The Silver Chalice

The Silver Chalice is a 1954 historical epic film from Warner Bros., based on Thomas B. Costain's 1952 novel of the same name. A Greek artisan is commissioned to cast the cup of Christ in silver and sculpt around its rim the faces of the disciples and Jesus himself. He travels to Jerusalem and eventually to Rome to complete the task. Meanwhile, a nefarious interloper is trying to convince the crowds that he is the new Messiah by using nothing more than cheap parlor tricks. It marked the film début of Paul Newman as an artist named Basil , who was given the task of making a silver chalice... to house the Holy Grail. It also featured Virginia Mayo as Helena, Pier Angeli as Deborra, Jack Palance as Simon Magus, the villain, Joseph Wiseman as Mijamin, Alexander Scourby as Saint Luke, Walter Hampden as Joseph of Arimathea, Lorne Greene as Peter, and an appearance by Natalie Wood, who plays Helena as a child. Victor Saville was the director. The film featured unusual semiabstract settings and decor, created by the stage designer Rolfe Gerard in a striking departure from the normal practice of the day for Hollywood biblical "epics.
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