The Last Temptation of Christ - Criterion Collection | Willem Dafoe, Harvey Keitel

The Last Temptation of Christ - Criterion Collection | Willem Dafoe, Harvey Keitel | Film is an Abomination

DVDs:

The Last Temptatio...

	The Last Temptation of Christ - Criterion Collection Willem Dafoe, Harvey Keitel Criterion, 2000 average customer review:based on 272 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

A masterpiece

This film from Martin Scorsese surpasses all other cinematic re-tellings of Christ's life. To discuss this movie, however, one can't avoid the question of the controversy that to this day surrounds it. Fundamentalist Christians deemed the film blasphemous before they even saw it, due to its portrayal of Jesus as equally God and man. This idea, though, is firmly placed within the Bible and creates a three-dimensional character out of Jesus (as opposed to the two-dimensional Jesus in The Passion of the Christ). Here, Jesus is wholly divine and wholly man, confused and all-knowing. He is the ultimate paradox. Jesus's conquering of temptation and his triumph is inspiring. While Scorsese worked under a very limited budget (and it is obvious in many instances), the film is still a masterpiece, thanks in no small part to Peter Gabriel's mesmerizing score. This is one of Scorsese's absolute best and one of the best films of the 1980s.

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Film is an Abomination

A movie that the sodomites and the fornicators will love. All of you godless, perverted american zombies will probably like this flick. If you like this movie then you are on your way to a amoral cesspool.
This movie makes jesus to be queeer with judas. Also it has perverted sex scenes with Barbara Hershey acting like a filthy slut.
I rebuke the makers and promoters of this film. I call on all people of faith to boycott this movie.

Have a nice day

wonderful movie

I was in awe of this movie. It truly explored Jesus as I never thought he would be.

There Is Purpose...

This film has been pivotal in raising questions and provoking thought, unfortunately somewhere along the way the point was missed. Overly sensitive "christians" have been opposed to anything to that challenges their own personal perception of who they think Christ was while forgetting entirely that he was one hundred percent man in addition to being one hundred percent divine. Even Scorsese himself has been quoted as saying that he believes "Jesus is divine." This is his way of trying to reconcile the two.

The film is flawed biblically but it makes no effort to try and follow the Gospels like a script, more a guideline, keep that in mind when watching. The filming is great, the music fits, and Willem Dafoe presents his version of Jesus with heart.

It is too bad that the focus has been on the controversy surrounding the film rather than the point of the whole story. There is no doubt in my mind that this is a film written and made by men who desperately tried to acknowledge the sacrifice that Christ made on our behalf.

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"There's No Sacrifice, There's No Salvation" ~ Conflicting Natures Within the God/Man

The highly controversial '88 release of Martin Scorsese's 'The Last Temptation of Christ' simply didn't live up to expectations. Based on the classic novel by Nikos Kazantzakis, this film was not only a failure at the box office, but also failed as a faithful presentation of Kazantzakis literary masterpiece.

The book is poetic, esoteric, surreal and highly hallucinogenic in nature. It appears that Scorsese was unable to capture the spiritual beauty, intensity and multi-textured message of this classic composition and opted for an opposite approach. The film is primitive, earthy and disturbingly barbaric and bloody. His stark, linear vision for this project may have had some limited success artistically but in my opinion did not correspond effectively with the loftier Theological and philosophical concepts revealed in Kazantzakis writings.

It's much easier to embrace Scorsese's cinematic interpretation if you haven't read the book. The film is extremely exotic and perversely alluring with an intriquing artsy quality surfacing now and then. Conversely it's also surprisingly uneven and mundane at times with some incredibly slow sections that are difficult to endure. Fortunately I think the last thirty minutes of the film finally connects with Kazantzakis' vision and redeems the film, rewarding the stalwart viewer for the effort spent. 'The Last Temptation of Christ' just might appeal to those tired of the traditional versions of the Jesus Mythos.

William Dafoe gives a credible performance as Jesus as does Harvey Keitel in the role of Judas, however the real treasure in this production is the excellent soundtrack by Peter Gabriel.

Final Analysis: The film fails as a trustworthy adaptation of the book, but succeeds marginally at providing a stark and uncertain alternative exploration into the mind of Jesus, the God-man.

Worthy of seeing at least once. As for repeat viewings, you decide.

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