# Has there ever been a decent Jesus movie? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 8, 2005, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-decent-jesus-movie/334595 "2005-12-08T01:07:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2005, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-decent-jesus-movie/334595/1 "2005-12-08T01:07:09Z")
Not to hijack [this](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=348432) thread, but has there even been a decent Jesus movie? OK, didn’t at all care for the brutality of _The Passion_ _Last Temptation_ was just…weird \* The Greatest Story Ever Told\* is ok. _King of Kings_ put me to sleep. Hmm…any others? ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2005, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-decent-jesus-movie/334595/2 "2005-12-08T01:10:09Z")
I thought that _Jesus Christ Superstar_ was quite good. Then again, a friend of mine knew Carl Anderson on a first-name basis. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2005, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-decent-jesus-movie/334595/3 "2005-12-08T01:12:07Z")
Considering that I’m an ardent Catholic Republican, this may sound odd but… the best Jesus movie I’ve seen was made by a gay, Communist agnostic named Pierpaolo Pasolini (yes, the guy Monty Python made fun of in their cricket film, “The Third Test Match”). Try renting “The Gospel According to St. Matthew.” ---
**Author:** ![capybara](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/capybara/32/202_2.png) [@capybara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/capybara)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2005, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-decent-jesus-movie/334595/4 "2005-12-08T02:38:15Z")
I liked the Passion and Last Temptation ok, and I also like Jesus of Montreal, but I guess that’s weirder than L.T. Chronicles of Narnia is out soon. . . ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2005, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-decent-jesus-movie/334595/5 "2005-12-08T02:50:33Z")
[Jesus Christ Vampire Hunter](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0311361/combined) ---
**Author:** ![Rodgers01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b19c9b/32.png) [@Rodgers01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rodgers01)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2005, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-decent-jesus-movie/334595/6 "2005-12-08T03:09:09Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > Try renting “The Gospel According to St. Matthew.” Haven’t seen it, but I’ve heard great things about that one – just the one I was going to recommend. ---
**Author:** ![betenoir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/258eb7/32.png) [@betenoir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/betenoir)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2005, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-decent-jesus-movie/334595/7 "2005-12-08T03:10:57Z")
Let’s face it, Jesus is just not an easy guy to talk about. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2005, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-decent-jesus-movie/334595/8 "2005-12-08T03:34:56Z")
The mini-series \*Jesus of Nazareth \* was very good, IMNSHO. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2005, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-decent-jesus-movie/334595/9 "2005-12-08T03:52:44Z")
_Ben Hur_, tangentally. And maybe _Life of Brian_. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2005, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-decent-jesus-movie/334595/10 "2005-12-08T04:03:59Z")
> [@betenoir](#): > > Let’s face it, Jesus is just not an easy guy to talk about. But…but…Jesus is just alright with me. And Jesus was way cool. If he wanted to, he could play guitar better than Hendrix. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2005, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-decent-jesus-movie/334595/11 "2005-12-08T04:15:50Z")
I opened this thread to make th same suggestion **astorian** did. Pier Paolo Pasolini’s film is the straight **Gospel According to St. Matthew** , with no additions, deletions, explanations, or apologies. Jesus looks like a young dud with a beard that is less grown-out than portraits normally have, and it makes him _look_ like a revolutionary. Pasolini reportedly used his own aged mother to play Mary, and she looks far too old for the part. (In distinction to Michaelangelo, whose Mary in _The Pieta_ looks far too young). Very well-done film. It’s significant that Pasolini was an atheist. My favorite plays and movies about saints and the like are by theist, agnostics, and similar “unbelievers”, who nevertheless treat their subjects with respect (rather than adulation) and create believable portraits. I love Robert Bolt’s **A Man for All Seasons** (Sir/St. Thomas More), George Bernard Shaw’s **St. Joan** (of Arc), and Jean Anouilh’s **Becket**. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2005, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-decent-jesus-movie/334595/12 "2005-12-08T04:37:44Z")
