Reinhartz - Bible and Cinema: Fifty Key Films

BIBLE AND CINEMA: FIFTY
KEY FILMS

Movies which have drawn inspiration from the Bible, either directly or indirectly, have been extremely popular since the earliest days of cinema. Bible and Cinema: Fifty Key Films introduces a wide range of those movies, which are among the most important, critically-acclaimed and highest-grossing films of all time, including:

• The King of Kings
• Ben-Hur
• The Passion of the Christ
• Frankenstein
• 2001: A Space Odyssey
• The Ten Commandments
• Apocalypse Now
• Dogma

Written by a team of international scholars, the fifty entries discuss the Biblical stories, characters or motifs depicted in each film, making this book the ideal guide for anyone interested in the long-standing relationship between the Bible and film.

Adele Reinhartz is Professor in the Department of Classics and Religious Studies at the University of Ottawa, Canada. She is the author of several books including Scripture on the Silver Screen and Jesus of Hollywood.

ALSO AVAILABLE FROM ROUTLEDGE

The Bible: The Basics

John Barton

978-0-415-41136-3

Screening the Afterlife: Theology, Eschatology, and Film

Christopher Deacy

978-0-415-57259-0

Theology Goes to the Movies: An Introduction to Critical Christian Thinking

Clive Marsh

978-0-415-38012-6

The Routledge Companion to Religion and Film

John Lyden

978-0-415-60187-0

The Religion and Film Reader

Jolyon Mitchell, S. Brent Plate

978-0-415-40495-2

BIBLE AND CINEMA:
FIFTY KEY FILMS

Edited by
Adele Reinhartz

First published 2013

by Routledge

2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN

Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada

by Routledge

711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017

Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business

Editorial Material and Selection 2013 Adele Reinhartz

Individual Contributions 2013 the Contributors

The right of Adele Reinhartz to be identified as the author of the editorial
material, and of the authors for their individual chapters, has been
asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright,
Designs and Patents Act 1988.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.

Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe.

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data

Bible and cinema: fifty key films/edited by Adele Reinhartz.

p. cm. (Routledge key guides)

Includes bibliographical references and index.

1. Bible filmsHistory and criticism. 2. Motion picturesReligious aspects.

I. Reinhartz, Adele, 1953

PN1995.9.B53B52 2012

791.43682dc23

2012017554

ISBN: 978-0-415-67720-2 (hbk)

ISBN: 978-0-415-67719-6 (pbk)

ISBN: 978-0-203-08326-0 (ebk)

Typeset in Bembo

by Taylor & Francis Books

CONTENTS

ALPHABETICAL LIST OF ENTRIES

Joan the Maid: The Battles/The Prisons (1994)

CHRONOLOGICAL LIST OF ENTRIES

Life of Moses (19091910)

From the Manger to the Cross (1912)

Intolerance: Love's Struggle through the Ages (1916)

Salome (1923, 1953)

King of Kings, The (1927)

Frankenstein (1931)

Green Pastures, The (1936)

Samson and Delilah (1949)

David and Bathsheba (1951)

Robe, The (1953)

Shane (1953)

Night of the Hunter, The (1955)

Ten Commandments, The (1956)

Ben-Hur (1959)

King of Kings (1961)

Gospel According to St. Matthew, The (1964)

Greatest Story Ever Told, The (1965)

Cool Hand Luke (1967)

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

Aguirre: The Wrath of God (1972)

Godspell (1973)

Jesus Christ Superstar (1973)

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)

Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)

Jesus of Nazareth (1977)

Superman (1978)

Apocalypse Now (1979)

Being There (1979)

Monty Python's Life of Brian (1979)

Kagemusha (1980)

Blade Runner (1982)

Babette's Feast (1987)

Bagdad Cafe (1987)

Last Temptation of Christ, The (1988)

Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989)

Jesus of Montreal (1989)

Cape Fear (1991)

Blue (1993)

Joan the Maid: The Battles/The Prisons (1994)

Dead Man Walking (1995)

Breaking the Waves (1996)

Independence Day (1996)

Sling Blade (1996)

Prince of Egypt, The (1998)

Dogma (1999)

Passion of the Christ, The (2004)

Children of Men (2006)

Son of Man (2006)

Gran Torino (2008)

Serious Man, A (2009)

CLASSIFIED LIST OF ENTRIES

THE BIBLE ON FILM

Ben-Hur (1959)

David and Bathsheba (1951)

From the Manger to the Cross (1912)

Godspell (1973)

Gospel According to St. Matthew, The (1964)

Greatest Story Ever Told, The (1965)

Green Pastures, The (1936)

Intolerance: Love's Struggle through the Ages (1916)

Jesus Christ Superstar (1973)

Jesus of Montreal (1989)

Jesus of Nazareth (1977)

King of Kings (1961)

King of Kings, The (1927)

Last Temptation of Christ, The (1988)

Life of Moses (19091910)

Monty Python's Life of Brian (1979)

Passion of the Christ, The (2004)

Prince of Egypt, The (1998)

Robe, The (1953)

Salome (1923, 1953)

Samson and Delilah (1949)

Son of Man (2006)

Ten Commandments, The (1956)

THE BIBLE IN FILM

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

Aguirre: The Wrath of God (1972)

Apocalypse Now (1979)

Babette's Feast (1987)

Bagdad Cafe (1987)

Being There (1979)

Blade Runner (1982)

Blue (1993)

Breaking the Waves (1996)

Cape Fear (1991)

Children of Men (2006)

Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)

Cool Hand Luke (1967)

Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989)

Dead Man Walking (1995)

Dogma (1999)

Frankenstein (1931)

Gran Torino (2008)

Independence Day (1996)

Joan the Maid: The Battles/The Prisons (1994)

Kagemusha (1980)

Night of the Hunter, The (1955)