The New Hampshire

Issue date: 2/15/08 Section: Arts & Living

Media Credit: Courtesy Photo

"The dual substance of Christ -- the yearning, so human, so superhuman, of man to attain God . . . has always been a deep inscrutable mystery to me." -- Nikos Kazantzakis, from his novel "The Last Temptation of Christ," and featured as a preface to the film.

Film Underground has never shown a movie explicitly about religion. Our next screening, however, is "The Last Temptation of Christ" -- perhaps one of the most controversial films about religion of all time. The film was in development off-and-on for over five years until it was finally released in 1988, inciting a storm of protests. What makes "Last Temptation" so controversial? Primarily, the film's portrayal of Jesus Christ angered the Christian community. The movie is based on a book by Niklos Kazantzakis, published in 1951. In the story, Jesus is portrayed as being more human, and certainly less divine, than he is in the Bible. The movie is about a Jesus who seems to be tormented by the voice of God, getting severe headaches whenever he hears Him, writhing on the floor in pain. Jesus is unsure of his role as a savior, and is confused as to how he should handle that responsibility. There are many other controversial aspects of the movie, but probably most inflammatory is his sexual desire for Mary Magdalene in the film, and a scene where he imagines himself and Magdalene having sexual intercourse.

The aforementioned scene occurs in the titular section of the film -- Jesus' "last temptation." While on the cross, Jesus is tempted by a vision of what his life would be like if he could just walk away and live the rest of his days as a regular person, with Mary Magdalene as his wife. In the end, Jesus has never really sinned, but had been subject to the same temptations that most any man would face. Of course, this interpretation of Jesus' life sharply diverges from the Bible's and serves to undercut the divine identity of Christ. It should be noted, however, that the film never announces itself as a definitive story of Jesus' life, and includes a disclaimer acknowledging the fact that the film does not follow the Gospels.

Willem Dafoe plays Jesus, and in the opening scenes of the movie he has not fully accepted his role as a savior and is actually collaborating with the Romans, making crosses that are being used to crucify Jews. Indirectly executing his people is Jesus' way of rebelling against God, since, initially, he does not want to be the messiah and rues the fact that it's he bears the title. On one occasion he laments, "God loves me, I know he loves me -- I want him to stop." Dafoe doesn't necessarily fit the conventional physical image of Jesus and brings to the role a certain desperation, intensity, and vulnerability that, though some may balk at these emotions being associated with Jesus, are tremendously effective in the film's context.

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