The amazing life of Jesus

MANILA, Philippines - Retelling the greatest story ever told always proves to be a demanding task. Ten years ago, Mel Gibson’s movie The Passion of the Christ gave us a brutal yet heartfelt view of Jesus’ destined path to Calvary. In the case of Son of God, the latest film on the life of Jesus, husband and wife producer Mark Burnett and Roma Downey do not disappoint as they provide an intimate look at the era of grace ushered in through Christ’s public ministry and his death on the cross.

Burnett said bringing the full story of Jesus’ teachings to the big screen — the first time it’s been done by a major Hollywood studio in more than 50 years — is long overdue. Filmed in Morocco and directed by Christopher Spencer, Son of God fetched $26.5M at the box-office for its opening week and currently has a $52,949,648 gross in the US. It was the second-biggest opening weekend for a Christian film ever, behind Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ. The film’s trailer also has close to five million views on YouTube.

The producers take a different creative approach and focus on Jesus’ compassion for the multitudes that came to hear him preach. Burnett and Downey make Jesus personal. They portray him as a savior who delights in one-on-one time with his people, the son of the God who knows our “downsitting and uprising” and is “acquainted” with all our ways, as David wrote in Psalm 139.

“I haven’t seen a film more custom-designed for the next generation of Christians,” says university spokesman Johnnie Moore. “I think a lot of Christians can be wary of content about the Bible that tries to create a new story, but this is the old story that’s been told for thousands of years. Now it’s being told to a new generation in a truly excellent way.”

In the popular new film, Jesus is so, well, easy on the eyes that some are revisiting an age-old question that has vexed scholars for centuries: Did Jesus really look like Brad Pitt, only slightly better? OK, that exact question hasn’t vexed scholars for centuries. But those who study religion as portrayed in popular culture do note that depicting Jesus on the screen has always been a tricky business, one that balances weighty theological concerns — how divine to make the son of God, and how human? — with more earthly ones, like how best to sell movie tickets?

Downey won’t deny her Jesus is good-looking — not that she’d get very far with that — but explains she was seeking a subtle mix of qualities. “Someone with strength, presence, charisma, tenderness, kindness, compassion and natural humility,” she says.

“Someone who could be both a lion and a lamb. I think people who don’t know Jesus will fall in love,” she adds. “And those who do know him will fall in love all over again.”

“The movie is a story of the amazing life of Christ… It is not a typical religious movie, rather it is gripping and entertaining. There is no agenda or preaching, rather it documents the joys, trials and tribulations of one of the most controversial figures who the world has ever known,” says movie critique James Rankin. “Religious or not, Son of God is worth seeing.”

Son of God opens nationwide on April 2.