Truly Dreadful Film

the audience applauded

Don't listen to the negative reviews

Don't listen to the Hype. It's awful

My absolute favorite movie. I have watched it several times each since 1973. Not a single part of it ever gets old. I love the music. If you watch because your a Christian, or want to learn about Jesus as our Savior, or as a prophet or just as a man this is an easy entertaining way to do it.All of the actors, dancers and singers are great but Ted Neeley as Jesus is magnificent.

Jesus Christ Superstar is one of my favorite stage productions, it's a great musical take on the story of Jesus, but it's first and foremost a rock/opera and because of that takes its own liberties with the story.The story is about Jesus' last few weeks before his crucifixion. However, instead of being told from Jesus' point-of-view, it's told from Judas' point-of-view. Because of this, instead of Jesus being seen as an all-powerful figure, we see Jesus as just a normal man; a man that is losing control of the thing he started. From there we see Judas' betrayal and Jesus trial with Pilate and his crucifixion. There is no spoken dialogue in the film. Like the stage show, every part of the story is told in song.The film is very much what the stage show was, with a few minor changes to help turn it into a movie. Some lyrics are changed and a couple songs were added in to make for a more detailed story than the one that was in the original Broadway show (Then We Are Decided and Could We Start Again? The latter being featured in many later productions). The film is shot entirely on location in Israel, which makes for a beautiful looking movie and all of the performance are wonderful, with Ted Neeley and Carl Anderson being the two that really steal the show.One of the things that I really like about this movie is an element that some people criticize and that's the vocal recordings. Norman Jewison goes for a more live and real rendition of the songs, instead of a professional, operatic sound that most musicals go for. Because of this, there are certain notes that are sung a bit off and some notes are changed completely to accommodate the performances of the actors and the attitudes they are trying to convey. I personally like the vocals being this way because it makes for a more realistic musical from a vocal standpoint.If I had to nitpick towards anything with this production, it would be some of its filming style and some of the extras in the film. The film obviously was restricted by time and being in another country obviously meant re-shoots would be, from a budget standpoint, impossible. There are shots in the movie where extras are clearly laughing or chatting during shots and some of the camera shots and angles are shaky due to the shaky weather of the environment.So overall, the 1973 version of Jesus Christ Superstar is a near perfect musical. If you've never had the honor of seeing the stage show, you should definitely check this movie out.

It was at the time of its release in the early 70s that I walked out of this movie. Striding down the aisle to the exit I passed an usher and said to her my simple reason for leaving: "Beach Blanket Bible." Totally cringe worthy. Banal, superficial, terrible schmaltzy music. Could there be anything worse than this movie for trying to depict some kind of spiritual truth? But perhaps I am wrong. Had I stayed surely I would have been thrilled by a spectacle such as the likes of Harvey Lembeck, riding his vicious camel, as the leader of a gang of used-camel salesmen in a scene of their camels tap dancing in sync with cleverly inter-maneuvering Israeli tanks. This while all are getting drunk on their butts from the water Ted Neeley turned to wine with his magic shepherd's crook, singing: "Hey babe, ya wanna boogie? Boogie woogie woogie with God!" Except maybe that really would have been worth staying for unlike the brain slap we were getting.

Every part of this movie is fabulous but I'll go though my favourite points.Songs: I am a superfan of Andrew Llyod Webber and Tim Rice and I especially love Jesus Christ Superstar for it's originality. Direction: Norman Jewison did a fabulous job with direction. It is filmed on location with a stunning backdrop and the style of filming is very artistic for 1973. Even though it's an old movie it feels timeless to me.Cast: Ted Neely gives a fantastic performance as Jesus but it is Carl Anderson as Judas who will leave you in an emotional state. Carl brings depth and emotion to the character. Both him and Ted have stunning voices. I also love Barry Dennon as Pilot who gives a great performance. However I especially love the voices of the high priests especially Ciaphas, his low voice gives me chills every time he sings.Overall: This is one of my favourite movie musicals and I would recommend to everyone. It has a wide array of characters that keep you entertained throughout.