Too much of everything

Fantastic!

Best movie ever!

A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."

Denys Arcand "Jesus of Montreal-1989" is a movie from a director with intelligence & refined sensibilities. (His best-known work is "The Decline of American Civilization. He also made The Barbarian Invasions a film which I enjoyed very much It won best foreign film Oscar 2004) Plot: A group of actors putting on an interpretive Passion Play in Montreal begin to experience a meshing of their characters & their private lives as the production takes form against the growing opposition of the Catholic church. They begin to experience a meshing of their characters & their private lives as the production takes form against the growing opposition of the Catholic Church. (Lothaire Bluteau), the actor who plays Christ, discovers that his own life is taking on some of the aspects of Christ's. By the end of the film we have arrived at a crucifixion scene that actually plays as drama & not simply as something that has been forced into the script. It suggests that most establishments, & especially the church, would be rocked to their foundations by the practical application of the maxims of Christ. The film gives us simple, powerful messages of artistic freedom, personal redemption, perseverance during a personal quest...& how heartbreaking the world, & reality, can be. The film manages to make deft, original swipes at a plethora of modern 'evils': media hype, advertising, hospital bureaucracy, & of course the hypocrisy of the religious establishment. Cinematically the film is visually elegant & an uncluttered sort of movie. In a sense, "Jesus of Montreal" is a movie about the theater, not about religion. But in the end their challenging production becomes the toast of the city, the Roman Catholic Church strongly objects to its Biblical interpretation & forcefully stops the performances. At least this film does not become overly heavy-handed on screen. This film was nominated for the 1989 Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film but did not win. 4 Stars Recommended~!

Okay, at the outset I must point out that some who watch this film might be offended. The passion play that is portrayed in the film contains quite a bit of non-Biblical material that tends to humanize Jesus and de-emphasize his divinity. A literal interpretation of the life and death of Christ, this is not! Also, Catholic hierarchy are deliberately compared to the Pharisees who persecuted Jesus and some Catholics might feel very uncomfortable with this. In addition, in parts of the play, Jesus is played naked. At first, this shocked me, but this was much more accurate than the usual loincloth portrayal of him--shocking, but not sacrilegious to me. So parents might want to think twice about letting the kids see this, or at least the would want to discuss the film with them.The film started relatively slowly, so I recommend you suspend your judgment until you've seen it all. A relatively unknown actor is asked by a hypocritical priest to re-write and perform the passion play at a shrine in Montreal, Canada. The play is quite a departure from the norm, as some of the actors are clearly not the "nice" sort of folks you'd expect to be doing religious plays. For example, one does voice dubbing for pornographic films and another does crappy ads that rely on her body more than her acting skills (a 20th century variation on followers like Mary Magdalene and other sinners--this was clever). These choices actually made sense as did many of the occurrences in the film because they were meant to be symbolic of the life of Christ. The characters themselves didn't realize this, but throughout the film they mirror the story from the Gospels. After a while, the actor who plays Jesus begins to lose himself in the role--acting out scenes such as chasing the money-lenders out of the temple and the actual death and resurrection of Christ. All the parallels are too many to repeat here, but someone with a decent knowledge of the life of Jesus will often notice the parallels.In many ways, the final results can be both affirming to believers yet frustrating as well. Frustration at some of the offensive lines of dialog and the way they've made the life of Christ rather revisionistic (saying that salvation is an individual thing--de-emphasizing Christ's part in this and making it more "touchy-feely"). But the script is so very clever and manages to also make Jesus come alive, in a sense, as the central messages are proclaimed well. Plus, after the death of Jesus in the film, it does a good job of showing how the message and legacy continues. Overall, an excellent and compelling film that is sure to make an impact on the viewer.By the way, this film was released on DVD by Koch-Lorber. While this company has a great track record for bringing independent and foreign films to DVDs, they also usually lack any sort of meaningful bonus materials. For the feature film, I give it an A. For the extras, I give them a D-.PS--Like the great BARBARIAN INVASIONS (also by the same director and starring some of the same cast), this film was highly critical of the Canadian health care system--showing it was being uncaring and overwhelmed. These two films make an interesting counter-point to Michael Moore's SICKO, which tends to glorify this same system!

You do not need to be Catholic or, much less, Quebecois to understand and appreciate this work of art.Jesus of Montreal is an act of sublime spiritual discovery and should be required viewing of all who call themselves Christian. In this film, we see how the Spirit of Christ is born and grows in one man (Lothaire Bluteau), and how the evildoers around him react.We see the evil pharisees who judge and condemn Lothaire (Jesus). These are the people like the American President bush who proclaim loudly to one and all how "holy" and "Christian" they are, all the while killing babies with his bombs and bullets and sanctions.Go see this film with an open mind, and you will see and hear the real message of Jesus Christ!

Truly a great film. I initially saw this in Montreal while living there a few years ago and have have been hooked on it since. This film portrays a wonderful parallel in the lives and situations of the characters in the film with the lives of Jesus and his followers. Right down to the dramatic end. Clear Representions made are Jesus, Mary Magdalen, and of course the Pharisees. Its certainly a thought provoking film just as the story of the crucifixion is thought provoking on both a personal level and in looking at the world outside. And to tease my fried who commented previously on this film. It is truly Quebecois, not Canadian. :)