assault one man and his daughter that is rescued by John Brad.
John and the girl finally reach the Brads' hut.
They team together to stop the party that carries the miners' gold stolen by the Mormons.
In the ensuing gunfight, the Brads win and successfully defend the miners camp against the whole Walthrope band.
Walthrope is captured and the Brads, Bob and the girl ride in the sunset.
1978 in film
The year 1978 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* February 1 - Bob Dylan's film Renaldo and Clara, a documentary of the "Rolling Thunder Revue" tour premieres in Los Angeles, California....
Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
n film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
directed by Romanian director Dan Piţa
Dan Pita
-Career:Piţa has directed several award-winning films since 1970, including the 1985 hit Pas în doi, which won an Honourable Mention at the 36th Berlin International Film Festival...
. It is the first in a Red Western trilogy that also comprises The Artiste, the Dollars and the Transylvanians and The Oil, the Baby and the Transylvanians
The Oil, the Baby and the Transylvanians
The Oil, the Baby and the Transylvanians is a Romanian Red Western directed by Dan Piţa.It dramatises the struggles of Romanian and Hungarian settlers in a new land, the American frontier. Despite the American setting, including such minor details as use of the phrase "Bad-lands", it was entirely...
.
It is spoken in English and Romanian.
Plot
The mining town of Cedar City, UtahCedar City, Utah
As of the census of 2000, there were 20,527 people, 6,486 households, and 4,682 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,021.8 people per square mile . There were 7,109 housing units at an average density of 353.9 per square mile...
, is ruled by Mr. Walthrope, a polygamous Mormon
Mormon
The term Mormon most commonly denotes an adherent, practitioner, follower, or constituent of Mormonism, which is the largest branch of the Latter Day Saint movement in restorationist Christianity...
prophet (Victor Rebengiuc
Victor Rebengiuc
Victor Rebengiuc is an award-winning Romanian film and stage actor, also known as a civil society activist. Since 1957, he has been a member of the Bulandra Theater company, acting in more than 200 roles on that stage alone...
), his son the marshall (Gheorghe Visu) and their band of ruffians.
John Brad (Ovidiu Iuliu Moldovan
Ovidiu Iuliu Moldovan
Ovidiu Iuliu Moldovan was a Romanian actor known for his work in Romanian film and television roles. However, Moldovan focused almost exclusively on theater and stage roles during the later years of his career....
) is falsely accused of shooting in the back a gunfighter
(Ferenc Bács) sent against him by the prohet and has to flee.
Meanwhile, a train brings Jeff Groghan, a gunfighter called by Walthrope, and two Transylvania
Transylvania
Transylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...
n immigrants, Traian (Ilarion Ciobanu
Ilarion Ciobanu
Ilarion Ciobanu was a Romanian actor. He has been described as "a legend" in the press.-External links:...
) and Romulus Brad (Mircea Diaconu), who come to meet their brother John.
Traian speaks only Romanian and Romulus tries to get by with his dictionary.
On the station, Grogham is received with a gunfight and Traian has occasion to fire his Turkish gun, booty from the siege of Plevna.
Upon arrival to the saloon, Traian is invited to play poker
Poker
Poker is a family of card games that share betting rules and usually hand rankings. Poker games differ in how the cards are dealt, how hands may be formed, whether the high or low hand wins the pot in a showdown , limits on bet sizes, and how many rounds of betting are allowed.In most modern poker...
with Groghan, a former Confederate officer still in grey uniform and another man.
Traian manages to win many dollars and Bob (Ahmed Gabbany), the slave of the Confederate officer.
The fun is interrupted by the arrival of the prophet.
With very limited command of English, the Brads inform that they are looking for John, whose face they see in Wanted poster
Wanted poster
A wanted poster is a poster distributed to let the public know of an alleged criminal whom authorities wish to apprehend. They will generally include either a picture of the alleged criminal when a photograph is available, or of a facial composite image produced by a police artist...
s.
They are judged by the inicuous drunkard Dolittle (Vasile Nitulescu) who sentences them to hanging
Hanging
Hanging is the lethal suspension of a person by a ligature. The Oxford English Dictionary states that hanging in this sense is "specifically to put to death by suspension by the neck", though it formerly also referred to crucifixion and death by impalement in which the body would remain...
but the prophet takes them to his farm, where they toil as farm hands.
The Brads and Bob escape and live in a hut under the Romanian flag where they fish and find gold nuggets.
John tries to organize the miners against the prophet who sets the prices and takes their gold away to Salt Lake City, but the miners prefer to let the things as they are.
Later, Walthrope's men assault one man and his daughter that is rescued by John Brad.
John and the girl finally reach the Brads' hut.
They team together to stop the party that carries the miners' gold stolen by the Mormons.
In the ensuing gunfight, the Brads win and successfully defend the miners camp against the whole Walthrope band.
Walthrope is captured and the Brads, Bob and the girl ride in the sunset.