In 1977 I remember sitting glued to the TV each week watching the serialisation of Franco Zeffirelli's epic Jesus of Nazareth.
When Dave asked me if there were any DVD's that I would like as part of my Christmas present I said that I would like the DVD of Jesus of Nazareth so that I could watch it again whenever I wanted to.
The one that Dave got for me was the Special Edition DVD in a black metal case with a picture of the face of Jesus (Robert Powell) on the front.
The DVD set consists of two discs each split into two parts. The total running time is 374 minutes which works out at 6 hours and 14 minutes so you probably wouldn't want to watch it all in one go then! It has a PG certification with a warning that some scenes may be unsuitable for small children, which is logical enough considering that the crucifixion is shown.
I have been a Christian since I took Christ as my saviour when I was a young girl at Sunday school. I do not attend church regularly but I try to live my life in the way that a Christian should; sometimes I am successful sometimes not!
I tell you this purely for information - I do not think that you have to be a Christian to watch this film.
The film took four years to make and has been critically acclaimed by religious leaders all over the world for its sensitivity and accuracy. The cast list reads like who's who and the film probably has the highest amount of famous actors and actresses in any film.
The basic cast is as follows:
Robert Powell ... Jesus Christ Anne Bancroft ... Mary Magdalene Ernest Borgnine ... The Centurion Claudia Cardinale ... The Adulteress Valentina Cortese ... Herodias James Farentino ... Simon Peter James Earl Jones ... Balthazar Stacy Keach ... Barabbas Tony Lo Bianco ... Quintilius James Mason ... Joseph of Arimathea Ian McShane ... Judas Iscariot Laurence Olivier ... Nicodemus Donald Pleasence ... Melchior Christopher Plummer ... Herod Antipas Anthony Quinn ... Caiaphas Fernando Rey ... Gaspar Ralph Richardson ... Simeon Rod Steiger ... Pontius Pilate Peter Ustinov ... Herod the Great Michael York ... John the Baptist Olivia Hussey ... Virgin Mary Cyril Cusack ... Yehuda the Rabbi Ian Holm ... Zerah Oliver Tobias ... Joel
But were they any good? The answer to that has to be a resounding YES!
The film follows the life of Jesus from his birth, through his adult life and his teachings and miracles, to his crucifixion and resurrection.
As soon as I saw Robert Powell as the adult Jesus I was hooked. He looked exactly how I had always imagined Jesus in my mind's eye. He played the role with authority, humility and sincerity and for me was an excellent piece of casting.
Olivia Hussey as The Virgin Mary was also wonderful. She had such a serenity about her that made her seem almost holy. She played the role with gentleness and an other worldly quality that I found both endearing and powerful.
Anne Bancroft was brilliantly cast as Mary Magdalene. Her performance as the repentant sinner was sensitive and believable.
I won't go through each actor and performance here as it would make the review far too long winded but suffice it to say that there wasn't a bad performance amongst the whole cast.
The film was powerful from start to finish and although the sequence of events is well known it is still incredibly moving for example when Mary is told she is going to be the mother of the Messiah, when Jesus raises Jairus' daughter from the dead and Mary Magdalene asking the gardener where Jesus' body and her subsequent realisation that she had been talking to Jesus himself. They are just a few of the particularly moving moments but there are many more.
The whole thing is an amazing piece of filming both from the obvious point of view of the incredible cast and their performances and also the drama of the setting giving a real feel for the time in history when Jesus lived here on earth.
The accompanying music was beautiful but not obtrusive and added to the overall power of the film.
All in all I would say that this is one of the most amazing films that I have ever seen.
This review has also been posted on Dooyoo.
More details
Soundtrack
Outstanding
How does it compare to others by the same director?
Not applicable
Value for Money
Excellent
What format are you reviewing?
DVD
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