I finally saw this last summer, exactly a decade after it was released. The controversy surrounding the film is legendary, but largely unfounded. The movie is misinterpreted as blasphemous only by the close-minded. And, speaking as a person with a Baptist upbringing, I wasn't the least bit offended by this film.
The film is based not on the Word, but on Nikos Kazantzakis' novel of the same name. The film follows the trials of Jesus, played confidently by Willem Dafoe. We find that Jesus is consistently doubting himself, unsure of his destiny as Saviour. He spends his days building crosses for the Romans, used in their crucifixions. He confides in Judas (Harvey Keitel, whose Brooklyn accent isn't as distracting as you think.), with whom he shares a conversation regarding love, and lusts for Mary Magdalene (Barbara Hershey), who is seen whoring herself and resents his judgment of her.
The movie also recreates, in precise detail, many biblical events, such as the period in the desert where Jesus is tempted by Satan for 40 days and 40 nights; the resurrection of Lazarus; and, the betrayal, trial, and crucifixion of the man.
It is this temptation sequence that carries much of the film's controversy. Bleeding and wounded, stretched out on the cross, he hallucinates, and in this hallucination, is visited by an angel. The angel tells him that his father "is a god of mercy" and proceeds to remove him from the cross. The angel alerts him that he is not the Chosen One, hinting that he is a regular man with worldly desires. He weds Mary Magdalene, who bears a child for him, in a scene that is not in the least bit explicit, and ages through the years. But, these cause him to deviate from God's will, and at the end, Judas and the remaining Apostles criticize Jesus for deviating from the his father's path. When he returns from his halluicination, freed from this temptation, he is back on the cross. He dies carrying the weight of the world; his last line: "It is accomplished!"
(It should be noted that none of what occurs in the temptation sequence is "real". The scene between Jesus and Magdalene, as brief as it is, serves a purpose other than titillation: it illustrates the natural process of conception.)
It's a shame that such an ambitious film is burdened by controversy. As we speak, another film, Kevin Smith's upcoming "Dogma" is facing the same torrent of negative reaction. There's this notion within religious circles that, any time religious subject matter is presented, that the filmmaker is on a mission to rewrite that religion, making it more secular. That is not the case here. Scorsese and Paul Schrader, who has written two of Scorsese's best films ("Taxi Driver" and "Raging Bull"), made a film that challenges what we think we know about Christ. It asks us to entertain the idea that within the son of God lay a man with very human ideals. It accomplished it's goal, and it did it without being heavy-handed. I strongly recommend this film to all, religious or not.
The film is based not on the Word, but on Nikos Kazantzakis' novel of the same name. The film follows the trials of Jesus, played confidently by Willem Dafoe. We find that Jesus is consistently doubting himself, unsure of his destiny as Saviour. He spends his days building crosses for the Romans, used in their crucifixions. He confides in Judas (Harvey Keitel, whose Brooklyn accent isn't as distracting as you think.), with whom he shares a conversation regarding love, and lusts for Mary Magdalene (Barbara Hershey), who is seen whoring herself and resents his judgment of her.
The movie also recreates, in precise detail, many biblical events, such as the period in the desert where Jesus is tempted by Satan for 40 days and 40 nights; the resurrection of Lazarus; and, the betrayal, trial, and crucifixion of the man.
It is this temptation sequence that carries much of the film's controversy. Bleeding and wounded, stretched out on the cross, he hallucinates, and in this hallucination, is visited by an angel. The angel tells him that his father "is a god of mercy" and proceeds to remove him from the cross. The angel alerts him that he is not the Chosen One, hinting that he is a regular man with worldly desires. He weds Mary Magdalene, who bears a child for him, in a scene that is not in the least bit explicit, and ages through the years. But, these cause him to deviate from God's will, and at the end, Judas and the remaining Apostles criticize Jesus for deviating from the his father's path. When he returns from his halluicination, freed from this temptation, he is back on the cross. He dies carrying the weight of the world; his last line: "It is accomplished!"
(It should be noted that none of what occurs in the temptation sequence is "real". The scene between Jesus and Magdalene, as brief as it is, serves a purpose other than titillation: it illustrates the natural process of conception.)
It's a shame that such an ambitious film is burdened by controversy. As we speak, another film, Kevin Smith's upcoming "Dogma" is facing the same torrent of negative reaction. There's this notion within religious circles that, any time religious subject matter is presented, that the filmmaker is on a mission to rewrite that religion, making it more secular. That is not the case here. Scorsese and Paul Schrader, who has written two of Scorsese's best films ("Taxi Driver" and "Raging Bull"), made a film that challenges what we think we know about Christ. It asks us to entertain the idea that within the son of God lay a man with very human ideals. It accomplished it's goal, and it did it without being heavy-handed. I strongly recommend this film to all, religious or not.