the 7th canon book review

Review: The 7th Canon by Robert Dugoni

By david cranmer.

The 7th Canon illuminates Peter Donley’s judicial chops as he asks the judge of his current case to call a bird to the stand, or, more specifically, an African gray parrot named Albert to determine if Donley’s client is the rightful owner. The elderly man in danger of losing the mimic asks his pet if he wants to watch The Andy Griffith Show , and—sure enough—Albert begins whistling the classic TV opener. Of course, it also brings to mind that other classic Griffith show, Matlock , where a case of a whistling parrot would fit in comfortably with the legal drama.

Donley works at his uncle’s law firm—The Law Offices of Lou Giantelli—in San Francisco’s Tenderloin District, a rough and tumble area that has seen better times. He has ambition beyond Lou’s small-time operation, but with a wife, Kim, and a two-year-old son, Benny, he’s just happy to be employed.

And, less I give the impression this is a cute mystery thriller, not too many blocks away from Lou’s practice is Father Thomas Martin, who operates the Tenderloin boy’s shelter that he’d convinced the Church to open—though it’s a middling success at best. As a storm approaches, he heads to secure the front door when he slips and falls, breaking his arm. He’s mortified to see there’s blood layering the floor and receives a supplementary jolt:

Though his brain urged him forward, his feet remained anchored to the floor. He dropped to his knees and reached out, hoping to touch porcelain but instead feeling flesh. Andrew Bennet’s body lay in the manger, arms draped over the sides, knuckles dragging in the puddle of blood beneath the straw. Lightning crackled overhead, a strobe of sharp, blue light. A second later, thunder rocked the building, and the first drops of rain splattered on the glass roof. The storm had arrived.

The priest, a seemingly dedicated man of God, is arrested when a letter opener is found stained with blood, and, too conveniently, an envelope of photographs described as “Hard core, prepubescent. Enough to shock any juror.” Leading the police investigation is bullish Detective Dixon Connor, who had it in for Father Tom even before the murder, accusing the priest of running a shelter to hide the scum of the area.

Lou sends his subordinate to the jail to represent Father Tom, but a flood of anxiety attacks Donley brought on by the memory of his dad.

Sweat trickled down Donley’s face. The scar on his cheek, the one the plastic surgeons had turned into a thin white line, burned numb. His chest heaved, but it brought no air. He couldn’t catch his breath. Couldn’t breathe. The walls began to close in. The floor tilted and turned. Panic attack. Donley stood, toppling the plastic chair. The priest’s eyes opened—dark, inhuman.

It’s a bad day for our legal eagles because, right in the middle of pleading a case, Lou collapses from a stroke and is rushed to the hospital. Donley, who had hopes of moving on to, perhaps, a bigger law firm now begins slipping down the success ladder while facing ballooning responsibilities and inner demons.

The priest and cop/lawyer routine has been done to death, but Mr. Dugoni makes it work all the same. Plenty of action and a welcoming amount of humor at just the right moments. The banter early on between Donley and his uncle Lou is particularly charming and heartfelt. The 7th Canon , with all its dark subject matter and bits of breeziness, clicks right along to the end.

To learn more or order a copy, visit:

David Cranmer  is the publisher and editor of BEAT to a PULP. Latest books from this indie powerhouse include the alternate history novella  Leviathan  and sci-fi adventure  Pale Mars . David lives in New York with his wife and daughter.

Teenage male Grand Slam champions were not an unusual sight in the 1980s. Mats Wilander, Michael Chang and Boris Becker all won their first major title at the age of 17.

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The 7th canon by robert dugoni review.

• Mystery , Thriller

Title: The 7th Canon

Author: Robert Dugoni

First published September 27, 2016

334 pages, Paperback

ISBN: 9781503939424 (ISBN10: 1503939421)

Rating: 4.25

Robert Dugoni, the bestselling author of My Sister’s Grave, presents a gripping legal thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat. In the heart of San Francisco’s Tenderloin district, a teenage boy is found murdered in a shelter, and the priest who runs the home is accused of the heinous crime.

Despite the overwhelming evidence against him, Father Thomas Martin claims he is innocent, and it’s up to attorney Peter Donley to defend him. Peter, who has put his dreams on hold to work in his uncle’s small law firm, now faces the biggest challenge of his career.

With a relentless DA and a brutal homicide detective determined to see Father Martin convicted, Peter must uncover the truth and expose the real killer. As he delves deeper into the case, he discovers shocking secrets that put his own life in danger.

