Film I Recommend (Biblical & Christian)

ABRAHAM (1994)
Writer: Robert McKee (Story: Substance, Structure, Style and the Principles of Screenwriting)
Director: Joseph Sargent (MacArthur)
Abraham: Sir Richard Harris (Camelot, Cromwell, Harry Potter); Sarah: Barbara Hershey (The Natural); Pharaoh: Maximilian Schell (Judgment at Nuremberg); Eliezer: Gottfried John (GoldenEye, Asterix and Obelix Take On Caesar-animated); Nahor: Kevin McNally (Pirates of the Caribbean)

Very faithful adaptation of the Old Testament account of the Judaeo-Christian patriarch. Starts slow but picks up once Abram leaves Ur. There is some basic war-action, but the real highlights are the interactions of Abraham with God (both via voice and in the "flesh"). Great film for those times when you need an inspiration of faith.

JOSEPH (1995)
Writer: Lionel Chetwynd (Ike: Countdown to D-Day, DC 9/11: Time of Crisis)
Joseph: Paul Mercurio (Dancing With the Stars-AU TV); Jacob: Martin Landau (Cleopatra-1963, Mission Impossible-1966 TV, The Greatest Story Ever Told); Potiphar: Sir Ben Kingsley (Gandhi, Schindler's List, Moses); Potiphar's Wife: Lesley Ann Warren (Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, Mission Impossible-1966 TV); Rachel: Alice Krige (King David, Star Trek VIII); Leah: Dominique Sanda; Ednan: Warren Clarke (Firefox); Pharaoh's Wife: Monica Bellucci (The Matrix II & III, The Passion of the Christ); Reuben: Mike Attwell (Midsomer Murders-UK TV); Judah: Michael Attwell (EastEnders-UK TV)

Another very faithful adaptation of a Biblical figure in "The Bible Collection" series. The drama is top-notch and rightfully earned its Emmy Award for "Best Miniseries". The story works a bit better than some other Biblical dramas because of the timelessness of its message about honour and the power of forgiveness. I also like the story of Joseph because it shows the role God often plays in our lives, whether we call upon Him or not. (Two cool cameos for classic Star Wars and "Moore-era" James Bond fans in the guise of Milton Johns and Nadim Sawalha respectively.)

SAMSON & DELILAH (1949)
Writer: Fredric M Frank (El Cid)
Director: Cecil B Demille (The King of Kings-1927, The Sign of the Cross, The Ten Commandments-1956)
Composer: Victor Young (Flying Tigers, For Whom the Bell Tolls, Scaramouche, Shane)
Samson: Victor Mature (The Robe, Demetrius and the Gladiators, The Egyptian); Delilah: Hedy Lamarr (Algiers, Tortilla Flat, Ziegfeld Girl); The Saran of Gaza: George Sanders (The Picture of Dorian Gray-1945, Solomon and Sheba, The Jungle Book-Disney); Semadar: Angela Lansbury (The Picture of Dorian Gray-1945, The Greatest Story Ever Told, Murder She Wrote-TV, Beauty and the Beast-Disney); Ahtur: Henry Wilcoxon (Cleopatra-1934, The Ten Commandments-1956); Leader of the Philistine Soldiers: Mike Mazurki (Blood Alley, Davy Crockett King of the Wild Frontier)

This dramatic, epic adaptation of the Bible hero from the OT Book of Judges holds true to plenty of the Biblical account while fleshing out a solid romantic triangle and a plot of political intrigue in acient Mesopotamia. Victor Mature is excellently cast, and the performance by Lamarr as Delilah is one of the best by an actress that you will see in any era. This film is classic Demille. (Watch for small cameo by George Reeves, who two years later would go on to star as "Superman" in the popular 1950s TV action-drama, The Adventures of Superman.)

