A Selection of Films About the Life of Jesus Christ: 9 Movies Based on the Most Famous Biblical Story
Kyiv • UNN
9 Films About the Life of Jesus Christ: From Birth to Resurrection. Pictures based on biblical stories tell about his life, faith, death, and resurrection.
On the eve of Easter, believers often remember the Savior. But it is not always easy for people to understand the path the Messiah took and how many obstacles he overcame on his way. UNN has prepared a selection of nine films about Christ, which will tell about his life, faith, death and resurrection.
Jesus (1979)
Genre: drama, biographical film
Director: John Krishd, Peter Sykesd;
Starring: Brian Deacon, Rivka Neumann, Alexander Skurbi, Nico Nitai, Yossi Shiloah, Ori Levi, Mosko Alkalai, Kobi Assaf, Moti Baharov, Yaakov Ben-Sira.
Country: USA.
The film is based on the biblical account of the Gospel of Luke. To date, it has been translated into 1625 languages.
This film is a story from the life of Christ, which teaches goodness, faith and love for one's neighbor. When a star lit up in the sky and the Magi came with gifts, the Messiah came into the world. His life path was full of difficulties and trials. But with a pure soul and thoughts, he looked at people with love, because he came to help humanity.
Viewers can enjoy the film while looking at interesting historical sites that have become historical monuments and world heritage. Filming took place in Israel.
Many films have been made about the life of Christ, but the authors prepared for the filming of this film for five years: they collected facts, made costumes as close as possible to that time, and searched for authentic props.
Son of God (2014)
Genre: Drama, Historical, Biographical;
Director: Christopher Spencer;
Starring: Diogo Morgado, Greg Hicks, Adrian Schiller, Sebastian Knapp, Joe Cohen, Simon Kunz, Paul Mark Davis, Matthew Gravelle, Amber Rose Reva;
Country: USA.
The historical drama tells a well-known story about Jesus Christ. The story is told on behalf of John the Baptist, who was not only a witness to all the events, but also a disciple of the Messiah. According to the Gospel, Jesus was born miraculously. Learning about the appearance of a baby born of the Holy Spirit, the Jewish King Herod, fearing for his power, ordered the extermination of all babies under the age of two in Bethlehem and its surroundings. But Joseph and Mary were warned by an angel, and they fled to Egypt. After 3 years in Egypt, Joseph and Mary, learning of Herod's death, returned to their hometown.
At the age of 30, Jesus Christ was baptized by John the Baptist, and the Holy Spirit descended upon him, leading him into the desert. There, for 40 days, Jesus fought the devil, rejecting three temptations - hunger, power, and faith. After returning, he began to preach.
The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965)
Genre: drama, historical, biographical;
Director: George Stevens, David Lean, Jean Negulesco;
Starring: Max von Sydow, Martin Landau, Jose Ferrer, Charlton Heston, Telly Savalas, Angela Lansbury, Dorothy McGuire, Robert Loggia, Gary Raymondd, David McCallumd, Sal Mineo, Claude Rains and others;
Country: USA.
The film tells about the life of Jesus from birth to crucifixion, resurrection and ascension. At the same time, the film plausibly presents the image of Jesus as an ordinary person, which helps to understand his actions and their sequence.
In 1966, the film was nominated for an Oscar in five categories: "Best Cinematography", "Best Art Direction", "Best Costume Design", "Best Visual Effects" and "Best Soundtrack".
Jesus of Nazareth (1977)
Genre: historical television series;
Director: Franco Zeffirelli;
Starring: Robert Powell, Anne Bancroft, Ernest Borgnine, Claudia Cardinale, Valentina Cortese, James Farentinod, James Earl Jones, Stacy Keach, James Mason, Ian McShane, Laurence Olivier and others;
Country: Italy.
The plot of this four-part miniseries combines the narratives of all four Gospels of the New Testament. It recreated in the smallest detail the life of Jesus Christ from Christmas to Ascension.