Will Peter be able to save his client and bring the true culprit to justice? Find out in The 7th Canon.

About the Author

Robert Dugoni is a highly acclaimed author, with numerous bestsellers to his name. His Tracy Crosswhite police series is set in Seattle and has sold more than 8 million copies worldwide, earning him critical acclaim and a legion of fans.

In addition to this series, Dugoni has also written The Charles Jenkins espionage series, the David Sloane legal thriller series, and several standalone novels, including The 7th Canon and Damage Control. He has also written literary novels, such as The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell, which won Suspense Magazine’s 2018 Book of the Year and earned Dugoni an AudioFile Earphones Award, as well as the nonfiction exposé The Cyanide Canary, which was named a Washington Post Best Book of the Year.

His works have been optioned for movies and television series, showcasing the popularity of his writing.

Dugoni has won numerous awards for his writing, including the Nancy Pearl Award for Fiction and the Friends of Mystery Spotted Owl Award, which he has won three times for best novel set in the Pacific Northwest. He has been a finalist for many other prestigious awards, including the International Thriller Award, the Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction, the Silver Falchion Award for mystery, and the Mystery Writers of America Edgar Award.

Dugoni’s books have been translated into more than 30 languages and are sold in over 25 countries. For more information on this talented author, visit his website or follow him on Twitter @robertdugoni and Facebook.

Editoral Review

The 7th Canon by Robert Dugoni is a legal thriller that was first published on September 27, 2016. Dugoni is a seasoned author who has written numerous novels in the thriller and mystery genres.

He has won several awards for his work, including the Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction. In The 7th Canon, Dugoni explores the themes of justice, morality, and redemption.

The novel follows the story of Peter Donley, a young lawyer who is struggling to make ends meet. When his estranged father is accused of murder, Donley takes on the case, hoping to clear his father’s name.

The victim is a Catholic priest, and the case becomes complicated when Donley discovers that the priest was involved in a child pornography ring. Donley must navigate through a web of lies and deceit to uncover the truth and defend his father.

Dugoni’s writing style is engaging and suspenseful, keeping readers on the edge of their seats throughout the novel. The plot is well-crafted, with plenty of twists and turns to keep readers guessing.

The characters are well-developed, with complex motivations and backstories. Donley is a sympathetic protagonist, who is torn between his loyalty to his father and his sense of justice.

The setting of the novel is also noteworthy, as it takes place in 1987, a time when the Catholic Church was embroiled in scandal. Dugoni explores the cultural significance of this time period, highlighting the tension between the Church and the legal system.

Overall, The 7th Canon is a well-written and engaging legal thriller. Dugoni’s attention to detail and skillful storytelling make this novel a must-read for fans of the genre.

However, the novel does have some flaws, including a slow pacing in the middle of the book. Additionally, some readers may find the subject matter of child pornography and sexual abuse to be disturbing.

Despite these limitations, The 7th Canon is a compelling novel that will keep readers hooked until the very end. It is a must-read for fans of legal thrillers and anyone interested in exploring the complex themes of justice and morality.

On a scale of 1-10, I would give this book an 8 for its engaging plot, well-developed characters, and cultural significance.

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The Seventh Canon by Robert Dugoni

Latest Books Legal Thrillers

September 30, 2016

A Searing Stand-Alone Thriller on Legal Conscience

In the seventh grade, a young Robert Dugoni delivered a speech that would forever change the course of his life.

Assigned to write an essay on the topic of slavery, Dugoni chose to take the position of an apologist—a person who offers an argument in defense of a controversial topic. He worked hard on the paper, digging deep into the research and carefully crafting the words he was sure would impress his teacher, Sister Kathleen.

At the end of his speech, she silently curled her finger back and forth, motioning for him to follow her out of the room, where his peers clapped as he retreated from one class to another, delivering his speech for a second time, again to a virtually speechless crowd of his peers.

It was then that he came upon two realizations: he had written something pretty impressive; and, writing was something that he wanted to do for the rest of his life.

Unfortunately, Dugoni was the middle-ish child in a family of ten “compulsive overachievers” who were either studying to become doctors or marrying doctors, and rather than cop to his true passion, he “wrote” his way into law school with journalism, and eventually embodied the career that satisfied his family’s expectations.

A “charade” that lasted more than a decade.

