Posted by
Emmett of the Unblinking Eye on Friday, December 01, 2006 7:23:19 PM
The last thing I want is to be accused -- like
Chicago Mayor Richard Daily -- of being anti-little Baby Jesus. I'm not, I'm truly, truly not. And I would love nothing more than to give a glowing review to
The Nativity Story. I would, I truly, truly would. But it's so darn hard!
Not that it's a bad movie; it's not. In fact, it has a lot of positives. It does a remarkable job of portraying what life must have been like in Israel at the time of Christ's birth. Life was hard, people worked, and worked hard, and there was little time for fun. It shows that Mary and Joseph's trek from Nazareth to Bethlehem was not an easy trip, and uses it to show how the relationship between Mary and Joseph could grow and mature under that strain. And it shows how Mary's delicate condition could cause a moral and ethical dilemma not only for Joseph, but for the other residents of Nazareth. And it would make a great Hallmark Hall of Fame TV film -- and will probably be shown on that medium for years and years to come. Sort of like
A Charlie Brown Christmas.
But there's not exactly a lot of dramatic tension. It's not like you're on the edge of your seat waiting to find out what's going to happen next. What you do wait for is to see whether the film makers are going to mess it up. Fortunately, for the most part, they don't. And it's a struggle not to. For example,
Keisha Castle-Hughes (nominated for an academy award for Whale Rider) is given the thankless task of playing Mary. Although she's the right age for the role, and tries her best to humanize her, how do you play a woman who many of the world's Christians believe is holy? Here, you play her not to offend. Does Mary laugh? Smile? Show any emotion other than motherly concern? Not here, and after a while it's a little disconcerting. The rest of the cast fares better, particularly Ciarin Hinds (Munich, Road to Perdition) as Herod and Oscar Isaac as Joseph.
So should you spend your hard-earned Christmas dollars to see it? Absolutely. Why? Because it's good for ya. And if you don't, and you have any interest in Hollywood producing movies for people of faith, you have to show them that it's in their financial interest to do so. So pack up the family, see the movie, and go to dinner afterwards. You'll have plenty to talk about.