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Jesus

List Price: $19.98
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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: BIBLICALLY ACCURATE
Review: "JESUS" IS A BRILLIANT CINEMATIC ACHIEVEMENT ,AND THE PRODUCERS OF CERTAINLY MADE SURE THAT THEIR MOVIE WAS HISTORICALLY ACCURATE AS WELL AS ENTERTAINING .I WOULD NOT WASTE MY MONEY ON "KING OF KINGS" OR "THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD"."JESUS" IS BASED ENTIRELY ON THE GOSPEL OF LUKE ,NOT A HOLLYWOOD WRITER'S SCRIPT

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: BIBLICALLY ACCURATE
Review: "JESUS" IS A BRILLIANT CINEMATIC ACHIEVEMENT ,AND THE PRODUCERS OF CERTAINLY MADE SURE THAT THEIR MOVIE WAS HISTORICALLY ACCURATE AS WELL AS ENTERTAINING .I WOULD NOT WASTE MY MONEY ON "KING OF KINGS" OR "THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD"."JESUS" IS BASED ENTIRELY ON THE GOSPEL OF LUKE ,NOT A HOLLYWOOD WRITER'S SCRIPT

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: THE MOST WATCHED MOVIE IN HISTORY!
Review: Before I begin my review, I must state something: Having Been translated into over 700 languages, this film has been seen by more than 4 Billion people since its release in 1979 (over 60 Million who saw it have dedicated their lives to the blessed Savior).

THE REVIEW
This is a really good film. It has the power to truly change lives. Brian Deacon shines as Jesus. The things that detract from the film are mediocre acting by most of the supporting cast and some choppy editing. Other than this, a truly mesmerizing movie experience. But the best film version of the Gospels is the 2000 Miniseries version starring Jeremy Sisto (I also here that Mel Gibson's film "The Passion" is really good, but I won't decide until I see it this Easter).

Note: This is the 120 Minute Version. I own (and prefer) the 83 Minute Version of the film. Grade: B+

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Love it!
Review: I love it!! ...even the portrayal of Jesus who is fully human and fully God! I'm glad I bought it and I praise God for it!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Love it!
Review: I love it!! ...even the portrayal of Jesus who is fully human and fully God! I'm glad I bought it and I praise God for it!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A reverent portrayal.
Review: If you seek a Hollywood blockbuster, you must look elsewhere. If you seek a reasonable portrayal with some familiar faces, Jesus of Nazareth (the TV miniseries) is available on DVD. If you seek a truly reverent depiction, made without concern for its commercial viability, you have found it here. This movie presents "the message" in an understated dignified manner - it most closely represents His life as I imagine it.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The most widely viewed film of all time
Review: It is impossible to overestimate the important of this 1979 film, for it has made an impact in even the most primitive regions of the earth, places where men and women are only now hearing about Jesus for the first time. This definitive, rigorously scriptural movie version of the life of Jesus Christ has been seen by over five billion people around the globe, reaching 236 different nations in over 800 languages. It has helped win innumerable souls to Christ all over the world, and even now, under the aegis of Campus Crusade For Christ, local churches and individuals are coming together in an effort to send a free copy of the movie to every home in the United States. The movie was a dream over three decades in the making, with five years of pre-production work preceding the seven-month filming that took place in 1978 at a multitude of sites in Israel. Intense efforts, involving the collaboration of numerous scholars from the whole gamut of Christian churches, went into making Jesus as accurate as it could possibly be - from vintage pottery to historically accurate costuming to sufficient cinders residing behind burning torches, every effort was made to take the audience back to Jesus' time. It is a non-denominational Christian film; while some churches might quibble about an omission here or a suggestion there, this movie is the story of Jesus and not the story of any particular kind of Christian religion.

The movie is based solely on the Gospel of Luke, and the dialogue you hear is taken straight out of the Bible. Jesus says nothing in this film that He does not say in Luke's account of his life. Naturally, every facet of Jesus' life could not be covered here, but the movie does a superb job of showing us who Jesus was and how He lived, taught, suffered, and died for the sins of all humanity. Brian Deacon does a superb job playing Jesus, and Niko Nitai truly shines in his portrayal of Simon Peter. At times, the film does seem to jump from one scene to another rather quickly, but this goes back to the authenticity upon which the film was founded. In a sense, Jesus' ministry was spent walking toward Jerusalem and His death on the cross, so we see Jesus and his disciples walking almost continuously; furthermore, Jesus' teachings, as recorded in Luke's Gospel, are a collection of parables and religious instruction originating from many different events in the life of the Savior. Jesus took His message to the people instead of letting the people come to Him.

