Luther (2003)

Challenging the most powerful institution in the world takes more than conviction; it takes the courage to stand alone. Eric Till's "Luther," from the director of "Bonhoeffer: Agent of Grace," tells the story of Martin Luther (Joseph Fiennes), the German monk whose challenge to the Catholic Church in the early 16th century sparked the Protestant Reformation. Troubled by the church's practice of selling indulgences, promising forgiveness of sins for a price, Luther sought to bring faith directly to ordinary people and free it from money, fear and shame, making him a reformer to some and a heretic to others. After posting his 95 Theses in 1517, he's summoned to defend himself before the Holy Roman emperor and, declared an outlaw, hides away to translate the New Testament into German. Released around the same time as Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ," it drew far less attention, and far less controversy. It isn't always easy to follow or as emotionally involving as it could be, but it's a fascinating story, and Fiennes gets strong support from Alfred Molina as a smooth-talking seller of indulgences, Bruno Ganz as Luther's wise mentor and the late Peter Ustinov, in one of his final film roles, as his protector, Frederick the Wise.