“The desire to write never went away,” Dugoni says. “But the idea of writing a novel while practicing law seemed so impossible to me—unless you’re Scott Turow. I couldn’t do both.”

So, in the midst of one semi-tipsy evening of self-reflection, Dugoni impulsively called the local theater company and signed up for…acting. “Everyone else was in jeans and T-shirts, and I walked into that class with my suit and my shirt and tie,” he recalls, laughing. “I did theater for ten years and that really rekindled my love for writing.”

At the age of 39, Dugoni dropped law and decided to give his true passion an honest go, eventually securing an agent who not only took a chance on one book, but actually subbed three very different manuscripts. Two sold quickly, becoming the first and second books in his popular David Sloane series.

Dugoni never gave up on that third manuscript though, which this month publishes as THE 7 TH CANON, a stand-alone legal thriller that explores the American Bar Association’s code of ethics that states that a lawyer will do his or her best to defend their client—regardless of guilt or innocence.

Set in San Francisco’s seamy Tenderloin district during the 1980s, the story features up-and-coming lawyer Peter Donley who is tasked with defending a priest accused of murdering a teenage street hustler—despite the fact that Donley himself isn’t convinced of the priest’s innocence, particularly as evidence to the contrary continues to mount.

The idea originated not from Dugoni’s career as a lawyer, but rather, a conversation he had with bestselling author and defense lawyer Phillip Margolin who had faced several “7 th canon” instances during his time in law.

“He couldn’t care about whether his client was guilty or innocent. His job was to ensure the rules of the constitution were being followed,” Dugoni says. “I think one of the things that is most upsetting with this Black Lives Matter movement is that people are realizing that we have a whole segment of society that is not accorded the rights under the constitution.”

As society continues to evolve, Dugoni hopes that this will change, particularly with the advent of technology that leaves little room for debate—a fact he didn’t need to worry about while writing THE 7 TH CANON.

“I remember when one of my colleagues first brought in a PC, a little Mac computer,” he says. “And we heard that they were trying to create technology that would allow us email someone in another room . That was mind blowing back then, but look at how much technology has changed since then.”

All factors Dugoni had to ignore. No cellphones. No laptops. No rescue from the bad guy thanks to GPS tracking or wayward Pokemon Go trackers. By jumping back to the ‘80s, Dugoni had to forego the electronics—and it was incredibly fun.

“That was an interesting time in San Francisco,” he says. “There was a lot going on. The Tenderloin area was getting more homeless people, and the city was trying to get a handle on it. I had lived through all of that.”

And reliving it seems to resonate with Dugoni’s readers as well. There is already an impressive gathering of fans eager to see a follow-up book for young Peter Donlay, but Dugoni isn’t sure he’s quite ready to jump back to the ‘80s just yet.

“The book is doing really well,” he says. “And there are some interesting characters I could play with. I’ll have to weigh the pros and cons, but it could be a lot of fun.”

Until then, readers can expect new works in Dugoni’s Tracy Crosswhite series—and maybe a few more surprises along the way.

To learn more, please visit his website and follow him on Facebook and Twitter (@robertdugoni).

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A riveting legal thriller from Robert Dugoni, New York Times bestselling author of My Sister's Grave.In San Francisco's seamy Tenderloin district, a teenage street hustler has been murdered in a shelter for boys. And the dedicated priest who runs ...

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The 7th Canon

Robert dugoni. thomas & mercer, $15.95 trade paper (374p) isbn 978-1-5039-3942-4.

Reviewed on: 08/01/2016

Genre: Fiction

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MP3 CD - 978-1-5318-3509-5

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The 7th Canon

In San Francisco's seamy Tenderloin district, a teenage street hustler has been murdered in a shelter for boys, and the dedicated priest who runs the struggling home stands accused. Despite damning evidence that he's a killer-and worse-Father Thomas Martin stands by his innocence, and attorney Peter Donley stands with him. For three years Donley has cut his legal teeth in his uncle's tiny, no-frills law firm, where people come before profits. Just as Donley is poised to move on to a lucrative dream job, the shocking case lands in his lap, and he must put his family's future on hold while putting his courtroom skills to the test. But a ruthless DA seeking headlines and a brutal homicide cop bent on vengeance have their own agendas. Now, as he unearths the dirty secrets surrounding the case, others dig up dark secrets hidden by Donley, and he must risk everything to save his client's life...and expose the face of true evil.