The suffering of Jesus is handled quite well here, clearly portraying the horrific nature of death by crucifixion without making it disturbing enough to scare young children. You do see the scourging of Jesus and the driving of the nails into his wrists and feet, but the director seemed to set just the right tone for the scenes. It all makes for a powerful film that has won innumerable souls across the world; to tell someone of Jesus is one thing, but to show that person in such a captivating format as film exactly who Jesus was and how He suffered and died for the sins of humanity makes for a powerful missionary tool. Even non-Christians will be impressed by the commitment, scrupulous attention to detail, and cinematic mastery that went into the making of this film.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A reverent portrayal.
Review: Slavishly faithful to the Gospel of Luke, this by-the-numbers retelling of Jesus's life never develops dramatic momentum. As cinema, it's just plain dull; the photography is washed-out (as it was even when the film was new), the zoom lens is overused, and the special effects, minimal as they are, get really cheesy. Everything is exposition, and it's not terribly competent exposition at that.

Some continuity gaffes create unintentional hilarity. For example, when Jesus dips his head in the water for a total-immersion baptism, his hair never seems to get wet. (This is a miracle we haven't read about, folks.)

Extras are fun, including a short documentary about the Jesus Film Project, which carts this particular film all around the world as an evangelical tool. Especially surreal is an hour-long compendium of pious testimonials from such luminaries as George Bush XLI and David Copperfield (huh?).

The soft but adequate full-frame transfer on this DVD doesn't leave out any significant information -- I suspect the film was shot open matte. But many of the compositions are so inept that you'll swear they were cropped at the sides anyway.

Catholics beware: This film presents a very Protestant-American Jesus, with its emphasis on a "personal relationship with God" and other faith concepts that Mother Church could find potentially heretical. That's no surprise, though, considering that the film was financed by the leader of Campus Crusade for Christ.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Paved with good intentions
Review: Slavishly faithful to the Gospel of Luke, this by-the-numbers retelling of Jesus's life never develops dramatic momentum. As cinema, it's just plain dull; the photography is washed-out (as it was even when the film was new), the zoom lens is overused, and the special effects, minimal as they are, get really cheesy. Everything is exposition, and it's not terribly competent exposition at that.

Some continuity gaffes create unintentional hilarity. For example, when Jesus dips his head in the water for a total-immersion baptism, his hair never seems to get wet. (This is a miracle we haven't read about, folks.)

Extras are fun, including a short documentary about the Jesus Film Project, which carts this particular film all around the world as an evangelical tool. Especially surreal is an hour-long compendium of pious testimonials from such luminaries as George Bush XLI and David Copperfield (huh?).

The soft but adequate full-frame transfer on this DVD doesn't leave out any significant information -- I suspect the film was shot open matte. But many of the compositions are so inept that you'll swear they were cropped at the sides anyway.

Catholics beware: This film presents a very Protestant-American Jesus, with its emphasis on a "personal relationship with God" and other faith concepts that Mother Church could find potentially heretical. That's no surprise, though, considering that the film was financed by the leader of Campus Crusade for Christ.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: The most accurate telling of Jesus' life on film!
Review: This film is taken right from the book of Luke which many believe to be the book of the Bible that gives the most complete and accurate picture of Jesus' life. If you watch the movie with a Bible open to Luke you'll be able to follow right along. Brian Deacon plays the most believable Jesus (other than Robert Powell in the 1977 mini-series "Jesus of Nazareth) in any film, especially those done recently. The only drawback to this film is that it is quite wordy and at times moves slowly. The crucifiction scenes, however, are very, very powerful. "Jesus" has been shown worldwide to over 1 billion people and it has been translated into over 400 different languages. Until recently, this film has not been widely available and I'm thrilled that Amazon.com has made it more readily available. I highly recommend "Jesus" to anyone who wants an accurate visual telling of the story of Jesus' life without the use of "dramatic license" as has been the trend recently.


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