La vie et la passion de Jésus Christ
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| Original title | La vie et la passion de Jésus Christ |
| Country of production | France |
| original language | French |
| Publishing year | 1903 |
| length | 44 minutes |
| Rod | |
| Director | Ferdinand Zecca and Lucien Nonguet |
| occupation | |
| |
La vie et la passion de Jésus Christ is a Bible adaptation by Ferdinand Zecca and Lucien Nonguet , which was produced for the film company Pathé Frères . The film took three years of production and was released in France in May 1903. In America it was published on March 26, 1904 under the title The Passion Play by the film company of S. Lubin .
action
The film is divided into 32 individual chapters. The film begins with an angel telling the Virgin Mary that a son will soon be born, whom she should name Jesus. Finally, in Bethlehem , Jesus is miraculously born and a star announces the birth of the shepherds and the three wise men from the east. Soon after, there is a massacre in which all small children in Bethlehem are killed except for Jesus because his family can flee to Egypt . Jesus learned the craft of a carpenter from his father at an early age and taught the scholars in the temple at the age of 12 .
At the age of a young man he was baptized by John the Baptist and God revealed himself in him. At the wedding in Cana , Jesus finally turns water into wine. A little later he meets Maria Magdalena , who washes his feet. During the course of the film, Jesus performs numerous miracles such as the resurrection of Lazarus .
On the Mount of Transfiguration , Moses and Elijah appear to him and the disciples during the prayer . In addition, the clothes of Jesus changed visibly. When he moves into the city of Jerusalem a little later , he is solemnly received. A little later he cleans the temple of the money changers and traders .
After Jesus held the Last Supper with his disciples , he spoke of the betrayal of him, and later events show the consequences. Judas Iscariot will betray him and expose him with a kiss, while Peter tries to save him by force, but drops the weapon at Jesus' command.
Jesus is condemned to death by the council and Peter slandered his following of Jesus in front of the people of the city. Pontius Pilate leaves the people free to decide whether Jesus or Barabbas should die. You choose for Jesus to die. He is beaten, mocked, and tormented before he dies.
On the way to his crucifixion , he collapses under the weight of the cross and receives help from a passerby named Simon of Cyrene . With this they go to the crucifixion mount Golgotha together . There Jesus is nailed to the cross and dies. Meanwhile, lightning flashes and a Roman soldier wakes up from his sleep and injures the body of Jesus.
Jesus is carried to his grave. The grave is closely guarded by soldiers, but they fall asleep when three angels appear and lift the heavy tombstone. Jesus is risen and hovers over the heads of the frightened soldiers who are all fleeing. Finally, he lives again with his disciples for some time and explains to them a few more details about the kingdom of God and their task as apostles .
Finally, the film ends with Jesus experiencing his ascension to heaven in front of the apostles' eyes and being allowed to sit by God's side.
technology
The film was no longer shot with a fixed camera like earlier ones, but already included camera pans.
Background information
The scenes remind the viewer extremely of the works of art in the story. The most famous example is the Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci , which was reproduced in this film. Overall, the film is divided into 27 chapters. Despite all the care taken in selecting the scenes, there are a few minor inconsistencies in this film, such as B. to find the closing of curtains or the miraculous birth of Jesus. In the biblical account, however, it can be read that Mary arrived in Bethlehem heavily pregnant and not with a thin belly like in this film. The three wise men from the Orient probably came to Jesus a few years later, so this part was taken from popular belief.
A title card with the current topic of the scene can be seen between each important and meaningful scene. In the English-language black title cards below, the logo with the rooster of the film company Pathé Frères can be found on the left and right . In the year of its release, the film was the longest feature film of its kind.
Some scenes of the film were colored by hand, in particular important symbols of the Christian faith such as the star of Bethlehem and the scene on the Mount of Transfiguration were worked out .
Awards
In 1995, La vie et la passion de Jésus Christ was included in the Vatican's list of films, which comprises a total of 45 films that the Holy See believes are particularly recommendable.
