What did you think of The Last Temptation of Christ (1988)?
 

I just saw it and found it to be a really emotionally powerful experience, and I'm surprised it's not rated higher in Martin Scorsese's work. I might actually call it his personal best movie for me, but I need more time for it to settle in first.

But what do you think of it?

Re: What did you think of The Last Temptation of Christ (1988)?
 

Today, ironpony and I saw each other eye to eye.

Re: What did you think of The Last Temptation of Christ (1988)?
 

I like it.

Re: What did you think of The Last Temptation of Christ (1988)?
 

As far as my personal preference goes, I'd currently rank it #3 behind Taxi Driver and Goodfellas.

Re: What did you think of The Last Temptation of Christ (1988)?
 

I tried watching it within the last year, or so and had trouble accepting Willem Dafoe in the role. I couldn't get into it.

Re: What did you think of The Last Temptation of Christ (1988)?
 

It's a great film. It's an extrapolation or a speculation - a "what if?" story if you will - on the gospel (which is what got the hard core religious people upset).

But it's got a great message about grace and sacrifice - Jesus making his sacrifice out of a sense of duty or because he had to or because it was his job or because he was forced to was meaningless, he had to want it for it to be an act of grace.

An interesting bit of trivia - the movie Donnie Darko uses the same type of plot device as Last Temptation and the irony is that there is a scene in Donnie Darko where a movie marquee is visible and the movie on the marquee is The Last Temptation of Christ!

Re: What did you think of The Last Temptation of Christ (1988)?
 

Well I read that the movie had a lot of controversy during it's release, but from what I read, it seems that a lot of people wanted Jesus to be a perfect flawless protagonist, but doesn't that make for an uninteresting protagonist, if he has no struggles or obstacles, and treats being the son of God, who must die, like it's nothing? Where's the drama if there is no conflict?

I also read that the movie was considered to be anti-Semitic for it's time, but I don't see how. Cause Jewish people were being treated harshly by the Romans? Isn't that what happened according to the Biblical story though?

Re: What did you think of The Last Temptation of Christ (1988)?
 

I remember all the controversy when it came out as well. I saw it and thought this movie makes sense. Christ is going to the cross willingly to die for people who do not even understand what he has been saying. Would it not be a temptation to give up his mission and just have a life. (Wife, home, 1 1/2 children, a car in the garage, etc.)

lmao! Btw did you go to Harvard or Yale or something, Garage! How fancy! Its a carhole!!

Re: What did you think of The Last Temptation of Christ (1988)?
 

LOL

Yeah, let's just say that there are people are really invested in the idea of Jesus being a perfect saviour and deeming anything that contradicts their particular interpretation of Him as blasphemy.

As for the anti-Semitism, my guess is that it has to do with how the Pharisees (a.k.a. a particular group of high-ranking Jewish clerics) were the ones who actively opposed Jesus (one scene in the film shows that they murder Lazarus after his resurrection in order to destroy evidence of Jesus's miracle) and were ultimately the ones who convinced the Romans that Jesus should be executed (right down to getting the crowd to choose Barabbas, a known thief and murderer, over Jesus when Pilate offered amnesty to one prisoner). Meanwhile, the Romans may be brutal executioners but they are still granted some degree of sympathy by how the film frames the decision to execute Jesus as a peacekeeping measure - this is emphasised by having Pilate talk to Jesus less as a mustache-twirling villain than as a world-weary cynic who knows all too well that this kind of punishment is what it takes to maintain some semblance of order. At least, that's how I recall it - haven't watched it in a while so I could do with another viewing.

Re: What did you think of The Last Temptation of Christ (1988)?
 

Oh okay, those are good points, but I didn't think that Pilate was portrayed sympathetically at all, as he just came off too cynical for me to be that way, but that was just my interpretation.

Re: What did you think of The Last Temptation of Christ (1988)?
 

Yeah, "sympathetic" isn't quite what I was going for there. "Humanised" would be more appropriate.

https://www.movieforums.com/communit...90#post1091190

Here is a link to my review of it when I was a pretty new member to the site. I feel the message of the movie is all wrapped up in one of my favorite 20 minutes of cinema, that ending slays me. I think both believers and unbelievers alike miss the message and power in it. When I hear people talk about this film it is as if they didn't even watch the ending. It gives everything else context.

On a more Christiany note. Being married is not a sin and would not charge the point or message of the savior. Doubt, fear, and reservation are also in and of themselves not a sin. Being perfect does not mean an absence of humanity. How we deal with those things is what separates sin from purity.

Re: What did you think of The Last Temptation of Christ (1988)?
 

Well I never thought of Pontius Pilate being non-humanized, if that is what a lot of people were going in expecting. But I don't really have much of a take on him as I really don't know hardly much about him.

As for killing Lazarus to cover up the miracle, was there any witnessing of that happening historically, or was that made up for the movie?

Re: What did you think of The Last Temptation of Christ (1988)?
 

As far as I know, that was made up.

Re: What did you think of The Last Temptation of Christ (1988)?
 

Yeah, there's nothing in The Bible about Lazarus being killed but it does make sense. I think a lot of Christians were uncomfortable with Jesus being depicted as having lust or considering giving up his mission for a normal life but The Bible shows him being tempted by the Devil to abandon God in exchange for power. Of course he doesn't. But would God send a role model for us who was unable to sin or one who was able to sin but did not?

Re: What did you think of The Last Temptation of Christ (1988)?
 

Perhaps anyone created by God is capable of sin, rather it's God's own son or not maybe, cause he is still in human form?

Also I was wondering, when Jesus found out that Lazarus was killed, why didn't he just try to bring him back to life again after that?

Re: What did you think of The Last Temptation of Christ (1988)?
 

Well, it was only speculation that Lazarus was killed later by the political or religious leaders. It's not in The Bible. It does say they considered killing him. I think it makes sense because the leaders felt threatened by Jesus, who called them out for being hypocrites. Having Lazarus around as a walking, talking former dead man could draw many more followers for Jesus. Having said that, there was no television news in those days to film Lazarus' resurrection so not everyone may have heard about it or believed it when they did.
As for your last question, what if he did raise Lazarus again and the leaders killed him again? It would be cruel for Jesus to allow him to be killed again and again.

Re: What did you think of The Last Temptation of Christ (1988)?
 

i'm a practicing Catholic and thought it an excellent movie. Spot on Captain Steel:
"Jesus making his sacrifice out of a sense of duty or because he had to or because it was his job or because he was forced to was meaningless, he had to want it for it to be an act of grace"
Scorsese does a magnificent job on this. Minor moan is that Hershey is terrible.