Kevin's Watch

You had to see this coming Cail, give us your best, and your worst religious film, who got it right? who got it wrong? and why?

I generally don't watch religious films for their religious themes, rather I look for good films.

I really enjoyed The Third Miracle and The Ninth Configuration. I appreciated what went into The Passion, but I'll never watch it again. The Life of Brian is easily the best parody of Christianity (and the best Python film by far).

I thought Dogma was childish and unfunny. As religious allegory, The Matrix and its sequels were horrid.

That's all I can think of off the top of my head.

I dont know if it was the best religious film I ever watched, but I have watched Kingdom of Heaven 4 times and Im not tired of it yet, as far as bad one's, I cant even think of one at the moment unless you want to count the wretched over acting in the Ten Commandments, and that can be blamed on its niche in Hollywood History.

Ben Hur has to be my favorite. An amazing piece of film making whether you watch it for it's message or not.

I can't think of any bad religious movies offhand, except for Northern Express. And that was just bad because it was thinly veiled religious stuff (which, hey, is fine, but not for kids' movies). But then, I don't seek out most religious stuff. Oh wait, City of Angels sucked.

Good ones, then:

The Prophecy
The 7th Seal
The Last Temptation
Life of Brian
History of the World Pt. I
Dogma

Constantine was watchable.

Does Legend count?


No?


It had a devil. With a butt chin.



Umm...



Okay, I'll just...play over here then...


Oh, yeah, I just remember that it wasn't especially good either. Great mood though. Thanks probably to the soundtrack.


Sadly, it probably is Life of Brian for the best. Saved was a lot of fun too.


"Let's die, mommy...let's die."

Do y'all consider Streisand's Yentl or Diamond's The Jazz Singer religious films? Streisand's treatment of Singer's story... *sigh* while Diamond doesn't do too bad a job of showing the choices observant and non-observant Jews make in modern American culture...

Considering the posts that make up most of this thread I'd say your choices are fine, Menolly.

How about Nuns on the Run or The Saint?

The Life of Brian is easily the best parody of Christianity (and the best Python film by far).

LoB is more than just a parody of Christianity, it's a parody of organized religion of any kind. I definitely agree that it's the best Python film.

I haven't and probably won't ever seen The Passion. The Greatest Story ever told was the best film about the life of Christ.

I love Ben Hur and The Ten Commandments. I don't think it's fair to criticize Commandment for over acting when that was the standard for every actor back in the day. Just look at Gone with the Wind, Casablanca, etc. Remember, this was before Stanislavsky and method acting. Everyone stared wistfully away while delivering their lines. Most actors thought they were still on stages.

As an atheist, I still enjoy some religious films. I'd probably have to put The Passion at the top of my list as the best (I'd normally say The Exorcist, but I don't think of that as a religious film) - few other films can match its depth of atmosphere.

Other excellent films with religious themes include:

The Mission
Black Robe
Ben Hur
The Ten Commandments (only up until the parting of the sea, really)
Life of Brian
The Seventh Seal

My pick for the worst is King of Kings.

Ahhh yeah, The Mission is excellent.

Montresor wrote: My pick for the worst is King of Kings.

Yeah, King of Kings was horrible.

The Apostle and Leap Of Faith are two of my favorites. The Name Of The Rose is another one that I think was good, but I haven't seen it since it's theatrical release.....

The Name of the Rose is incredible.

Yeah, I thought I remembered it was good. I'll have to get it on dvd.

Malik23 wrote:Frailty.

Oh Hell yes! That is hands-down one of the coolest movies I've ever seen.

Considering the subject matter I wonder if Raiders of the Lost Ark and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade qualify. The Jewish and Christian aspects of each film take a back seat to action adventure but they are there none the less.

I liked Signs.

Ben Hur DEFINATELY...
someone mentioned The Mission.... very cool and underrated.