KING OF KINGS (1961)
Writer: Philip Yordan (Detective Story, El Cid, 55 Days at Peking)
Director: Nicholas Ray (Rebel Without a Cause)
Composer: Miklós Rózsa (Quo Vadis?-1951, Ivanhoe, Ben-Hur, El Cid)
Jesus: Jeffrey Hunter (The Searchers, Sergeant Rutledge); Mary: Siobhán McKenna (Doctor Zhivago-1965); John the Baptist: Robert Ryan (On Dangerous Ground, Battle of the Bulge, The Dirty Dozen); Peter: Royal Dano (Moby Dick-1956); Mary Magdalene: Carmen Sevilla (Antony and Cleopatra); Judas Iscariot: Rip Torn (The Cincinnati Kid, Men in Black, Hercules-Disney); Barabbas: Harry Guardino (Pork Chop Hill, Dirty Harry); Caiphas: Guy Rolfe (Ivanhoe-1952, The Fall of the Roman Empire); Herod Antipas: Frank Thring (Ben-Hur); Salomé: Brigid Bazlen (How the West Was Won); Pontius Pilate: Hurd Hatfield (The Picture of Dorian Gray-1945); Lucius: Ron Randell (The Longest Day)

The first Hollywood feature to (literally) show the face of Christ, and the first to chronicle His life since Cecil B Demille's The King of Kings in 1927. This film beautifully weaves history and faith together with action, drama, and a brilliant canvas of Spanish landscape and classic "Golden Age" costumes. The Sermon on the Mount and the Passover rebellion in Jerusalem are particularly memorable. Listen for the distinctive voice of Orsen Welles, who acts as narrator of the film (the narration was written by sci-fi authour Ray Bradbury).

JESUS OF NAZARETH (1977)
Writers: Franco Zeffirelli, (Romeo and Juliet-1968); Anthony Burgess (A Clockwork Orange-novel, Moses the Lawgiver)
Director: Franco Zeffirelli, (Romeo and Juliet-1968)
Composer: Maurice Jarre (Lawrence of Arabia, Doctor Zhivago-1965, Shogun)
Jesus: Robert Powell (The Italian Job-1969, The Hunchback of Notre Dame-1982, Holby City-UK TV); Mary: Olivia Hussey (Romeo and Juliet-1968, Ivanhoe-1982, Madre Teresa); Joseph: Yorgo Voyagis; John the Baptist: Michael York (Romeo and Juliet-1968, The Three Musketeers-1973, The Omega Code); Peter: James Farentino (Death of a Salesman-1966, The Final Countdown, Dynasty-TV); John the Apostle: John Duttine (Midsomer Murders-UK TV); Mary Magdalene: Anne Bancroft (The Miracle Worker-1962, The Graduate, Home for the Holidays); Judas Iscariot: Ian McShane (Battle of Britain, Lovejoy-UK TV, Deadwood-TV); Caiphas: Anthony Quinn (Barabbas, Lawrence of Arabia, Hercules: The Legendary Journies-TV); Nicodemus: Sir Laurence Olivier (Hamlet-1948, Spartacus-1960, Battle of Britain); Joseph of Arimathea: James Mason (Julius Caesar-1953, The Fall of the Roman Empire, The Blue Max); Herod Antipas: Christopher Plummer (The Sound of Music, Battle of Britain, Scrooge-1970); Herodia: Valentina Cortese; Herod the Great: Peter Ustinov (Quo Vadis-1951, Spartacus-1960, Luther); Pontius Pilate: Rod Steiger (Doctor Zhivago-1965, In the Heat of the Night, Mars Attacks!)

If you are looking for a serious study of Christ, then this 6+ hour, Emmy-nominated TV miniseries is the one that you want. This outstanding film covers every part of Jesus's childhood and ministry as depicted in all four Gospels. Powell's "Jesus" is arguably the best looking and sounding portrayal of the Saviour considering all the filmed versions out there; James Farentino's performance as "Peter" got him an Emmy and to say it was well-deserved would be an understatement. The film beautifully recreates Judea of the Gospels in its cinematography, sets, and costumes so that you are convinced you are in that time and place. The camera gets up close to the actors so that when Powell looks at you or is speakin with one of the other players you feel as though Jesus is speaking to you personally; you feel the emotion of this film. Finally, this miniseries features numerous cameos by actors and actresses such as James Earl Jones, Donald Pleasance, Fernando Rey, Stacy Keach, Claudia Cardinale, Ian Holm, Cyril Cusack, Robert Beatty, Ian Bannen, Marina Berti, Cyril Shaps, Francis De Wolff, Donald Sumpter, and Ralph Richardson.

