Jesus legends - Joseph of Nazareth

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Movie
German title Jesus legends - Joseph of Nazareth
Original title Gli Amici di Gesù - Giuseppe di Nazareth
Country of production Italy , Germany
original language English
Publishing year 2000
length 96 minutes
Age rating FSK 12
Rod
Director Raffaele Mertes
script Gareth Jones
production Luca Bernabei
music Marco Frisina
camera Giovanni Galasso
cut Elisabetta Marchetti
occupation

Joseph von Nazareth is the first of four films that were produced between 2000 and 2001 by producer Luca Bernabei and director Raffaele Mertes under the title Jesus-Legenden (Italian original title: Gli Amici di Gesu ).

action

The carpenter Joseph has lived in Jerusalem for years and has avoided Nazareth after his fiancée was murdered there by the Roman occupation forces. Together with his nephews, Simon, Joses and Judas, he works as a master builder in the temple, where he is responsible for making the wooden doors. In the temple Joseph also met Mary, the daughter of Anna and Joachim, friends from Nazareth. The young woman's parents persuade Joseph and his nephews to return to Nazareth.

On arrival in Nazareth, his nephews suddenly sympathize with the Zealots , a group of men who have set themselves the goal of driving the Romans out of Israel by force of arms. But the Zealots only provoke the hatred of the Romans, who one day invade Nazareth and abuse Martha, Judas' wife. Judas is killed during a night campaign of revenge on the Roman camp. Simon and Joses leave the village against Joseph's wishes and join the rebels.

To keep Mary safe, her parents arrange an engagement with Joseph. A short time later, Joseph is abducted from Nazareth by Herod's soldiers. He is supposed to work with other craftsmen in Jerusalem to make the regent's magnificent mortuary shrine.

In the meantime, Mary is visited by the angel Gabriel, who tells her that she should give life to the Son of God. Even Elisabeth, her relative, is expecting a child; Maria can see this for herself during a visit to the elderly woman. Months later, Joseph is dismissed from Herod's service and is confronted in Nazareth with the fact that Mary is pregnant. At first he plays with the idea of ​​breaking Mary as the law allows, but an angel encourages him in a dream and confirms the divinity of Mary's child.

Soon afterwards, Emperor Augustus ordered a census that ordered Joseph and Mary to go to Bethlehem. Here they find refuge in a stable where Jesus, Mary's child, is born. Both shepherds and three wise men from the East show the child respect. But Herod lets the Messiah promised by the prophets be persecuted with all his might and orders the murder of all innocent boys in Bethlehem.

Joseph and Mary manage to escape to Egypt, where Jesus is growing up. Years later, the three of them travel back to Nazareth, where at the age of 12 he accompanies his parents to Jerusalem for the Passover festival. Here his parents lose sight of him, so that they look for him in Jerusalem for three days; finally they find him in the temple among the priests.

Joseph, now an old man, dies a short time later in Nazareth. He can forgive his nephew Simon, who regrets his past as a zealot; precisely because he had his brother Joses murdered because of his cowardice.

Reviews

“The film is particularly long at the beginning and at the end - and it also embarks on inappropriately shallow waters by making the Holy Family the subject of adventure stories. The main part, however, lives from the refreshingly lively play of Ennio Fantastichini as King Herod, who always strikes a fine line between madness and method. Then there are the really beautiful pictures: The equipment brings the old Jerusalem back to life - and in this film is also very aesthetically illuminated and photographed. Two good reasons to watch the film. "

- Peplumania.com

Background information

Tobias Moretti, the human lead actor in the crime series Kommissar Rex between 1994 and 1998, took on a dignified leading role here for the first time since leaving the crime series. The shooting took place in Morocco .

error

  • The film " The Bible - Jesus " has to be recognized as an independent film project, but if you compare the two films - which were made by the production company itself - Joseph dies in Joseph of Nazareth when Jesus was still a child, while Joseph died in Jesus only dies when Jesus is already an adult. So these two films always remain a small contradiction in terms, even though both come from the same production company. Apart from that, the portrayal in both films is unlikely to be historically certain, as the date of Joseph's death is unknown.
  • Another mistake is the murder of Herod Antipas shown in the film . Herod is not murdered as early as he is mentioned in the Bible as having John the Baptist murdered; this event takes place almost 19 years later.

Voice actor

Role name Voice actor
Joseph Tobias Moretti
Herod the Great Roland Hemmo
Simon Dietmar miracle
Judas Alexander Doering
Herod Antipas Detlef Bierstedt
rabbi Gerhard Paul
Joachim Jan Spitzer
Anna Helga Sasse

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