Published By Thomas & Mercer Publish Date: September 27, 2016 ISBN-10:1503939421 ISBN: 978-1503939424 334 Pages

"In The 7th Canon, 1980's San Fransisco comes to life as Dugoni crafts a page-turning thriller with flawed heroes and a deep knowledge of his subject."  Authorlink

"The 7th Canon delivers on everything it promises, a courtroom thriller extraordinaire that successfully harvests every staple of the genre while plowing plenty of new ground in the process. A stunning achievement from a writer destined to become a household name."  Providence Rhode Island Journal

"Dugoni has given the reader another gem of a story, full of action-packed scenes, intelligent plotlines, and very real characters."  Suspense Magazine

"Robert Dugoni delivers plenty of mystery and courtroom antics in his latest high-stakes legal thriller. The courtroom scenes are top-notch, but even better are the pages dedicated to the investigation."  Book Spy

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A riveting legal thriller from Robert Dugoni, New York Times bestselling author of My Sister’s Grave .

In San Francisco’s seamy Tenderloin district, a teenage street hustler has been murdered in a shelter for boys. And the dedicated priest who runs the struggling home stands accused. But despite damning evidence that he’s a killer―and worse―Father Thomas Martin stands by his innocence. And attorney Peter Donley stands with him.

For three years Donley has cut his legal teeth in his uncle’s tiny, no-frills firm, where people come before profits. Just as Donley is poised to move on to a lucrative dream job, the shocking case lands in his lap, and he must put his future on hold while putting his courtroom skills to the test. But a ruthless DA seeking headlines and a brutal homicide cop bent on vengeance have their own agendas. Now, as he unearths the dirty secrets surrounding the case, Donley must risk his neck to save his client’s life…and expose the face of true evil.

• Print length 334 pages
• Language English
• Publication date Sept. 27 2016
• Dimensions 13.97 x 2.54 x 20.96 cm
• ISBN-10 1503939421
• ISBN-13 978-1503939424
• See all details

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About the author.

Robert Dugoni is the author of the bestselling Tracy Crosswhite series ( My Sister’s Grave , Her Final Breath , and In the Clearing ) as well as the critically acclaimed David Sloane series ( The Jury Master , Wrongful Death , Bodily Harm , Murder One , and The Conviction ). He’s been ranked number one on Amazon’s list of most popular authors in the United States, Great Britain, Germany, France, and Italy, and he has been a New York Times , Wall Street Journal , and Amazon bestseller multiple times. Dugoni was nominated twice for the Harper Lee Award for Legal Fiction and for the International Thriller Award. My Sister’s Grave won the 2015 Nancy Pearl Award for Fiction and was named one of the best thrillers of 2014 by Library Journal and Suspense Magazine . Dugoni’s nonfiction exposé, The Cyanide Canary , was a Washington Post Best Book of the Year, and the Providence Journal referred to him as “the undisputed king of the legal thriller” and “heir to Grisham’s literary throne.” Visit his website at www.robertdugoni.com and follow him on Twitter at @robertdugoni and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/AuthorRobertDugoni.

Product details

• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Thomas & Mercer (Sept. 27 2016)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Paperback ‏ : ‎ 334 pages
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1503939421
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1503939424
• Item weight ‏ : ‎ 340 g
• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 13.97 x 2.54 x 20.96 cm
• #1,574 in Legal Thrillers (Books)
• #6,316 in Spy Thrillers
• #10,193 in Murder Thrillers

About the author

Robert dugoni.

Robert Dugoni is the critically acclaimed New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post and #1 Amazon bestselling author of the Tracy Crosswhite police series set in Seattle, which has sold more than 10 million books worldwide. He is also the author of The Charles Jenkins espionage series, the David Sloane legal thriller series, the Keera Duggan legal thriller series, and several stand-alone novels including The 7th Canon, Damage Control, the literary novels, The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell - Suspense Magazine’s Book of the Year, for which Dugoni’s narration won an AudioFile Earphones Award and the critically acclaimed, The World Played Chess; historical novels based on true events: A Killing on the Hill about Seattle during the great depression and Hold Strong, a WWII novel; as well as the nonfiction exposé The Cyanide Canary, a Washington Post Best Book of the Year. Several of his novels have been optioned for movies and television series. Dugoni is the recipient of the Nancy Pearl Award for Fiction and multiple awards for best novel set in the Pacific Northwest. He has also been a finalist for many other awards including the International Thriller Award, the Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction, the Silver Falchion Award for mystery, and the Mystery Writers of America Edgar Award.