BEN-HUR - A TALE OF THE CHRIST (1959)
Director: William Wyler (The Best Years of Our Lives, Roman Holiday)
Composer: Miklós Rózsa (Quo Vadis-1951, King of Kings, El Cid)
Judah Ben-Hur: Charlton Heston (The Naked Jungle, The Ten Commandments-1956, Planet of the Apes-1968); Esther: Haya Harareet; Mesalla: Stephen Boyd (The Fall of the Roman Empire, Fantastic Voyage); Quintus Arrius: Jack Hawkins (Land of the Pharaohs, The Bridge on the River Kwai); Sheik Ilderim: Hugh Griffith (Tom Jones); Miriam: Martha Scott (Our Town, The Ten Commandments); Simonides: Sam Jaffe (Gunga Din, The Asphalt Jungle); Balthasar: Finlay Currie (Quo Vadis-1951, Ivanhoe-1952); Frank Thring (King of Kings)

Epic adaptation of the Lew Wallace novel that delivers on first-century spectacle, drama, action, morals, and faith. Won a record-setting eleven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Director, and Best Musical Score. The story follows Jewish nobleman, Judah Ben-Hur, who is caught between loyalty to his country and his boyhood best friend, Mesalla, who has returned to Judea as the new Roman tribune. Judah vows vengeance when he and his family lose everything in Messala's attempt to flex Rome's iron fist.

THE ROBE (1953)
Writer: Philip Dunne (The Ghost and Mrs Muir, David and Bathsheba, The Agony and the Ecstasy)
Director: Henry Koster (One Night in the Tropics, The Bishop's Wife, Harvey)
Composer: Alfred Newman (The Mark of Zorro, The Song of Bernadette, Twelve O'Clock High, The Greatest Story Ever Told, Camelot)
Marcellus Gallio: Richard Burton (Cleopatra-1963, Becket, 1984); Diana: Jean Simmons (The Egyptian, Spartacus-1960, Howl's Moving Castle-Disney/anime); Demetrius: Victor Mature (Samson & Delilah, Demetrius and the Gladiators, The Egyptian); Caligula: Jay Robinson (Demetrius and the Gladiators, The Virgin Queen, Beyond Bizarre-TV); Peter: Michael Rennie (The Day the Earth Stood Still-1951, Les Misérables-1952, Demetrius and the Gladiators); Justus: Dean Jagger (Twelve O'Clock High, White Christmas); Senator Gallio: Torin Thatcher (The Snows of Kilimanjaro, The Black Shield of Falworth, The 7th Voyage of Sinbad)

This film adaptation of the book by Lloyd C Douglas (which was #1 on the NY Times best-sellers list for nearly a full year 1942-43) tells the story of the Roman tribune charged with carrying out the crucifixion of Jesus. It is a deep and dramatic tale of guilt and forgiveness with the backdrop of anti-Christian politics in first-century Rome. The performances by all the principle players is top-notch and made the film one of 20th Century Fox's top-grossing films in its history. Watch for several small cameos including Richard Boone (the star of Have Gun...Will Travel western TV series) as Pontius Pilate, Michael Ansara ("Kang" in several of the Star Trek TV series) as Judas, John Doucette (who's Major General Lucian Truscott has a serious row with Scott's General Patton in Patton) as a "ship's mate", Cameron Mitchell ("Uncle Buck" on The High Chaparral western TV series) as the voice of Christ, and Harry Shearer (who lends his voice to several major characters on The Simpsons) as the little boy, David.

