The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice
The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice | |
---|---|
Based on | characters by David Titcher |
Written by | Marco Schnabel |
Directed by | Jonathan Frakes |
Starring | |
Theme music composer | Joseph LoDuca |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
Production | |
Producers |
|
Cinematography | David Connell |
Editor | David Siegel |
Running time | 95 minutes |
Original release | |
Network | TNT |
Release | December 7, 2008 |
Related | |
The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice is a 2008 American made-for-television fantasy-adventure film and the third in The Librarian series starring Noah Wyle as a librarian who protects a secret collection of artifacts from Vlad Dracula and his vampire hordes. The television film was released on American cable channel TNT on December 7, 2008. It is a sequel to 2004's The Librarian: Quest for the Spear and 2006's The Librarian: Return to King Solomon's Mines.
Plot
This article's plot summary may be too long or excessively detailed. (August 2016) |
Librarian Flynn Carsen (
Meanwhile, in
In the Library, Charlene chastises Flynn for going over budget. Combined with losing Katie, this is the last straw: He has a full-blown meltdown. Judson (Bob Newhart), Charlene (Jane Curtin), and the sword Excalibur (his best friend) suggest Flynn take a vacation. Charlene wonders if he'll come back, and Judson replies that the Library has plans for him.
Charlene drops by Flynn's apartment after her combination-speed-dating-and-wine-tasting to give him some travel brochures and advice: “Follow your dreams.” That night, Flynn's strange dreams point him to New Orleans. There, he meets Andrew (pronounced André)[1] (Werner Richmond), a guide. In a church-turned-nightclub, he encounters singer Simone Renoir (Stana Katic), the woman in his dreams. She guards the first marker for locating the Chalice. After narrowly escaping Kubichek's men, Flynn and Simone do the town and spend the night together.
In the morning, Flynn has a magical encounter with Judson, who explains that the Chalice is the vampire version of the
Flynn deciphers the clues on the first marker. Andrew takes him to the tomb of
He passes out and wakes in Simone's home. She is a vampire, born in Paris, France in 1603, and turned at age 25. She had been a promising opera singer, deeply in love with a university teacher (played by Noah Wyle), until a chance encounter with a vampire changed her. She wants to destroy her maker so she can die in peace. When she learned of the Chalice, she vowed to protect it and aid the monks who hid it in New Orleans. She has done so for two hundred years. Simone shows Flynn a 1,000-year-old painting that represents the fight of the Library against Evil. It shows the Scholar, the first Librarian, builder of the Library. The Knight/Scholar's shield is blazoned with the Tree of Knowledge. His name is Yahuda, “Hebrew for Judson,” Flynn murmurs.
Andrew takes them into the bayou to the wrecked pirate ship and last resting place of Jean Lafitte—and the chalice. They are again overtaken by Kubichek and his men, with Lazlo in tow. They leave Flynn and Simone trapped on board. Simone is too weak to break free because she has not fed. Flynn uses a ship's cannon to blast down a door. Once free, Simone steals Andre's boat, abandoning Flynn for his own good. Hurt but determined, he makes his way back to the mainland and finds Kubichek's hideout.
Simone arrives at the same time, and they are captured. Kubichek performs the ceremony on a corpse amid gusting wind and thunder—with no result. Laughing, Lazlo drinks from the chalice and is transformed. He is Vlad Dracula, the vampire who turned Simone. His handicap was not a lie. He was infected during a cholera outbreak. He has been feeding on Kubichek's henchmen, turning them into a new army of vampires. He then turns Kubichek into a vampire.
Kubichek's remaining henchmen, Flynn, and Simone battle the vampires. Flynn follows Vlad outside to retrieve the chalice. Kubichek's chief henchman Ivan sends Simone after them and blows up Kubichek, himself, and the hideout with a grenade. Flynn literally runs into an aspen tree and tricks the overconfident Lazlo into coming close enough to be staked. He dies in a pillar of fire. At peace, Simone asks Flynn to help her watch one last sunrise. They kiss goodbye, and she gently dissolves in a drift of sparkles.
Flynn remembers Simone's words about living with purpose and passion and returns to the Library to resume his duties. He gives Charlene the first marker on a cord. He starts to read the inscription but instead tells her that it says "follow your dreams"—her advice to him. "Where did your dream take you?" she asks. "Home", he replies.
Judson will not admit to Flynn that he is the scholar/knight in Simone's painting, Yahuda. (In season 4 of The Librarians, it is clearly stated that Judson is indeed the founder of the Library.) Flynn accepts his destiny as part of the fight between good and evil without regrets. The camera pulls up to show the shape of the Tree of Knowledge seen in Simone's painting, built into the Library.
Cast
- Flynn Carsen
- Professor Lazlo / Vlad
- Simone Renoir
- Judson
- Charlene
- Sergei Kubichek
- Jason Douglas as Ivan
- Beth Burvant as Katie
- Werner Richmond as Andrew
- Stephen David Calhoun as Nicolai
Reception
Ratings
The film averaged 5.44 million viewers over its two-hour run.[2]
Critical response
Andrew L. Urban of Urban Cinefile gave it a positive review and wrote: "As soon as the opening credits begin, spurred on by Joseph LoDuca's 'adventure' score, we know we're in Indiana Jones territory but Indy has left the building, and the filmmakers have their tongues firmly in their cheeks."[3][4]
Awards
Nominated for three 2009 Emmy Awards, including Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Miniseries Or A Movie (Bob Newhart).[5][6]
Production notes
Writer Marco Schnabel said that he does not think that bringing vampires into the story gave the film a different tone from the first two, noting that the horror elements were not too dark and that supernatural elements had always been a part of the franchise.[7]
References
- ^ Cast lists show him as Andrew, but it is pronounced André, and his taxi reads “ANDRE'S”
- ^ MATT MITOVICH (December 8, 2008). "Ratings for Race Finale, Leverage Debut and More | TV Guide". TVGuide.com.
- ^ Andrew L. Urban (January 9, 2009). "Urban Cinefile LIBRARIAN III - CURSE OF THE JUDAS CHALICE: DVD". UrbanCinefile.com.au. Archived from the original on May 24, 2012.
- ^ "The Librarian: The Curse of the Judas Chalice (2008)". Rotten Tomatoes.
- ^ "The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice". Emmy Awards.
- ^ "Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Miniseries Or A Movie Nominees / Winners 2009". Emmy Awards.
- ^ Cortez, Carl (November 26, 2008). "Exclusive Interview: SCREENWRITER MARCO SCHNABEL WRITES ANOTHER CHAPTER OF 'THE LIBRARIAN' WITH 'CURSE OF THE JUDAS CHALICE'". iFMagazine.com. Archived from the original on January 1, 2010. Retrieved December 4, 2008.