When Pope Julius II (Harrison) commissions Michelangelo (Heston) to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, the artist initially refuses. Virtually forced to do the job by Julius, he later destroys his own work and flees Rome. Eventually resumed, the project becomes a battle of wills fueled by the artistic and temperamental differences that form the core of this movie.

Originally released as a motion picture in 1965.\\CIRC # 131. Based on the novel of the same title by Irving Stone.