Sunday, December 24, 2006
The Last Temptation of Christ
- Who's watched: M & G
- Mentions: *1* *2* *3*
- Commentary: I noticed, in the mentions, one of them states that Mom always thinks she wants to see this movie, then she gets bored with it. This is no longer true. It is now one that she asked after the last time we did a "jesus movie" festival, so, this year, I purchased it.
For me, as well, the more I watch the movie, the more I like it. I tend, now, to ignore the discontinuities, like yet another Nordic Jesus, Harvey Keitel as a red-headed Judas and Barbara Hershey's bee-stung lips. Especially since I've read the book, I tend to appreciate the story more for what it symbolizes rather than what it portrays.
I think what Mom likes about it is the gritty realism and the startling detail, like how the crosses are made. We watched this movie again, recently, right after I ordered it and just after a couple of other Jesus movies. It seems that each movie has its own version of how crucifixion crosses are constructed, which mom noticed this time around, which led to yet another Jesus movie festival.
The only disappointing aspect of this movie was that it promised subtitles and they may exist but they aren't listed in any of the menus so I'm not sure if listing this as a feature was an error or if there is an Easter Egg technique to cuing them. I need to check this out. It does not feature Closed Captioning. I was afraid this would be a problem for Mom but the first time we watched it after receiving it, Mom had no problem with it. This is, at any rate, primarily a visual feast for her, so I guess that's why it doesn't matter. As well, the dialogue is not mumbled or distorted by other sound tracks.
The review linked to the title of this post is an interesting view of the movie from the perspective of how it had been (up to the point of its writing) and may continue to be viewed by the religious community. It seemed to me a relevent discussion to have about it.
Roger Ebert reviewed the movie twice, once as a "regular" movie and once more as a Great Movie.
Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Willem Dafoe Jesus Harvey Keitel Judas Iscariot Barbara Hershey Mary Magdalene Harry Dean Stanton Saul/Paul of Tarsus David Bowie Pontius Pilate Verna Bloom Mary, Mother of Jesus Andre Gregory John the Baptist Nehemiah Persoff Rabbi Leo Marks Voice of Satan Tomas Arana Lazarus Victor Argo Peter Martin Scorsese Isaiah
Here's a link to the Wikipedia write-up of the film.
Release Date: 1988
Directed by Martin Scorsese.
Labels: barbara-hershey, bible-movies1, Criterion2, drama8, fantasy3, harry-dean-stanton, harvey-keitel, jesus-dvds, martin-scorsese, nehemiah-persoff, period4, religion1, shared-favorite, spiritual1, willem-dafoe
