At 382 minutes, you could say this film is a bit drawn out and a little too long. What makes it tough to watch is that the first segment is the most tedious, but I stuck with it the whole way and am still glad I watched it, and I would recommend to anyone to stay with it. Robert Powell is very good as Jesus Christ and has a memorable, haunting look to him. Director Franco Zeffirelli does an admirable job directing this made-for-TV mini-series that was filmed 30 years ago.
The movie certainly sports an interesting, international cast. Just look at some of those names: there are a lot of famous actors from numerous countries. It's really an awesome lineup of actors, but the one you can't forget is Powell. To this day, and I think I've seen all the films about Christ, Powell's face comes the closest to how I would want Jesus to look. It's hard to explain, but Powell - perhaps the least known in this cast - puts on a memorable performance, with his face alone! However, having said that, one complaint is that the camera focuses too much on the icy stare of Jesus and anyone who has read or studied the Gospels know Christ was about as warm and loving as you could find and Powell doesn't illuminate that warmth. For those unfamiliar with Jesus except for this film, trust me: he loves people and had plenty of smiles and warmth when He walked this earth. The film did not do a good job in that area.
However, I really don't want to nitpick because I could find a number of things. At least the length of the film actually does the Man justice because it can provide more of His life nd the incredible things He did, obviously, than a two or three-hour film. Another appeal of this film is that Christians and non-Christians alike can be moved by it. It is neither overly preachy nor blasphemous, just a good story of God being placed on Earth in human form and showing us how to live our lives....and what's wrong with that?
The movie certainly sports an interesting, international cast. Just look at some of those names: there are a lot of famous actors from numerous countries. It's really an awesome lineup of actors, but the one you can't forget is Powell. To this day, and I think I've seen all the films about Christ, Powell's face comes the closest to how I would want Jesus to look. It's hard to explain, but Powell - perhaps the least known in this cast - puts on a memorable performance, with his face alone! However, having said that, one complaint is that the camera focuses too much on the icy stare of Jesus and anyone who has read or studied the Gospels know Christ was about as warm and loving as you could find and Powell doesn't illuminate that warmth. For those unfamiliar with Jesus except for this film, trust me: he loves people and had plenty of smiles and warmth when He walked this earth. The film did not do a good job in that area.
However, I really don't want to nitpick because I could find a number of things. At least the length of the film actually does the Man justice because it can provide more of His life nd the incredible things He did, obviously, than a two or three-hour film. Another appeal of this film is that Christians and non-Christians alike can be moved by it. It is neither overly preachy nor blasphemous, just a good story of God being placed on Earth in human form and showing us how to live our lives....and what's wrong with that?