It's easter, and with having not much to do except for enjoying some free time, it happened that I turned my TV on and watched some bible movies (it's easter, and so these kinda movies are shown on all stations). Although I consider myself not a religious person (at least I'm very sceptical about the "benefits" of organized religion), I found some of theses films quite fascinating. It's very interesting to see how the well-known stories of the Bible are specifically told/interpreted in the various movies. There are of course the "classics" like "The Ten Commandments" (Charlton Heston) or "King of Kings" (Jeffrey Hunter) , but there are also the newer ones like "Passion of the Christ" (Mel Gibson). So what do you think about bible-movies in general? Do you watch them? Do you like them? Sidenote: This thread is not meant to hurt any religious feelings. As I said, I'm not a religious person myself, but studying literature has made me come to the conclusion, that the bible is maybe the most quoted - and thus a very important - text in our "western" culture. Basically, I'm just interested in what you think about movie-interpretations of biblical stories.
I really like some of the older ones like The ten commandments, they have this big epic feel to them that really appeals to me. I don't mind if the accuracy of the movies isn't always spot on as long as the overwhelming themes are displayed with the respect they deserve.
I'm always interested in seeing the approach taken to these films. I must say, though, that I'm often disappointed. Of course, maybe that's just my perverse tastes coming through. I liked "Dogma" a whole lot more than "Passion of the Christ."
I think the only bible movies I've seen (and coincidentally, I've enjoyed all of them) are The Ten Commandments, Dogma, and The Passion of the Christ. Does Ben-Hur count? I eagerly await the day when Good Omens is adapted to film (preferably directed by Terry Gilliam).
Well, Ben Hur is an adaption of a 19th century novel written by Lewis Wallace, so technically spoken it is not a "bible-movie" - on the other hand : My favorite "bible movie" is "The Last Temptation of Christ", which isn't actually based on the bible, but an adaption of a novel by Nikos Kazantzakis. It tells the life of Jesus (in the movie played by Willem Defoe) in a very different and philosophical fashion - it also has David Bowie playing Pilate.
Ah, damn, I forgot about The Last Temptation of Christ. Good movie, although I don't think it's as great as most seem to think.
It's interesting to look at how, not very long ago, Hollywood would make big budget movies based on Biblical stories, and now they won't. You look at everyone who rejected The Passion of the Christ, and despite that film going gangbusters in $$$$, they still won't make them. Which leaves, the cheap, straight-to-video companies to make crappy movies like Left Behind, The Omega Code, etc.
"Spartacus" is no bible-movie, but nevertheless, it makes for a good movie night. Btw, I wonder why Mel Gibson didn't choose to remake "Spartacus" instead of making "Passion". "Spartacus" has far more crucifixions in it.
Ben-Hur would definitely be classified as a "Bible" movie, simply because it carries on in the lands of the Bible, using some of the people mentioned in the Bible and depicts events described in the Bible. My personal favorites are: "The Miracle Maker" "The Robe" "Ben-Hur" "Jesus of Nazareth" - technically it's mini-series "The Ten Commandments" These were some of the films I was raised on. I loved seeing the visual spectacle of some, the outright reverence of others.
I took the "its Hedley" as a reference to the name of the character played by Harvey Corman in Blazing Saddles. Is that right, Outpost4?