LENTEN FILM SERIES

with ERIC DAVID
 

LENTEN FILM SERIES – Week III

MARCH 4, 2021
 
WATCH: STARTING  MARCH 4, 2021
 
ERIC DAVID WILL BE HOSTING DISCUSSION
SUNDAY, MARCH 7 @ 7:00PM
 
CHECK GOOGLE DOC LINK FOR DISCUSSION INFO:
 
 

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO

ST. MATTHEW (Italian: Il Vangelo Secondo Matteo) (1964)
 

The Gospel According to St. Matthew is a 1964 Italian biblical drama, written and directed by Pier Paolo Pasolini. It is a cinematic rendition of the story of Jesus (portrayed by non-professional actor Enrique Irazoqui) according to the Gospel of Matthew, from the Nativity through the Resurrection. The dialogue is taken directly from the Gospel of Matthew. The film is considered a classic of world cinema and the neorealist genre. After initial release, it won the Venice Film Festival Grand Jury Prize. It was also nominated for three Academy Awards. In 2015, the Vatican City newspaper L’Osservatore Romano called it the best film on Christ ever made.

Watch the trailer on YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xEs4g9A9HGc

Find the film on a streaming service via the aggregator JustWatch: 

https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/the-gospel-according-to-st-matthew

Learn more at the film’s wikipedia page (a link to the IMDb page is at the bottom of the wiki):

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Gospel_According_to_St._Matthew_(film)

Join Sunday at 7 pm PST for Eric’s livestream video commentary on YouTube, followed by a group discussion on Zoom (link provided during the livestream):

 

Bookmark the Google Doc hub page for all links and Eric’s written commentary; we’ll use it all through Lent:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1C8EBXpVJSkfkZ6p4BrX40ffbf8_RgeDmbR6ljTTo4E8/edit?usp=sharing

LENTEN FILM SERIES – Week II

FEBRUARY 25, 2021
 
WATCH: STARTING  FEBRUARY 25, 2021
 
ERIC DAVID WILL BE HOSTING DISCUSSION
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28 @ 7:00PM
 
CHECK GOOGLE DOC LINK FOR DISCUSSION INFO:
 
KING OF KINGS (1961)
We continue the Jesus Christ, Movie Star Lenten film series with another epic film that was made four years before last week’s, yet seems more modern in many ways: KING OF KINGS. Directed by Nicholas Ray, best known for REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE, this film stars the handsome Jeffrey Hunter (Star Trek fanatics know him as the original Captain Kirk from the pilot) as Jesus Christ. This film was far more successful than last week’s, while costing far less to make. And Jesus is far more human (and less European!) than last week’s. Pay special attention to the powerful score by Miklós Rózsa.
 
Watch the trailer on YouTube:
 

Find the film on a streaming service via the aggregator JustWatch:

https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/king-of-kings
 

Learn more at the film’s wikipedia page (a link to the IMDb page is at the bottom of the wiki):

 
Join Sunday at 7 pm PST for Eric’s commentary on YouTube, then a group discussion on Zoom:
 
 
 

LENTEN FILM SERIES – Week I

FEBRUARY 18, 2021
 
WATCH: STARTING  FEBRUARY 18, 2021
 
ERIC DAVID WILL BE HOSTING DISCUSSION
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 21 @ 7:00PM
 
CHECK GOOGLE DOC LINK FOR DISCUSSION INFO:
 
 
NOTES FROM ERIC DAVID:
It’s commonplace to give something up for Lent, but here’s an opportunity to add something to your journey this time: a film series on the life of Christ, the reason for the Lenten season. Eric David will be the host, looking at nine out of the dozens of treatments on film of the gospel story.
 
In this series, we’ll be looking at the social, political, cultural and religious milieu in which each Jesus film was made, from the silent era to the most recent versions, but choosing the most representative films for specific focus each week during Lent. We will also look at film technique, reviews from the times, and quote from a dozen scholarly books about Jesus in film. You can use the series as an educational, entertainment and/or devotional aid.
 
As before, some films are longer than will work in person on a weeknight, so are best watched at home when convenient; also, some films will feature more adult themes, so alternatives will be named for those who want to continue the journey, but need something less controversial to watch that week.
 
While you can watch at any time, we’ll announce the films on Thursdays, and Eric will livestream a commentary Sunday nights at 7 pm where you can share your own thoughts (link TBD). Bookmark the Google Doc link below as your hub for the series where all the commentary, resources and links will live. Join us!
 
THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD (1965)

We’ll be watching films slightly out of chronological order. This first week, we underscore the title of this series with the version of the life of Christ that has the most movie stars, from Charlton Heston to John Wayne, with the ethereal Max von Sydow playing Jesus. Directed by George Stevens, it received five Oscar nominations. This film is an adaptation of the novel of the same name by Fulton Oursler, which itself was an adaptation of a Peabody Award-winning radio series. It illustrates the “harmonization” approach: taking stories from all four gospels.
 
Watch the trailer on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=on3M7YWlewo
 
Find the film on a streaming service via the aggregator JustWatch: https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/the-greatest-story-ever-told
 
Learn more at the film’s wikipedia page (a link to the IMDb page is at the bottom of the wiki):
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
 
Bookmark the new series Google Doc hub page; we’ll use it all through Lent: