Appendix 1: The Major Jesus Films
The Silent Era
|
1898 |
La Vie et la Passion de Jesus-Christ (France, d. Georges Hatot, Louis Lumiere) |
|
1905 |
La Vie et la Passion de Jesus-Christ (France, d. Lucien Nonguet, Ferdinand Zecca) |
|
1913 |
From the Manger to the Cross (United Kingdom, d. Sidney Olcott) |
|
1916 |
Christus (Italy, d. Giulio Antamoro) |
|
1916 |
Intolerance (United States, d. D. W. Griffith) |
|
1923 |
The Wandering Jew (United Kingdom, d. Maurice Elvey) |
|
1923 |
I.N.R.I. (Germany, d. Robert Wiene) |
|
1925 |
Ben-Hur (United States, d. Fred Niblo) |
|
1927 |
The King of Kings (United States, d. Cecil B. DeMille) |
The Sound Era
|
1933 |
The Wandering Jew (United Kingdom, d. Maurice Elvey) |
|
1935 |
The Last Days of Pompeii (United States, d. Ernest Schoedsack) |
|
1935 |
Golgotha (France, d. Julien Duvivier) |
|
1939 |
The Great Commandment (United States, d. Irving Pichel) |
|
1946 |
Maria Magdalena, pecadora de Magdala (Mexico, d. Miguel Contreras Torres) |
|
1948 |
Reina de reinas (Mexico, d. Miguel Contreras Torres) |
|
1949 |
The Lawton Story (United States, d. William Beaudine, Harold Daniels), re-issued as The Prince of Peace, 1951 |
|
1949 |
The Pilgrimage Play (United States, d. Frank R. Strayer) |
|
1951 |
Quo Vadis (United States, d. Mervyn LeRoy) |
|
1952 |
El martir del Calvario (Mexico, d. Miguel Morayta) |
|
1952 |
I Beheld His Glory (United States, d. John T. Coyle) |
|
1953 |
The Robe (United States, d. Henry Koster) |
|
1954 |
Day of Triumph (United States, d. Irving Pichel, John T. Coyle) |
|
1959 |
The Big Fisherman (United States, d. Frank Borzage) |
|
1959 |
Ben-Hur (United States, d. William Wyler) |
|
1961 |
King of Kings (United States, d. Nicholas Ray) |
|
1962 |
Pontius Pilate (Italy, d. Irving Rapper, Gian Paolo Callegari) |
|
1962 |
Barabbas (United States/Italy, d. Richard Fleischer) |
|
1963 |
Acto de primavera (Portugal, d. Manoel de Oliveira) |
|
1964 |
Il Vangelo secondo Matteo (Italy, d. Pier Paolo Pasolini) |
|
1965 |
The Greatest Story Ever Told (United States, d. George Stevens) |
|
1969 |
The Milky Way (Spain, d. Luis Bunuel) |
|
1971 |
Pilate and the Others (West Germany, d. Andrzej Wajda) |
|
1971–1972 |
Jesus, nuestro señor and Jesus, el niño Dios (Mexico, d. Miguel Zacarias) |
|
1972 |
Jesus, Maria y José (Mexico, d. Miguel Zacarias) |
|
1973 |
Jesus Christ Superstar (United States, d. Norman Jewison) |
|
1973 |
Godspell (United States, d. David Greene) |
|
1973 |
The Gospel Road (United States, d. Robert Elfstrom) |
|
1975 |
Il Messia (Italy, d. Roberto Rossellini) |
|
1976 |
The Passover Plot (United States, d. Michael Campus) |
|
1977 |
Jesus of Nazareth (United Kingdom/Italy, d. Franco Zeffirelli) |
|
1978 |
Karunamayudu (India, d. A. Bhimsingh) |
|
1979 |
Jesus (United Kingdom, d. Peter Sykes, John Krish) |
|
1980 |
The Day Christ Died (United States, d. James Cellan Jones) |
|
1982 |
Cammina, cammina (Italy, d. Ermanno Olmi) |
|
1982 |
Cercasi Gesu (Italy, d. Luigi Comencini) |
|
1985 |