Gospel stories included in the film: a woman caught in adultery, healing of Jairus' daughter, Jesus helps Peter catch fish, the parable of the prodigal son, dinner from Matthew, the Sermon on the Mount, healing the blind in the pool, the Resurrection of Lazarus, Feeding the five thousand, the Last Supper, the betrayal of Jesus by Judas and much more.
Killing Jesus (2015)
Genre: Drama, Biographical, Historical;
Director: Christopher Menol;
Starring: Kelsey Grammer, Vernon Dobcheff, Owen Macken, Rufus Sewell, John Rhys-Davies;
Country: USA.
This film tells about the life of Jesus and his path through the teachings of the Savior. All historical facts were shown from a literary point of view. Therefore, history and fiction are intertwined here. The story tells about the first attempt to kill
Jesus when He was still a baby. From that moment on, His life was never easy. Immersing himself in this story, the viewer gets acquainted with the views of Roman officials, the motives of Pilate, who contributed to the execution of Christ, and the behavior of the Jerusalem priests.
The Passion of the Christ (2004)
Genre: drama;
Director: Mel Gibson;
Starring: James Caviezel, Maia Morgenstern, Christo Jivkov;
Country USA.
The film tells about the last 24 hours of the Savior's life. Betrayed by Judas Iscariot, Jesus is arrested. He is brought to Jerusalem, where the leaders of the Pharisees accuse him of blasphemy, and his trial ends with a death sentence. Jesus is brought to the procurator of Judea, Pilate, who hands the case over to King Herod.
Herod sends Jesus back to Pilate, who offers the crowd a choice between Jesus and the robber Barabbas. The crowd chooses to give Barabbas freedom and execute Jesus. The Savior is given a cross and ordered to carry it through the streets of Jerusalem to Golgotha itself, where he was crucified. The film impresses with its realism and bloody scenes, and thanks to the skill of the authors, the viewer can feel like a participant in those events. The film earned $612 million at the world box office and won three Oscars.
Risen (2016)
Genre: action, drama, detective;
Director: Kevin Reynolds;
Starring: Joseph Fiennes, Tom Felton, Peter Firth, Cliff Curtis, Maria Botto;
Country: USA.
The film tells the epic biblical story of the Resurrection, told through the eyes of a godless man. Christ is risen, but the Roman government is not happy about it. Commander Clavius, who does not believe in Christian sermons, is tasked by Procurator Pontius Pilate to find the body of the Savior and refute the rumors.
During a raid through a Jewish enclave, Clavius unexpectedly discovers the resurrected Jesus with his apostles in a secluded abode. Then he recalls the search party and dismisses his soldiers, without revealing to them that he personally met the Savior. Pilate concludes that Clavius has betrayed him and sends Roman soldiers to pursue him and Jesus. Clavius helps the disciples escape the search party.
After that, Jesus' disciples go to Jerusalem to preach and invite Clavius to join them, but he refuses and goes to preach himself.
"The Gospel of John" (2003)
Genre: Biblical;
Director: Philip Seville;
Starring: Christopher Plummer, Henry Ian Cusick, Daniel Kash;
Country: Canada.
The biblical film is based on the Gospel of John and tells about the earthly life of Jesus Christ, from his meeting with John the Baptist and baptism to his appearance to his disciples. The soundtrack to the film is music recorded on authentic instruments of that time.
Jesus (1999)
Genre: biographical, drama, historical;
Director: Roger Young;
Starring: Jeremy Sisto, Jacqueline Bisset, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Debra Messing, Gary Oldman;
Country: Italy, Germany, USA.
The plot of the film combines the story of the four Gospels with the addition of extra-biblical elements, such as Jesus' dreams and visions of the future, about the distortions brought into his teachings by people, scenes of his relationship with Mary of Bethany. In the film, in contrast to the biblical account, Pontius Pilate appears as the main initiator of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.
Jesus laughs and cries like any other human being, dances at a wedding, splashes water from a well on his disciples, hesitates in his calling before beginning his ministry. At the same time, the severity of the trials in the desert and the pain of crucifixion on Golgotha are preserved.