Robert Dugoni’s books are sold in more than thirty countries and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Visit his website and follow him on Amazon, Goodreads, twitter, Facebook, Tik Tok and other social media sites.

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The 7th Canon by Robert Dugoni

A riveting new legal thriller from the bestselling author of My Sister’s Grave .

In San Francisco’s seamy Tenderloin district, a teenage street hustler has been murdered in a shelter for boys. And the dedicated priest who runs the struggling home stands accused. But despite damning ...

Introduction

In San Francisco’s seamy Tenderloin district, a teenage street hustler has been murdered in a shelter for boys. And the dedicated priest who runs the struggling home stands accused. But despite damning evidence that he’s a killer—and worse—Father Thomas Martin stands by his innocence. And attorney Peter Donley stands with him.

For three years Donley has cut his legal teeth in his uncle’s tiny, no-frills firm, where people come before profits. Just as Donley is poised to move on to a lucrative dream job, the shocking case lands in his lap, and he must put his future on hold while putting his courtroom skills to the test. But a ruthless DA seeking headlines and a brutal homicide cop bent on vengeance have their own agendas. Now, as he unearths the dirty secrets surrounding the case, Donley must risk his neck to save his client’s life…and expose the face of true evil.

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Robert Dugoni is an author that I have read before but this story took too many turns that weren't that interesting.

THE 7TH CANON is a pleasant change. It is not part of a series; it is a standalone novel that Robert Dugoni has had around for a long time; he wrote the first draft 20 years ago. That made s... (read more)

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The 7th Canon

by Robert Dugoni

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A riveting new legal thriller from the bestselling author of  My Sister’s Grave .

In San Francisco’s seamy Tenderloin district, a teenage street hustler has been murdered in a shelter for boys. And the dedicated priest who runs the struggling home stands accused. But despite damning evidence that he’s a killer—and worse—Father Thomas Martin stands by his innocence. And attorney Peter Donley stands with him.

For three years Donley has cut his legal teeth in his uncle’s tiny, no-frills firm, where people come before profits. Just as Donley is poised to move on to a lucrative dream job, the shocking case lands in his lap, and he must put his future on hold while putting his courtroom skills to the test. But a ruthless DA seeking headlines and a brutal homicide cop bent on vengeance have their own agendas.

Now, as he unearths the dirty secrets surrounding the case, Donley must risk his neck to save his client’s life…and expose the face of true evil.

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The Canon PowerShot V10 – the size of a pack of cigarettes – wins a design award

The size of a packet of cigarettes, the Canon PowerShot V10 vlog camera for beginners wins an international design award

The Canon PowerShot V10 – a vlog camera for beginners that's the size of a pack of cigarettes – has won an international design award in the category of Production Design.

I've previously called the Canon PowerShot V10 the most revolutionary camera that Canon has ever made , and it appears that Switzerland agrees. The super-compact camera picked up a prestigious Red Dot Design Award 2024, handed out by the Swiss design competition that has been recognizing outstanding design since 1955. 

This isn't the first time that the Canon PowerShot V10 has been recognized by the world of design, either; it also received a Good Design Award 2023 in Japan in addition to the iF Design Award 2024 in Germany.

So what makes this little camera so special? Well, as noted, it's the size of a pack of smokes. If you're not a smoker, here's another scale reference: it's about the size of the rear LCD on the back of your camera, as you can see in the image below.

But it's more than just a case of compactness. Unlike every other vlogging camera on the market, which is essentially a standard mirrorless camera body with a few more video specs and the record button in a more prominent place, the Canon PowerShot V10 has been designed from the ground up for the sole purpose of being a vlog camera for beginners.

You don't need a normal mirrorless camera body, with a viewfinder and a handgrip and all buttons on the back, for vlogging. That's lazy design, simply taking an existing product and tweaking the specs rather than creating something from scratch that's truly fit for purpose – which is exactly what Canon did here.

The V10 is basically a camera that mimics your phone and adds some useful features. Namely a screen that pops up, so you can use it for filming yourself or others, and a kickstand so that the camera is totally freestanding – no need to buy additional accessories or prop it up against something when you want to film. 

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It's a brilliant little camera that I personally love, even if it feels like I'm in a pretty small club in the photographic community… but then, this isn't a camera designed for the photo community. It's designed for people outside it . So I love that all these design bodies are putting some respect on its name. 

