"but only because I raised hell after finding that it had been altered by the actors with the consent of the director. I argued that it destroyed the theological validity of the plot in violation of contractual obligations between the studio and me." West says that "By the end of the film the accumulation of the variations was such that I took my name off the script." This made him reluctant to sell "anything other than a thriller or a very simple story to the movies again" because of the way Hollywood "tends to distort the underlying philosophy and theology of anything that can't easily be shaped for the screen." Reception The film was the sixth most popular movie at the Australian box office in 1969. It was still a notable box-office disappointment. The escalating production costs of this film, along with Ice Station Zebra at the same time, led to the transfer of MGM President Robert O'Brien to chairman of the board, but he resigned this position in early 1969 after both films were released and failed to recoup their costs. Alex North was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Score and George Davis and Edward Carfagno were nominated for Best Art Direction. The Shoes of the Fisherman holds a 43% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on seven reviews. References External links 1968 films 1968 drama films American drama films Cold War films Films scored by Alex North Films about Catholic priests Films about fictional popes Films based on works by Morris West Films directed by Michael Anderson Films set in Vatican City Films shot in Rome Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films Films about Catholicism Films shot at MGM-British Studios 1960s English-language films 1960s American films