The film stars Alec Guinness as the titular priest and Leo McKern as his "Sancho", the communist one-time mayor of their town of El Toboso in La Mancha — a chalk and cheese odd couple — undertaking a touring holiday across post-Franco Spain in the priest's decrepit little Seat 600 called "Rocinante".
The fractious pair are brought closer in their dialogues about Catholicism and Communism and learn to appreciate each other better, but also question their own beliefs.
The film features several notable actors including Rosalie Crutchley, Ian Richardson, Graham Crowden, Maurice Denham, and an early role by Anton Lesser.
[1] The film was produced by Johnny Goodman with Lloyd Shirley and Graham Greene for Thames.
It was directed by Rodney Bennett, with cinematography by Norman G. Langley, and original music by the Spanish composer Antón García Abril.