If you're looking for more conventional video blogging bodies, check out the best cameras for vlogging along with the best lenses for vlogging .

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The editor of Digital Camera World, James has 21 years experience as a journalist and started working in the photographic industry in 2014 (as an assistant to Damian McGillicuddy, who succeeded David Bailey as Principal Photographer for Olympus). In this time he shot for clients like Aston Martin Racing, Elinchrom and L'Oréal, in addition to shooting campaigns and product testing for Olympus, and providing training for professionals. This has led him to being a go-to expert for camera and lens reviews, photo and lighting tutorials, as well as industry news, rumors and analysis for publications like Digital Camera Magazine ,  PhotoPlus: The Canon Magazine ,  N-Photo: The Nikon Magazine ,  Digital Photographer and Professional Imagemaker, as well as hosting workshops and talks at The Photography Show . He also serves as a judge for the Red Bull Illume Photo Contest. An Olympus and Canon shooter, he has a wealth of knowledge on cameras of all makes – and a fondness for vintage lenses and instant cameras.

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Jeymes Samuel follows up his beloved 'The Harder They Fall' with a comedic take on the story of Jesus Christ.

The Big Picture

• The Book of Clarence takes a revisionist approach to the story of Jesus Christ, posing the question of what would happen if things unfolded differently.
• The film is a wild, fun-filled ride that mixes history, fiction, and modernity to create a hilarious spin on the story while offering a sincere exploration of belief and meaning.
• With a brilliant ensemble cast, standout performances, and a sharp script, The Book of Clarenc e is a cinematic feast for the eyes, ears, and mind that challenges viewers to think about faith.

This review was originally part of our coverage for the 2023 London Film Festival.

Emerald Fennell ’s Saltburn is not the only film that premiered at the 2023 London Film Festival that had to contend with the glory of its predecessor. Jeymes Samuel (also known by his stage name The Bullitts) had a marvelous directorial debut with 2021’s The Harder They Fall , a revisionist Western for Netflix that put his highly stylized sensibilities on full display. His second feature, The Book of Clarence , takes a big jump in both stakes and scope , bringing us all the way back to AD 33 in Lower City, Jerusalem. Samuel takes a story that most of the world knows (and some believe) and doesn't so much as revise it but poses the question “What if this happened instead?” After all, whether this is revisionist or not depends on your beliefs. But aside from the Jesus Christ of it all, The Book of Clarence is a wild ride of pure cinematic fun while also offering a sincere story of belief and man’s search for meaning.

The Book of Clarence

Struggling to find a better life, Clarence is captivated by the power of the rising Messiah and soon risks everything to carve a path to a divine existence.

What Is 'The Book of Clarence' About?

Samuel wastes no time in pulling the audience right into the action of Clarence’s ( LaKeith Stanfield ) life . He and his best friend Elijah ( RJ Cyler ) are having a high-speed horse race with Mary Magdalene ( Teyana Taylor ), resulting in both men getting thrown off their cart. The camera cuts to a POV angle, and you can almost feel the burn as their skin grazes off the stones. You’re buckled in now, and there is no getting off. Clarence is one of the very few who don’t believe in this Messiah everyone is talking about — Jesus Christ himself ( Nicholas Pinnock ) — and is socially ostracised because of this. His twin brother, Peter, left their ailing mother ( Marianne Jean-Baptiste ) to become one of the twelve Apostles, and Clarence can't accept how anyone could put their beliefs before their own family.

Clarence’s main predicament is that he owes a considerable debt to Jedediah the Terrible ( Eric Kofi-Abrefa ). This is made worse by the fact that Clarence is in love with his sister ( Anna Diop ). Thinking that if he proves to be a Man of God his debt will be excused, Clarence (while high from shisha) gets the great idea to become the 13th Apostle. In order to do so, Judas ( Micheal Ward ) challenges him to free all the gladiator slaves. This is where we meet the new member of the gang, Barabbas ( Omar Sy ), whom Clarence defeats in battle, freeing him. But this still doesn’t allow Clarence into the Apostles so he tries an even worse plan — pretend to be the new Messiah and put the phrase “fake it till’ you make it” to the test.

