Movie Information
Release Date: February 28, 2014
Director: Christopher Spencer
Writer: Richard Bedser, Christopher Spencer, Colin Swash, Nic Young
Cast: Diogo Morgado, Sebastian Knapp, Paul Knops, Darcie, David Rintoul, Gary Oliver, WIlliam Houston, Stewart Scudamore, Nonso Anozie, Conan Stevens, Jassa Ahluwalia, Langley Kirkwood, Patrice Naiambana, Joe Coen, Leila Mimmack, Greg Hicks, Andrew Brooke, Louise Delamere, Darwin Shaw
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Runtime: 138 minutes
By: Hearst Entertainment Productions, LightWorkers Media
Genre: Drama
Language: English, Hebrew
Country: USA
It can be hard to review Son of God because in ways in not necessarily meant for the big screen when adapted from a TV miniseries. I also don’t feel It’s meant to entertain but more to educate the world and/or serve a purpose. It does serve a purpose and that is teaching the story of Jesus Christ (if you didn’t know it already) and his quest to spread the gospel. It does succeed in this task even though some elements can be jarring for some, but not me when it comes down to effects. When it comes to the effects it’s from the quality of the imagery that can be dated back to 90’s television. Fortunately for me I was able to focus on the message and storytelling other than the quality and shining lights. This movie is roughly 2 hours and 30 minutes and while some may feel that’s a little lengthy, I felt it was too short. Other than some of the imagery of landscapes that took no effort to hash out, I felt it was 20-25 minutes too short which didn’t give me the refresher to all the important roles of Jesus’ 12 disciples/apostles. I know the story personally, so I was looking for a bit more depth between these characters. They’re present but not fleshed out to a degree that would stand out to someone coming in not knowing the past history. I understand this is the story of Jesus, but for them to hold such an important place in the story of Jesus, I would’ve appreciated more development in this area. Jesus is portrayed by Diago Morgado he did a fair job at his role. It’s nothing that will stand out in the years to come but is memorable for now. He did a great job displaying the essence of Christ and how when in a corner Jesus would turn the most degrading of words into something positive without any sarcasm or sass. Jesus is a walking smile of love and you can’t argue with that in this portrayal. He made you believe that if you only have faith wonderful things will happen for you and that begins with the love of Christ. Another great addition was the political standpoint that was addressed and the reasoning some wanted to end his life. Yes there were haters/nay sayers back then as well, but they didn’t only address Jesus’ wellbeing due to jealousy, but the ignorance of them thinking he’s breaking laws. They tried to justify it and brings more meaning to the famous quote, “Forgive them father for they know not what they do”. This particular scene was the icing on the cake of a picture I was already excited about. Then again this is a TV movie put in the theater and in my opinion still doesn’t hold a candle to the previous released Passion of Christ. Though it’s not fair to compare the two because this film stands alone and isn’t trying to compete or measure up to anything past or present. It’s a great story of the life of Jesus Christ that will gain the attention of some non-believers (which is fine no judgment here) and possibly make them curious to study more for their own personal understanding.
