The Last Temptation of Christ *** 1/2
(Nth Viewing)

The carpenter Jesus of Nazareth, tormented by the temptations of demons, the guilt of making crosses for the Romans, pity for men and the world, and the constant call of God, sets out to find what God wills for him. But as his mission nears fulfillment, he must face the greatest temptation: the normal life of a good man. Based, not on the Gospels, but on Nikos Kazantzakis' novel of the same name.

A great portrayal as Jesus the man. The Bible teaches us that Jesus was both human and divine but most (if not all) movies focus solely on his divinity. I applaud Martin Scorsese for having the balls to show Jesus on screen struggling with being the Son of God. And as such, you can imagine the blacklash. I read movie theaters were burned in the Middle East, people probably boycotted Martin Scorsese movies, and I know Blockbuster promised to never carry the film in their stores. In any case, Willem Dafoe put together a good performance as Jesus. Harvey Keitel however, seemed a little bit out of place. He did a good job as Judas but I think his thick New York accent was still a distraction and maybe he should have been recast. Unfortunately, this film has seemed to have slipped through the cracks of time as I hardly hear anyone mention it, let alone know what it is.