'The Book of Clarence's Plot Is as Sharp as It Is Funny

There is way more to the film’s plot but overexplaining would take all the fun away from what an explosive joy it is . It’s clever enough to pull off the concept while still making sure to not rely on it too much. Everything from the costumes, world-building, characterization, and in classic Samuel fashion, music, is outstanding. The Book of Clarence mixes history, fiction, and modernity to bring a hilarious spin on the story of Jesus Christ. Yeah, some Christians will find it offensive. It takes the piss out of the immaculate conception — “It’s a little far-fetched” — and depicts Mary slapping Clarence for asking her if she really is a virgin. While Jesus himself isn’t the main attraction, the way he’s used and how the film parlays its plot into the story that we know today is one of its strongest elements.

Tone can be the fatal flaw of films, and if you want a film to be as funny as it is sincere, then striking that balance in tone is just about the most important element of the script, acting, and direction . So many films — namely MCU joints that shoehorn dad jokes in situations when the world is literally about to end — fail in this department, which is what makes Clarence so refreshing. It takes one of the most serious and sensitive subjects in the world and is able to poke fun at it in a way that opens up an even more nuanced conversation about faith and humans' relationship with it. Anyone can make a comedy, fewer can make a decent one, and only a handful can make one about as serious subject matter as you can get — and succeed.

'The Book of Clarence': Release Date, Trailer, Cast, and Everything We Know

The Book of Clarence doesn’t just rewrite history (or fiction, again, up to you), but i t sprinkles out fun nods and resonant digs at what has happened in the world since this time . The choice to have every Roman guard, including Pontius Pilate ( James McAvoy ), sport imperial English accents is a great way to remind the audience that the Romans weren’t the only Empire to cause devastation. Clarence, trying to suck up to Pontius, tells him, “My best friend is Roman” (this got huge laughs from the audience). Samuel does it subtly but these little details give the film an updated, current feel while still remaining rooted in its setting. Jerusalem City has different gangs, Clarence is told that he’s not welcome in “Gypsy territory,” and Jesus Christ tells Jezebel that soon enough, everyone will know her name. The script is extremely sharp and paired with Samuel’s highly stylized directing and beautiful score and song choices, The Book of Clarence is a feast for the eyes, ears, and mind. What you take from its philosophy is entirely subjective, but the ending is a beautiful mediation on what it means to have faith, and who is really deserving of the glory that we only reserve for white men.

'The Book of Clarence' Has a Brilliant Ensemble Cast

The ensemble cast of Clarence makes for a wonderful “Spot the actor” throughout . It’s great to see the likes of Omar Sy and Marianne Jean-Baptiste (who’s one of the most underrated actors ever but that’s a conversation for another day) back on our big screens. James McAvoy and Benedict Cumberbatch are used sparingly but both of them look like they're having the time of their lives. And David Oyelowo proves again how he can make a lasting impression with just a few minutes of screen time (and that he needs to do more comedies!!)

A particularly fateful scene of Cumberbatch sporting a new (and very recognizable) look is played to perfection, one of the few but joyous camp moments of the film. Tom Vaughan Lawlor chews up the scenery, relishing the hatred and power of a Roman guard. These all work to support the central performance, LaKeith Stanfield in a dual role. He makes Clarence an opportunist swindler full of charm and charisma and a man just looking for a purpose . The film asks a lot of him — action sequences, comedic deliveries, tender romantic moments, and existential awakenings. He captures it all and then some, never letting Clarence get lost in the chaos surrounding him. Stanfield belongs center stage on the big screen, and hopefully he’s done with the Haunted Mansion 's of the world and will get more roles that allow him to exercise his comedic abilities and star power (but please, not the MCU ).

The Book of Clarence is a film very much of its time . No, not AD 33, but 2023. Over 40 years after Monty Python’s The Life of Brian was banned in various countries, Jeymes Samuel’s parody of the basis of Christianity is able to be both irreverent and sincere. It questions how the story of Jesus Christ came to be, even how we drew up this image of him (one of its best jokes). But it also understands that people need faith, and there is a place for religion in the world as long as it’s for everyone and people can keep their minds open. Jeymes Samuel is a master of all trades who can craft character-driven arcs with fun action-packed sequences all against a beautiful score. No actor misses a beat and it confirms LaKeith Stanfield remains not just a brilliant actor but a true movie star.

The Book of Clarence is a wildy entertaining epic with another great performance by LaKeith Stanfield.

• Jeymes Samuel perfectly follows up his directorial debut The Harder They Fall, taking us into a wild ride of pure cinematic fun.
• Stanfield proves that he belongs center stage on the big screen, capturing everything the film needs and then some.
• The film boasts everything from fun action to a beautiful score, with each actor in the brilliant ensemble hitting every beat.

