Assignment #9

In this post, I will review Martin Scorsese’s The Last Temptation of the Christ from two perspectives. In the first review, I will critique the film in the context of Martin Scorsese’s filmography–an auteur approach–and in the second, I will examine the film in the context of the epic genre as a whole.

Auteur Approach

Although it was the subject of great religious controversy, there is little doubt about the cinematic quality of Martin Scorsese’s 1988 epic drama The Last Temptation of Christ. The film follows the life of Jesus Christ from carpentry to crucifixion, departing from the tradition Gospel narrative in several respects. It resembles much of the Scorsese canon in its focus on sin, redemption, and inner struggle. It is unique, however, in its deeply personal nature.

Raised in a devoutly Catholic household, Scorsese had been interested in creating a film about Jesus Christ since childhood. One can find references to Christianity scattered throughout his filmography, but this was his first full-blown exploration of faith. In the film, Scorsese creates a story–inspired by Nikos Kazantzakis’s 1953 novel of the same name–that shows Christ in an unorthodox light. Scorsese envisions Christ as a fallible and human figure who overcame temptation, including–most controversially–sexual temptation. In the final scene, Christ is attached to the cross, and he screams, “It is accomplished!” The words hold great weight because they represent a a success over inner demons as well as exterior obstacles.

In some ways, it seems that the film might be an expression of Scorsese’s own struggles with doubt and guilt. As a devout Catholic, he reportedly struggled with various sins including his divorce of three different wives and a serious cocaine addiction that almost prevented him from creating Raging Bull. Scorsese was also constantly doubtful about whether his films would have longstanding significance in cinema.

In The Last Temptation of Christ, Scorsese employs his characteristically gritty and realistic style. Although the film is classified as an epic, it dodges the noxious excess that plagues much of the genre. Instead, it provides a visceral  narrative that feels strangely personal and small in scope. In my humble opinion, religious institutions have done themselves a disservice by opposing this film so vehemently. Scorsese treats his subject matter with such solemnity and respect, and he succeeds in creating a serious investigation of Christian faith that was inspiring even to a non-religious person like myself.

9/10

Genre Approach

In his 1988 epic drama The Last Temptation of Christ, Martin Scorsese tells the story of the life of Jesus Christ from carpenter to crucified savior. The film, based on a controversial 1953 novel of the same name by Nikos Kazantzakis, strays from the original Gospel narrative. It envisions Christ as a fallible, human character who must overcome temptations–including, most contentiously, sexual temptations–in order to carry out the word of his Father. The film is interesting in its understated approach to the typically grandiose epic film genre. Although The Last Temptation of Christ falls squarely within the genre, it does so in a atypically minimal manner that is both surprising and refreshing.

The Last Temptation of Christ is an oddball in the canon of religious epics. Other major biblical films, including Quo Vadis, The Ten Commandments, and Ben Hur, are known for their blockbuster budgets and star-powered casts. Ben Hur, for example, had a budget of $15 million as compared to The Last Temptation’s budget of $7 million–and that doesn’t take into account inflation in the thirty year period between the two films. What more, its production included 200 camels, 2,500 horses, and 10,000 extras. With The Last Temptation of Christ, Scorsese manages to create an equivalently epic film within a smaller, more personal scope.

One might look at the Sermon on the Mount scene as evidence. Christ is not speaking to a massive crowd but a small group of villagers. The scene itself is not overly extravagant, either, consisting of a small mound of sand surrounded by open and arid terrain. The costumes are simple as well–Jesus wears a rough desert tunic, not the bright red robe seen in other depictions. Despite the extreme understatement, there is a tangible feeling of movement in the scene–like the larger gears have began to turn–driven largely by Peter Gabriel’s score. Although only a handful of people are listening, Christ’s words feel as if they have epic significance.

Ultimately, it is the simplicity of the film that give it such weight. Had Scorsese attempted to examine this variation on Christian lore within a more typical commercialized blockbuster, his message would have felt cheap and offensive. Instead, he provides a gritty and realistic take on Christ’s life, carried by the sparse yet powerful performance of Willem Dafoe. This is a film to be watched and thought about seriously. Unlike many epics, it provides more than spectacle.

9/10