rating:
(out of
4 stars)Italy, France; 1964
Directed by Pier Paolo Pasolini; produced by Alfredo Bini; written by Pier Paolo Pasolini
Starring Enrique Irazoqui, Marhgerita Caruso, Susanna Pasolini, Marcello Morante, Mario Socrate, Settimio Di Porto
Below you will find a temporary review for this film. The real (better, more complete) review will be online very soon.
It is hard not to think about 'The Passion of the Christ' when you are
watching a movie about Jesus. Of course that movie only deals with the final
hours of Jesus, still you have to compare certain things. 'Il Vangelo
Secondo Matteo' tells the story of Jesus according to the gospel of Matthew.
The movie is presented the way the bible is written. There is no real story,
just event after event as described in the bible. We sort of have an
intermezzo where all Jesus' teachings are told, while just showing the head
of the talking Jesus (played by Enrique Irazoqui). All other famous parts
are shown to us in the most literal way.
The movie is directed by Pier Paolo Pasolini, an atheist, and I guess that
is a good thing. Pasolini does not put any of his own interpretations in the
movie, he just shows us how it is written. When Pasolini thinks something is
not important enough he doesn't put it in the movie. When we arrive at the
point where 'The Passion' took off we see the differences. Where Mel Gibson
took two hours to tell the final hours of Jesus' life Pasolini does this in
twenty minutes. He skips most of the torturing, keeps Jesus pretty clean and
there is hardly any violence. In a way it is a good thing since the movie is
easier to watch and the crucifixion itself has a bigger impact on us than in
'The Passion'. Still, for a probably more realistic view on this part 'The
Passion' is better.
As a complete story of Jesus' life it is very good, with the important
things shown to us. Made in the spirit of Italian neo-realism it is also
very interesting to watch. The amateurs used in the movie do a pretty good
job with their performances and the movie looks pretty good as well. Shot on
the same locations as 'The Passion of the Christ' this is another fine movie
about the life of Jesus Christ.