Do Not Resist the Temptation!

Ah...It's good to be back on good ol' Epinions.com. Oh, how I've missed you!

With all the hype and hoopla surrounding Mel Gibson's recent adaptation on the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, I thought I would take a step back and review one of my all-time favorite "controversial" movies: Martin Scorcese's "The Last Temptation of Christ," which, like Gibson's "Passion of the Christ," focuses on the crucifixion, but, more specifically, provides a character sketch of Jesus and examines the hardships and psychological anguish he may have carried as the son of God.

In all honesty, I find it hard to believe that a lot of people find Gibson's film to be so inappropriate and disturbing. Sure, it is gruesome and painfully graphic, but I find it to be very true to the biblical stories I grew up with as the product of a Catholic school education. Scorcese's film, on the other hand, does not rely entirely on the bible for its depiction of Jesus. It appears that Scorcese attempted to paint Christ as both a human being and a divine savior. In my opinion, he does this successfully, hence all the controversy surrounding the film when it was released, a controversy that still exists to this day.

"The Last Temptation of Christ" is based on a novel by Nikos Kazantakis. I have not yet read the novel, but from what I gather, Scorcese stayed very true to the text throughout the making of the film. In 1988, prior to its release, people familiar with the novel began buzzing about the upcoming film, spewing out comments ranging from courageous and intriguing to blasphemous and immoral. The constant controversy surrounding the film was unrelentless and continued right into the theatrical release of Scorcese's motion picture. The film caused a stir in the Catholic Church, forcing the clergy to address the many questions the movie left unanswered. People were shocked that Jesus was portrayed with such "human" qualities. How could Jesus not be in control of his own emotions? How could Jesus have gone to bed with a prostitute? These nagging questions only begin to scratch the surface.

Truth be told, the movie does an excellent job introducing, and, to some extent, answering this "what if?" question: What if Jesus had basically said "screw it" and decided not to die for all man's sins? What if he wanted to just be an everyday Joe Schmo and not the Second Coming? It seems unheard of to even contemplate such ideas, but that's what "Last Temptation of Christ" is all about. Can't it be conceiveable that Jesus was as much "man" as he was "deity?" That he felt anger and lust like other human beings do? To many devout Catholics, it is a very slippery slope to climb and always will be.

Scorcese's film is very intriguing, even inspiring in its journey into the human condition. From beginning to end, "The Last Temptation of Christ" explores and analyzes the person that was Jesus Christ. Scorcese does not intend to present audience with the "real" Jesus, but simply one's own interpretation of Christ, one who did not have the choice of being the son of God and wrestles with his own emotions about living a life that was already laid out for him.

Willem Dafoe was chosen to play Jesus Christ, and he pulls the part off admirably. He had a tough task to do, no doubt. Breaking from the traditional portrayals of Christ, Dafoe creates a character that is in constant turmoil with himself, having a hard time understanding why he is the "chosen one," and accepting the fact that his life will be cut short in order to sacrifice himself for the rest of the world.

Barbara Hershey is equally impressive as the seductive Mary Magdalene, who is the subject of Jesus's deepest desires. She abhors him at first for rejecting her sexual advances, but eventually she is in complete awe of him and becomes one of his disciples. Jesus doesn't just see her as a prostitute like all the others, but instead as a human being with boundless potential to do good in the world.

Interestingly, Harvey Keitel was cast as Judas, the disciple who betrayed Jesus. Normally known for tough guy roles, Keitel seemed to be a somewhat unusual fit for this character, yet he actually does a respectable job. Keitel is a good character actor, and he develops a strong chemistry with Dafoe throughout the entire movie, which makes the betrayal seem all the more powerful. I can't say that I thought very highly of his New York accent, but I guess nobody's perfect. Maybe Scorcese turned the other cheek when Keitel was reciting his lines during the production of the film as a way of bringing a contemporary feel to the movie as a whole? Who knows.

Other strong performances came from Harry Dean Stanton as Saul, a heartless Roman soldier, who eventually converts into Paul, a reformed Christian who continued to preach the words of Jesus Christ, even after his death. Musician David Bowie makes a guest appearance as Pontius Pilate, the infamous Roman judge who condemns Jesus to die for claiming to be the Messiah.

The movie plays heavily on the various biblical stories found in the New Testament. Everything from Jesus's baptism ritual to the awe-inspiring Sermon of the Mount, Scorcese covers the latter life of Christ with considerable ease. Sometimes it feels a little cluttered, having one part of Jesus's famed life segue right into the next, but it does cover a lot of ground in its 163 minutes. Undoubtedly, the crucifixion is the most pivotal scene of the entire film, as this is where Jesus is tempted by Satan to release himself from God's plan and not die for all man's sins after all, but instead live out a life where he can have a family and grow old. This is where the human elements of Jesus really kick in, and he is plagued with a decision that is tough for any human being to make. Are you willing to die in an effort to save others, or are you willing to let others die in order to save yourself? It seems like we always want to do the right thing, but sometimes there are certain things at play that prevent us from doing that. This final temptation is what really makes Jesus stand out as a truly heroic character in the film.

Martin Scorcese's direction is top-notch, which is pretty consistent with his other films. People either love him or hate him. I love him. I absolutely think he was the right director for this film. Having a very religious storyline, it could have come off "preachy," which it does not. He allows Jesus to become the protagonist of the film, while still allowing the character to have certain flaws. The fact that he is presented as more of a human being than an infallible, larger-than-life superhero makes his sacrifice on the cross seem all the more meaningful. Had he been portrayed as a demi-god, his hardships, and, ultimately, his death would not seem as significant. I was raised a Catholic, and even though I don't consider myself to be overly religious, I found this movie to be incredibly inspiring, simply in the fact that I don't know if I could have done what Jesus had done. In fact, I know I couldn't have, and I have a great deal of respect for anyone that could. As humans we fear ridicule, we fear pain. We fear death. Martin Scorcese and Nikos Kazantakis give us a human being who sacrificed all for the good of man. If that's not inspiring, I don't know what is.

On a final note, Peter Gabriel's New Age musical score fit the film perfectly. It was the perfect blend of classic and contemporary. Against a backdrop of breathtaking shots of Moroccan desert and mountains, the score and the scenery went hand-in-hand.

I encourage you to view "The Last Temptation of Christ" at least once before passing judgement. If you found Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ" to be a truly emotional, inspiring film, I think you will find Scorcese's take on a similar concept to be equally inspiring. Though controversial and not your everyday portrayal of the life and times of Jesus Christ, I think the in-depth character analysis of Christ was necessary for this film to have any substance. While Jesus was by no means perfect, and even hard to believe as the son of God at times during the viewing of this film due to his erratic, uncharacteristic behavior, his final sacrifice seems to have more purpose, because, we, as humans, begin to realize how important this sacrifice was to the betterment of our lives, regardless of our religious beliefs.