Review of The First Legion

You wouldn't expect much excitement at a jesuit college, but the psychology and intrigue here is actually very interesting, as the matter of miracles is discussed on a serious level. The doctor knows that the recovery of an older priest was no miracle, although the old man experienced it as a miracle, but he may not reveal the truth, as he is bound by the same obligation of silence as the priests. This matter (of the obligation of silence) would also have been an interesting topic of discussion, but it is never questioned. The hysteria around the so called miracle has consequences, but the question of miracles is complicated by a girl in a wheelchair (Barbara Rush) with a spinal disorder who refuses to give up faith in her recovery, although the doctor knows it's hopeless. Charles Boyer makes a very earnest performance, he actually studied philosophy on a serious level long before he became an actor, and also Lyle Bettger as the doctor makes the film humanly rich and of lasting interest, perhaps the most important and interesting character of all.