Rent The Gospel According to St. Matthew (1964)

Biblical Neorealism. - The Gospel According to St. Matthew review by Steve

As Pier Paolo Pasolini was a Marxist, who better to tell the life story of history’s most prominent anti-capitalist? The writer/director was also an atheist so he emphasises the political role of Jesus of Nazareth. There is an impression of how subversive is Matthew's gospel and its philosophy.

But we still see the miracles. This isn’t an attempt to explain the New Testament in purely naturalistic terms. The Vatican has this listed among the best ever religious films. It’s presented as neorealism, and the dialogue is all taken from the text, as are the events. There is a non professional cast, led by a university professor (Enrique Irazoqui) as Jesus.

It’s a challenge to watch in several ways. Irazoqui rigidly declaims the famous lines without nuance or feeling. The constant use of metaphor and allegory grows laborious…The b&w photography is deliberately stark like newsreel footage, which gets wearisome. There is no craft. The budget is ostentatiously minuscule.

Though, of course, that’s the point. This is an attempt to present the life of Jesus plausibly, simply and without awe. And imply how like Marxism the revolutionary lessons of the gospels are. And on those terms this is exceptional. And yes, the greatest version of this story ever told on the big screen.