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89% Spicy

The most comprehensive depiction of Christ’s life & resurrection, to date…

Synopsis: Director Franco Zeffirelli’s 1977 film about the life of Christ begins with the wedding of Mary and Joseph and continues through the Crucifixion and Resurrection.

Studio: NBC

Release Date: 1977

Format: TV Mini-series, Optical, Streaming on Amazon Prime Video & others…

Genre: Live Action – Historical, Biblical, Drama, Religious

Runtime: 382 minutes (unedited)

Review: From Wikipedia, “Jesus of Nazareth is a 1977 British-Italian television drama serial directed by Franco Zeffirelli and co-written by Zeffirelli, Anthony Burgess, and Suso Cecchi d’Amico which dramatises the birth, life, ministry, crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. It stars Robert Powell as Jesus, and features an all-star cast of European and North American actors, including eight who had won or would go on to win Academy Awards: Anne Bancroft, Ernest Borgnine, Laurence Olivier, Christopher Plummer, Anthony Quinn, Rod Steiger, James Earl Jones, and Peter Ustinov.” The amazing musical score was composed by Maurice Jarre.

I’m showing my age…I watched this epic televised mini-series on NBC when it first aired in 1977. It was on for several evenings (including Sunday nights), in prime-time, leading up to Easter Sunday. I recall the buzz, amongst everyone who attended my church, at that time, about how amazing this film adaptation, of the life of Jesus Christ, was.  The Pastor, declared, on Sunday morning, that he would be cancelling Sunday night service (this was a big deal) so that everyone who wanted, would not feel conflicted between watching the conclusion of the series vs. attending the service that same evening. He encouraged anyone who wanted, to view at the church and / or at fellow church member homes, etc…

The above, serves as the backdrop for my review of this tv mini-series.

In 1977, and the many years that followed, television mini-series such as V and IT were akin to limited run streaming series, today, similar to the return of The X-Files to Netflix or the upcoming Obi-Wan Kenobi on Disney+. They were designed to run at the start or end of “Sweeps” periods which would hopefully, attract an influx of new viewers to boost Nielesen ratings, to increase the amount Networks could charge for advertising. Much like major Sporting events, TV mini-series would often follow or lead into a new TV series, hoping the viewer wouldn’t change the channel and then get hooked on the Network’s other programming. Tentpole streaming properties or events such as The Mandalorian, The Clone Wars, WandaVision & Falcon And The Winter Solider have been used in the same way to attract and keep subscribers to Disney+ just as Amazon Prime has used Borat, Rambo: Last Blood, Jack Ryan & The Boys, Netflix uses Lost In Space, The Witcher, Extraction & The Old Guard, AppleTV+ has used Cherry, Greyhound, For All Mankind & The Morning Show and HBOmax attracted thousands of new subscribers, just to watch Zack Snyder’s Justice League…

Alright, let’s get to this TV event… To many, this mini-series is the best, overall adaptation / depiction of Jesus birth, life, death and resurrection, period, full stop! I would have to agree. Just mention the name, “Jesus” and first, I hear the haunting, yet warm theme from Jesus of Nazareth and then second, I see the face of actor Robert Powell, who portrayed the title character – Jesus. That’s the impact this series has had on my life, 43 years later. 

In total, I’ve likely only watched the series, end-to-end, perhaps 3x on broadcast TV and  I also owned the DVD.  It’s long but rewarding with many payoffs. It’s something that is watched now, while second screening after repeated viewings. The story’s pacing is well done, with stunning cinematography, visuals and performances from a diverse cast.  While some cameos (and there were many) could be distracting, that will not likely be the case for most of today’s viewers as those actors have since passed-on and regrettably, not well known, to younger audiences.

Regardless of your faith, watching for either religious, historical or curiosity, if you are even remotely interested in the narrative of Jesus from his virgin birth, brutal sacrifice to his spectacular resurrection, you’ll be impressed with the depth of story as well as entertainment value that Jesus of Nazareth provides the viewer.

Have you watched Jesus of Nazareth yet? What did you think about this mini-series, its cast, themes and how they handled this historical – religious material? Please offer you comments below. Consider becoming a member of the AppFlicks community as either an AppFlicker Critic, JoulePepper Contributor or AuteurX Creator via our Login page. Once you do, at the JoulePepper Contributor level, you can not only rate everything via our Icy OR Spicy JoulePeppers, you can also comment on anything, vote in JoulePoll Polls and author your very own JouleView Reviews & JouleStream Forums. Don’t forget to consume all the curated entertainment buzz: news, gossip, trailers and popular: play (gaming), watch (video tv series / films) & listen (music) feeds across AppFlicks.

I am looking forward to your JoulePepper rating of my review of Jesus of Nazareth and I’d love to read your comments in the JouleView section, below… Nostalgia certainly plays a part in my rating. While more contemporary films have been released since 1977, such as The Passion of The Christ (2004) and Son of God (2014), neither captured the full scope, covered in Jesus of Nazareth and thus, I rank high quality film, a heavily JoulePeppers rating of 4.5 – it’s Spicy!

ronvining

Welcome, from AppFlicks Chief AuteurX! I created AppFlicks out of my love for all-things entertainment, stints as a music manager, producer and as an advisor to film & game studios, telcos, lux brands, retail, hospitality & theme parks. Thank you for taking part in our streaming community! NOTE: Activity from my account, may also be initiated by AppFlicks Admin.