DEMETRIUS AND THE GLADIATORS (1954)
Writer: Philip Dunne (The Robe, David and Bathsheba, The Agony and the Ecstasy)
Director: Delmer Daves (Destination Tokyo, Broken Arrow, 3:10 to Yuma-1957)
Composer: Franz Waxman (A Christmas Carol-1938, Objective Burma!, Sunset Boulevard, The Silver Chalice)
Demetrius: Victor Mature (Samson & Delilah, The Robe, The Egyptian); Messalina: Susan Hayward (Beau Geste-1939, The Snows of Kilimanjaro, David and Bathsheba); Caligula: Jay Robinson (The Robe, Othello-1981, Beyond Bizarre-TV); Claudius: Barry Jones (Prince Valiant, Saint Joan); Strabo: Ernest Borgnine (Marty, Barabbas, McHales Navy-Film and TV); Dardanius: Richard Egan (Pollyanna, The 300 Spartans); Lucia: Debra Paget (Les Misérables-1952, The Ten Commandments-1956); Glycon: William Marshall (Othello-1981), Peter: Michael Rennie (The Day the Earth Stood Still-1951, Les Misérables-1952, The Robe)

This sequel is based on Douglas's character, Demetrius, from his novel, THE ROBE, is a very nice character-driven piece and takes place immediately following the events of The Robe. What I like about the film especially is the way the story exploits the vulnerability of Demetrius's newfound Christian faith. The life of a Christian is far from easy and often God allows our faith to be tested. But even more often, as Demetrius shows, we fail...miserably. Then Demetrius runs into a familiar stumbling block to reclaiming our faith: pride.

QUO VADIS (1951)
Writers: S.N. Behrman (Liliom, Queen Christina); John Lee Mahin (Scarface-1932, Heaven Knows Mr Allison)
Director: Mervyn LeRoy (Little Caesar, Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo)
Composer: Miklós Rózsa (Ivanhoe-1952, Ben-Hur, King of Kings)
Marcus Vinicus: Robert Taylor (Ivanhoe-1952, Knights of the Round Table); Lygia: Deborah Kerr (Julius Caesar-1953, The King and I-1956, Heaven Knows Mr Allison); Nero: Peter Ustinov (The Egyptian, Spartacus-1960, Robin Hood-Disney); Petronius: Leo Genn (Henry V-1944); Peter the Apostle: Finlay Currie (Great Expectations-1946, Ben-Hur); Ursus: Buddy Baer (boxer); Acte: Rosalie Crutchley (A Tale of Two Cities-1958); Poppaea: Patricia Laffan; Paul the Missionary: Abraham Sofaer; Eunice: Marina Berti (Ben-Hur)

This film version of Henryk Sienkiewicz's classic 1895 historical novel is what paved the way for Biblical epic "Golden Age" films as The Robe, Ben-Hur, and The Ten Commandments. It is believed that if Quo Vadis would have failed at the box office, that none of the prior-mentioned films would have been done on the scale that they were. The dramatic story of Nero's tyrannical reign (which included the burning of Rome the martyrdom of Saint Peter, and the massacre of thousands of Christians in the arena) and the conversion of a hardened Roman commander was a smash hit. Peter Ustinov is especially good in his role as Nero; also look for future stars, Elizabeth Taylor (as an extra) and Sophia Loren (as a slave) in small bit parts.

THE LAST SIN EATER (2007)
Writer: Michael Landon, Jr (Love Comes Softly series)
Director: Michael Landon, Jr (Love Comes Softly series)
Cadi Forbes: Liana Liberato; The Sin Eater: Peter Wingfield (Highlander-film and TV); Miz Elda: Louise Fletcher (One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Picket Fences-TV, Star Trek: DS9-TV); Fia Forbes: Elizabeth Lackey (Just Cause-TV, Heroes-TV); Angor Forbes: A.J. Buckley (C.S.I.: NY-TV); Fagan Kai: Soren Fulton; Man of God: Henry Thomas (E.T. the Extraterrestrial, Legends of the Fall); Brogan Kai: Stewart Finlay-McLennan (Christy-TV, National Treasure I)

This is an adaptation of the award-winning book by best-selling authour, Francine Rivers. The story takes place in early 19th-century Appalachia and focuses on the guilt of young Cadi Forbes and how she turns to a pagan-rite of her Welsh heritage to rid herself of the guilt she feels for the death of her little sister. It's a touching tale of a wounded family, the unfortunate death and destruction that greed and guilt can cause, and how the Good News of Jesus can heal broken hearts and change a community.