How about [Godspell](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0070121/). It got across Jesus’s message in a light and fun way. I get the feeling Jesus might like it. Jim ---
**Author:** ![Talon\_Karrde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Talon\_Karrde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Talon_Karrde)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2005, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-decent-jesus-movie/334595/13 "2005-12-08T05:37:14Z")
I really liked The Last Temptation, except for the scene where he tore his heart out. That was just silly. ;j ---
**Author:** ![HPL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3da27b/32.png) [@HPL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HPL)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2005, 8:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-decent-jesus-movie/334595/14 "2005-12-08T08:53:52Z")
I liked Last Temptation and Jesus Christ Superstar(which had some catchy songs and interesting theological ideas). ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2005, 8:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-decent-jesus-movie/334595/15 "2005-12-08T08:55:44Z")
The animated _Miracle Maker_ was pretty good, I thought. ---
**Author:** ![Phnord\_Prephect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/df705f/32.png) [@Phnord\_Prephect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phnord_Prephect)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2005, 10:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-decent-jesus-movie/334595/16 "2005-12-08T10:44:08Z")
I kinda liked The Big Lebowski. > [@Jesus](#): > > Nobody f\*\*ks with the Jesus! ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2005, 11:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-decent-jesus-movie/334595/17 "2005-12-08T11:26:48Z")
**Most joyous:** _Godspell_ (one of my all-time favorite movies, period). **Most dazzling, in a '70s kind of way:** _Jesus Christ Superstar_. **Most cinematic:** _The Last Temptation of Christ_. **Best standard take:** _Jesus of Nazareth_. **Dreamboat Jesus:** _King of Kings_. **Dead on arrival:** _The Greatest Story Ever Told_. **Worst directed:** _The Gospel According to Matthew_. Passolini can’t edit even the simplest scenes. Only the Sermon on the Mount rises to the overrated reputation given to this movie. ---
**Author:** ![Lips\_Obsession](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/bbce88/32.png) [@Lips\_Obsession](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lips_Obsession)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2005, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-decent-jesus-movie/334595/18 "2005-12-08T14:10:26Z")
Another vote here for _ **Jesus of Nazareth** _ ---
**Author:** ![slortar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6bbea6/32.png) [@slortar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slortar)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2005, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-decent-jesus-movie/334595/19 "2005-12-08T14:25:12Z")
> [@Revtim](#): > > [Jesus Christ Vampire Hunter](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0311361/combined) Dammit. Beat me to it. “Lesbians are great. They get so much done in a day.” ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2005, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-decent-jesus-movie/334595/20 "2005-12-08T14:31:46Z")
Hmmm – I’l disagree with **Walloon** about Pasolini’s direction. TGAtSM is the one Jesus flick treating him as a character that I’d _want_ to see again. And I’ve liked Pasolini’s other films. _De Gustibus…_ and all. I, troo, love **Godspell** , but its “Clowns for Christ” style isn’t at all about Jesus, but about His message – it’s The Parables as Minstrel Show. On Stage it’s great, because it’s an audienxce interactive show with the ability to provide up-to-the-minute commentary and topical jokes. Translating that sort of thing into a movie is damnmed near impossible. The flick substituted clever styles and the nifty trick of filming in Manhattan , with only the cast apparently present (except at the very beginning and end), a result achieved by clever camera placement, filming on Sundays, and , I imagine, a lotta crowd control. Cute flick, but not a portrait of Jesus. I loved **Jesus Christ, Superstar** the album. The Broadway show seemed to be an exercise in stretching for weird interpretation. In recent years, the star of Tom O’Horgan’s Broadway show, Jeff Fenholt, has become an evangelical preacher whose schtick is condemning himself at the time, saying that he waas a drug-user and a sinner while playing Jesus, but that he’s now found The Way. I’ve heard one of his taped performances, and I saw him play the role on stage. Interesting. But I don’t recommend the stage show. The movie was, I thought, abysmal. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-there-ever-been-a-decent-jesus-movie/334595.md?page=2)