The Fourth Wise Man (United States, d. Michael Ray Rhodes) |
|
1986 |
L’inchiesta (Italy, d. Damiano Damiani) |
|
1986 |
AD (d. Stuart Cooper) |
|
1987 |
Un bambino di nome Gesu (Italy, d. Franco Rossi) |
|
1988 |
The Last Temptation of Christ (United States, d. Martin Scorsese) |
|
1989 |
Jesus of Montreal (Canada, d. Denys Arcand) |
|
1991 |
Incident in Judaea (United Kingdom, d. Paul Bryers) |
|
1991 |
The Garden (United Kingdom, d. Derek Jarman) |
|
1992 |
Bad Lieutenant (United States, d. Abel Ferrara) |
|
1993 |
The Visual Bible: Matthew (South Africa, d. Regardt van den Bergh) |
|
1995 |
The Visual Bible: Acts (United States, d. Regardt van den Bergh) |
|
1996 |
Kristo (Philippines, d. Ben Yalung) |
|
1998 |
I giardini dell’Eden (Italy, d. Alessandro D’Alatri) |
|
1998 |
The Book of Life (United States, d. Hal Hartley) |
|
1999 |
Mary, Mother of Jesus (United States, d. Kevin Connor) |
|
1999 |
Jesus (United States, d. Roger Young) |
|
1999 |
Jesus (France, d. Serge Moati) |
|
1999–2001 |
Gli amici di Gesu (Italy, d. Raffaele Mertes) |
|
2000 |
Tales from the Madhouse (United Kingdom, d. Norman Stone and others) |
|
2000 |
Jesus Christ Superstar (United Kingdom, d. Gale Edwards, Nick Morris) |
|
2000 |
The Miracle Maker (United Kingdom/Russia, d. Derek W. Hayes, Stanislav Sokolov) |
|
2001 |
The Body (United States, d. Jonas McCord) |
|
2002 |
San Giovanni—l’apocalisse (Italy, d. Raffaele Mertes) |
|
2002 |
Joshua (United States, d. Jon Purdy) |
|
2003 |
The Visual Bible: The Gospel of John (Canada, d. Phillip Saville) |
|
2004 |
Man Dancin’ (United Kingdom, d. Norman Stone) |
|
2004 |
The Passion of the Christ (United States, d. Mel Gibson) |
|
2005 |
Son of Man (South Africa, d. Mark Dornford-May) |
|
2006 |
L’inchiesta (Italy, d. Giulio Base) |
|
2006 |
Color of the Cross (United States, d. Jean-Claude LaMarre) |
|
2006 |
La sacra famigilia (Italy, d. Raffaele Mertes) |
|
2007 |
Jesus, the Spirit of God/The Messiah (Iran, d. Nader Talebzadeh) |
|
2008 |
Jesus Christus Erloser (Germany, d. Peter Geyer) |
|
2008 |
Color of the Cross 2 (United States, d. Jean-Claude LaMarre) |
|
2008 |
The Passion (United Kingdom, d. Michael Offer) |
Television, Video, and DVD Documentaries
Jesus Christ Movie Star (1990), fifty-four minutes, is a quite comprehensive documentary film produced by Britain’s Channel 4 in conjunction with Anglicans in Britain. It traces the history of the Jesus film with a generous selection of clips and interviews.
E voi che dite che io sia: I Gesu’ del cinema (1999), Associazione Cattolica Esercenti Cinema, thirty minutes, contains a great number of excerpts from the Jesus films, especially several from Italy that are not available in other documentaries.
The Passion: Films, Faith and Fury (2006), Zigzag (UK) Productions, was screened on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom and on the History Channel in the United States. It contains many clips from the Jesus films as well as a wide range of expert commentary. I am one of the contributors.