Yes. The movie was based on the novel which was based on the actual Jesuit Chronicles from that time which are amazingly detailed and interesting. The martyrdom of those Jesuits was embraced with a zeal that has got to be baffling to modern filmgoers--and to modern clergy, for that matter. These were refined, highly educated men who left civilized France to live among savages where they were subject to barbarisms offensive to every sense. The film captures some of this--but it would be depressing without appreciation of its spiritual context. Ignatian spirituality was truly potent once--and awe-inspiring. It's sad to think of how debased it has become.
I didn't see the film but I think you make a good point
about "Ignatian spirituality", and a good biography of St.
Ignatius Loyola, how and why he founded the Society of
Jesus, and its role in the Counter-Reformation period
would be bound to give one better ability to evaluate the
film (historically). Although Loyola died in 1556, the role
of the Jesuits has been enormous - throughout the world,
not just in Canada during that time, but in what became
the U.S. Have you read Willa Cather's, "Death comes to
the Archbishop" ? If I may ask, what do you mean by "how
debased it has become" ?