The Book of Clarence is now available to stream on Netflix in the U.S.

WATCH ON NETFLIX

By the Book

Robert Kagan Takes the Long View on Trumpism

His essay warning that dictatorship was a real threat went viral, which prompted the early release of “Rebellion: How Antiliberalism Is Tearing America Apart — Again.” To relax, he reads the sports pages.

Credit... Rebecca Clarke

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Describe your ideal reading experience (when, where, what, how).

Midnight, at the kitchen table, with a bowl of cornflakes.

How do you organize your books?

Umm. I own about 6,000 books and it’s a bit of a disaster. I’ve been paying research assistants to put things in order. We should have it under control by about 2028.

What kind of reader were you as a child?

I was not a great reader and have been trying to catch up ever since. I was entranced by Hemingway’s “The Sun Also Rises,” which was probably not a good thing. My best friend and I used to go to a bar underage, drink sloe gin fizzes, and pretend we were Jake and Bill. I know.

What’s the last great book you read?

“Middlemarch.” If historians could show the dynamic interaction of people in a society the way George Eliot does, we’d have a much better understanding of humanity.

What books are on your night stand?

I’ve been reading about European history during and after the French Revolution in an effort to trace the complex connection between ideology and foreign policy. I’m now reading Michael Broers’s “Europe After Napoleon” and next up is Christopher Clark’s latest, “Revolutionary Spring,” about the liberal revolutions of 1848.

Describe your writing routine.

For the history books, months of research, followed by attempts at writing, followed by months of research, for 10 to 12 years. For about 20 years I wrote between the time I put our kids on the school bus until the time the bus dropped them home again. Now I work until it’s time to cook dinner for my wife. My dad, who wrote about 20 books, including a four-volume history of the Peloponnesian War, worked 9 to 5, and never in the evening. We called him a lunch-pail historian. I’ve tried to be like that.

What do you read when you’re working on a book? And what kind of reading do you avoid while writing?

I usually read history of a different time and place than I’m writing about to give me a contrasting perspective on human behavior. American historians often act as if there are no other countries and no other relevant experiences. They judge America by the standards of America, which raises all kinds of problems.

Do you count any books as guilty pleasures?

Yeah, when I read Salinger’s “Nine Stories” for the 73rd time.

What’s the last book you read that made you laugh?

“Middlemarch.” A lot. She is the wittiest writer in the English language.

The last book you read that made you furious?

Pretty much every book ever written on the Spanish-American War. Even great historians write about it cartoonishly, as a great “imperialist” folly, when in fact it was sparked almost entirely by the horrific humanitarian crisis in Cuba.

Why did you title your book “Rebellion”?

That’s what the Trump movement is: a rebellion against the America that Jefferson, Madison, Hamilton and other founders envisioned. It’s not the first anti-liberal rebellion and won’t be the last.

You compare Trumpism to “the demon spirit in a Stephen King novel.” Do you read Stephen King? Talk further about the comparison.

OK. No. I don’t read King. But my daughter does! She read “The Stand” every summer at the beach for about eight years beginning when she was 10. So I basically get it.

What’s the secret to warning, but not alienating or disempowering, in your writing?

I’m not sure I’ll avoid alienating people with this book, and I do indeed wish the people who oppose the founders’ universalist liberal ideals had less power.

A reader finishes the last page and closes your book. What should s/he do next?

Engage in the political battle as if it mattered, the same way they would about rising property taxes.

What do you read to relax?

History. What can I say? And the New York Post sports page.

What’s the most interesting thing you learned from a book recently?

That Evelyn Waugh blamed the evils of the modern industrial world on Protestantism in almost the same words as Patrick Deneen blames the evils of the modern world on liberalism. Discuss among yourselves.

You’re organizing a literary dinner party. Which three writers, dead or alive, do you invite?

It’s basically a question of who I’d like to have join me and Dorothy Thompson, the crusading anti-Nazi journalist of the 1930s and the model for Katharine Hepburn’s Tess Harding in “Woman of the Year.” Not only was she expelled from Germany by Hitler in 1934 for her anti-Nazi reporting, but in 1939 she was bodily removed from the German American Bund’s massive pro-Nazi rally in Madison Square Garden for interrupting one of the speakers. I don’t know whom she’d want to join us, aside from her second husband, Sinclair Lewis, which I’d be down with. Add Reinhold Niebuhr? Was he fun?

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