Review of Barabbas

Murkily-developed Biblical epic is long though not lumbering. Anthony Quinn goes through a grueling series of events as Barabbas, a hard-drinking thief and womanizer in Jerusalem who was spared death when Jesus Christ was chosen to take his place on the cross. Soon convicted on other charges, bad-tempered Barabbas slaved for decades in the hellish sulfur mines before being thrown into the gladiator arena, still spiritually torn over his religious vocation. Based on the Nobel-Prize winning novel by Pär Lagerkvist, this (rather melodramatic) 'expansion' from the Gospel of Mark is robotic instead of robust. Still, the momentum here for each new chapter in Barabbas' life is presented with tacky grandeur, and the picture manages to sweep the audience up in a theatrical fervor which is entertaining, if gaudy. **1/2 from ****