“Jesus: His Life” explores the story of Jesus Christ through a unique lens: the people in his life who were closest to him. Each of the eight chapters is told from the perspective of different biblical figures, all of whom played a pivotal role in Jesus’ life including Joseph, John the Baptist, Mary Mother of Jesus, Caiaphas, Judas Iscariot, Pontius Pilate, Mary Magdalene, and Peter.
The story of Jesus has been told countless times so presenting his life through the eyes of those closest to him had me thinking that this could shed a unique light on those happenings over two thousand years ago.
1. The first story is about Joseph, we find him preparing a home for his beautiful betrothed, Mary. The angel Gabriel speaks to Mary and asks if she will become the Mother of Jesus. She accepts and from that point on, the story unfolds. The wise men, Herod, and the flight into Egypt are recounted with inserts from different religious minds and it is interesting to hear different perspectives. We also cover Jesus at 12-years-old, getting lost and winding up in the temple.
2. The second story is told through the eyes of John the Baptist and his ministry for preparing the way for Jesus and his background and the trouble he gets into for calling out the ruler Herod for marrying his brother’s wife. I should say at this particular juncture that the sets and locales are brilliant, the garden where John baptizes Jesus and the desert in the background were wonderfully utilized. Of course, we have Salome’s dance and the price was John’s head on a platter. On John’s death, Jesus sends out his followers and begins his mission in earnest.
3. The third story is from that of Mary, Jesus’ mother, and his first public miracle at the wedding of Cara. We are introduced to the idea that Jesus had many brothers and sisters, this is accepted by some and not by others, them saying they were the children of Joseph who married before he took Mary as his wife after becoming a widower. Jesus has a loving relationship with Mary and it’s very well presented to us. When Jesus returns home he preaches in the synagogue and tells those there that a prophecy is fulfilled and, of course, it is upsetting to his kinfolk and the people try to throw him off a cliff.
4. Story four is through the eyes of Caiaphas, the high priest. The background of this man as one of the most powerful men in Judea next to Pontius Pilate was very interesting. His job, as head of the Sanhedrin, was to keep the peace, the Romans were brutal tyrants and the Jewish people suffered much. The conflict between Pilate and Caiaphas is, of course, a pawn play between two ruthless men, with Jesus being the pawn. Caiaphas wants Jesus dead and Pilate doesn’t want to give him what he wants. The way it is played out excellent, with the sets and beautiful locales being taken full advantage of. The raising of Lazarus from the dead was the catalyst from which Jesus had to die.
5. Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus and no one back then, or now, knows why he did what he did. A few of the commentators offer some insights but at the end of the day, we will never know why he deceived Jesus.
6. Pontius Pilate and his so-called reluctance to put Jesus to death is discussed and the actor portraying him does an admirable job. Pilate’s reluctance to kill Jesus certainly wasn’t because he thought Jesus was the Son of God, it was because he did not want to give Caiaphas, the High priest, his way. The scenes between the two men were competently realized.
7. Mary Magdalene and her companions are portrayed as followers of Christ, the first in history. Jesus treated them as equals and that was different. She found the tomb empty after Jesus’ death and found him when the others couldn’t because she was looking for him. The scene on the road to the cross was very painful to watch and when Jesus is taken down from the cross, the women were there for him with just one man accompanying them, John.
8. Simon Peter has always been an enigma. History has him as a poor, ignorant fisherman while others say that he spoke many languages, mainly so that he could sell his fish, and that he catered to many different kinds of people. Here he is shown as a bumbling fool who lets Jesus down in the courtyard at his trial, not staying awake in the Garden of Gethsemane, and not going to the cross with Jesus but eventually, he is forgiven and that ends the story. While it is very difficult to add anything new to the story of Jesus, this production did a tremendous job in showing differing perspectives from those who were closest to him.
Available on DVD August 6th from Lionsgate
