Gregory Peck and Christopher Plummer star in this film based on J. P. Gallagher's book The Scarlet Pimpernel of the Vatican (published in 1967). The film tells the story of Monsignor Hugh O'Flaherty, a real-life Irish Catholic priest who saved thousands of Jews and escaped Allied POWs in Rome during WWII.  Fun Fact: the title The Scarlet and the Black is a reference not only to the black cassock and scarlet sash worn by Monsignores and bishops in the Catholic Church, but also to the dominant colors of Nazi Party regalia.