Crociati

An Italian made-for-TV movie with high production values, CRUSADERS is the exciting tale of three friends who find themselves torn apart by the wars of the 11th century. When Pope Urban II calls for a Christian war against the Saracens, Peter (Alessandro Gassman), Andrew (Thure Riefenstein), and Richard (Johannes Brandrup) join the Crusaders in order to see the Holy Land of Jerusalem, which the Saracens now occupy. The three come from very different backgrounds: Peter is a humble bell founder, Andrew is a shepherd, and Richard is the very religious son of the wealthy Baron William of Aurocastro. The friends are alienated by the violent methods of the Crusaders; Richard and Peter desert, while Andrew stays on. The two friends join the beautiful young Jewish woman, Rachel (Barbora Bobulova), on her way to Jerusalem, but once there, Richard is arrested, and Peter must feign allegiance to the Saracens in order to save him. Eventually, the three friends find themselves on different sides of the war, and all in love with the same woman--Rachel. (official distributor synopsis)