One of my favorite movies, and possibly my favorite.
Most people know the basic story of Jesus through one of the many films or TV shows telling his life story. As I heard it once stated, "we may get the story of Jesus from the Bible, but we get the images from Hollywood." One of my favorites is The Greatest Story Ever Told. A good straight ahead telling of the New Testament.
Unlike most other versions, The Last Temptation of Christ focuses more on the human side of Jesus. Yes, he was also human, a fact most people tend to forget or overlook.
Before this movie came out, there was tons of controversy surrounding it. There was an attempt to have it banned even before anyone had the chance to see it. Had any of those protestors bothered to see it, they would have seen a pretty straight forward telling of the important events of the adult Jesus' life.
Of course the big controversy was that the film portrayed Jesus as actually having true temptations that he most likely would have faced, and also doubting if he is actually the Messiah. But I think that is the strength of the film. He could easily go through his life as if nothing phases him, but this Jesus has actual dilemma's and true conflict's. You actually see his struggles which makes them all the more relevant.
Director Martin Scorcese also opted to replace vintage dialogue with a more modern tone, and characters with modern accents. It is strange to hear Judas, the amazing Harvey Keitel, speak with a Brooklyn accent, but I think it makes the character more unique and gives him a new life.
I can understand how people might be offended by a scene where Jesus watches Mary Magdalene sleep with several men, she was a prostitute, and then is even tempted himself. He does not sleep with her, but sits a breaks bread with her. You see that they have a friendship since childhood, and that he does love her, just not romantically.
I think by focusing on the fact that Jesus was human, makes the viewer even more amazed at the sacrifices he made. We know he makes them, but it is more impressive when there is conflict, which exists in all temptations.
Another reason I love the movie is that if you know nothing about the many pivotal moments and events in Jesus' life (Palm Sunday,The Last Supper,The Sermon on the Mount,etc.) the movie gives you enough backstory to know what each of these events was and why they are important, something sadly missing in some of the other Biopics.
Of course the biggest controversy came over the final portion of the film, the last temptation. The temptation is that Jesus, at his weakest moment, is given the chance to live a normal life, to grow old and have a family. I repeat that this comes at his weakest moment, after being tortured and hung on the cross. He sees what his life could be like. He marries Mary Magdalene and has children. There is a very brief scene where we see the two of them making love. It is not prolonged or even erotic. This to most people who opposed the film, was very offensive.
Of course Jesus before dying of old age decides he does not want to live a human life, and begs God to let him die on the cross. He suddenly is once again on the cross where he dies.
What's great about this scene, is that at first you almost wish he could have this perfect peaceful life. But as the scenes go on, you get more disturbed. You know this is not how his life should be, and so does he. He gradually is confronted by Saul/Paul and later Judas. These people help him to find his way back. It's Jesus' realization in the form of people that were crucial in his life. Saul/Paul sums it up beautifully in his meeting Jesus. He is preaching to a crowd about how he was reborn after meeting the risen Christ. Jesus tells him that he did not die on the cross, that he lived a normal life. Saul/Paul says "I'm glad I got to meet you, because now I can forget all about you."
It doesn't bother me that people were offended by the film, or even if they protested it. What bothers me is the idea that there were people who belived no one should be able to see it. I'm an adult and a movie is not going to change my faith.
I would tend to believe that those people protesting Last Temptation, were also the ones praising Passion of the Christ, a 2 hour movie which glorifies the torture of Jesus, with absolutely no character development. I don't think that movie provided any insight into the life of Christ, but was more a exploitation film into his death. But if someone wants to see it, and feels they are getting something out of it, so be it. Visually it was an impressive movie, but when you get to the point where violence makes you numb, there's too much.
I personally would rather see a movie which discusses what religion and faith and love are, than one that focuses only on the most horrific part of the story.
Despite the fact that there are many memorable moments in Last Temptation, I always was amazed at how impressive the Palm Sunday sequence is. It is a pretty traditional staging of the day, with Jesus and the disciples entering the temple. Jesus is seated on a donkey and the townspeople wave palms and blankets are laid out on his path. What made the scene memorable, aside from the cinematography, was the amazing score by Pete Gabriel. Seeing this in the theatre was breathtaking. Instead of going with a traditional classical piece, Peter Gabriel composed a score that suited the landscape and geography. The Palm Sunday sequence was heavy on percussion and also included vocal runs by Peter Gabriel and Youssou N'Dour.
See it. You'll never look at Palm Sunday the same way again.
