Mary, Mother of Jesus

Starring:Christian Bale, Pernilla August, Melinda Kinnaman, David Threlfall, Simone Bendix, John Shrapnel, Edward Hardwicke, Hywel Bennett, Geraldine Chaplin, Toby Bailiff, Michael Mears, Mark Jax, Anna Mathias, Robert Addie, Crispian Belfrage, Christopher Routh, Judy Cornwell, Andrew Grainger, John Light, David Schofield
Director: Kevin Connor
Studio: Lions Gate
Product Type: DVD

Amazon.com

This TV movie doesn't venture far from biblical accounts to dramatize the life of the Virgin Mary. It gets off to a promising start by showing Mary to be a resourceful and brave teenager, as she stands up to Roman soldiers who come thundering on horseback into her village. The production then proceeds chronologically, and the major events of Mary's life, and the life of Jesus, are played out in dramatic fashion. Mary is portrayed as having to face a series of struggles and tests of faith, from the time when she is terrified to meet the messenger of God who foretells the birth of the Messiah to her witnessing the brutal scene of her son's crucifixion. As the movie deals with material that will, of course, be familiar to most viewers, an unavoidable problem is that there are few surprises, and while the script does attempt to fill in some nuances of Mary's life, at times the dramatic portrayals can't help but seem forced. Mary, Mother of Jesus was obviously a labor of love by the executive producers, Eunice Kennedy Shriver and her son Bobby Shriver, and while it may not always succeed dramatically, the story is told coherently and some viewers will find it an inspirational paean to a revered religious figure. --Robert J. McNamara

Customer Reviews:

The Gospel According to Mary.......2007-03-08

Implementing an admirably brisk pace, and sporting some exciting crowd and chase scenes, 'Mary, Mother of Jesus' has an instant appeal. Keeping close to scripture in key portions of Mary's and Jesus' lives, the film, nevertheless, may bring controversy with some of the fill-in interpretational moments. With good performances all around, especially Pernilla August in the title role and Christian Bale as the grown Jesus, the movie, however, presents a Mary that's a little more outspoken and fiesty than we're accustomed to. (Sometimes I had to wince when Mary teaches Jesus the "Good Samaritan" story and her protest against a stoning of an adulterer before Jesus is born. Yet, the Bible does state that Jesus "increased in wisdom and in stature..." He did learn things.) Also, John the Baptist seems fiery and folksy enough to bring a genuine translation (one of the best performances in memory of him), and Judy Cornwell as the Innkeeper's wife (Judy Cornwell) provides some comic relief with her robust performance. The details are also worthy. The scenery provides a simple beauty that never brings a stage presence to the film.

Just as 'The Robe' surmises the Jesus story from the point-of-view of a convert after the repurcussions of Jesus's ordeal, 'Mary,...' provides another portrait of the gospel as witnessed by a key participant in Jesus's life.

Christian Bale bails Christians.......2007-02-06

I'm not reviewing the Biblical accuracy of this movie, or how different religious sects might react to it. I'm just going to review the actual quality of this movie. And that quality is remarkably low.

I'm assuming that this is a made-for-tv movie, because it definitely plays like one, there's even occasional blackouts, I'm guessing where there were originally commercial breaks. The main problems with this film, and there are several minor ones we won't concern with, are the production value being incredibly low, the fact that all the actors are white and have ENGLISH accents (they even go so far as to have the owner of the manger where Jesus is born have a COCKNEY accent, as if to show she's of a lower class, but a lower BRITISH class,mind you), and the stilted dialogue accompanied by painful performances.

Christian Bale is still surprisingly good, even surrounded by so much mediocrity, but one actor can only pull a film so far, especially when the film is focussed on the life of Mary, and so Jesus doesn't come into the film until about a third of the way through. Bale is really the reason I wanted to see this movie, and it's almost worth seeing just to see Bale's intense devotion to his character amidst such an absurd backdrop. You really have to feel bad for him, but also thankful that he got cast in American Psycho the year after this and shot to stardom instead of languishing in films like this for years to come.

Mary, Mother of Jesus is so devastatingly bad that at times it almost seems like a Monty Python parody of a Christian movie. Honestly, if you're moved by a single frame in this film then you are simply predisposed to enjoy it no matter what the quality, because this film is of the lowest caliber. It gets two stars for Bale's performance, and the rest gets zero.

Good effort.......2007-01-10

It must be a very daunting task to try and flesh out a part on somebody who played such a major part in mankind's salvation with her humble assent to be the mother of the Messiah when her scriptural refrences are so few other than during the Nativity and early childhood of Jesus. So many times the writers get in the way of the story rather than let it play out in it's natural order. I feel the writers in this movie really tried to be true to the scripture that inspired it, but it can be so easy to stray from the spirit of what needs to be told when trying to flesh out characters, storylines, etc. The salavation story of Jesus and the part Mary played in it is so huge that trying to compress it into the short time required by this movie is almost impossible. Even the best movie ever done on Christ, "Jesus of Nazareth" was a 6 hour movie and it couldn't encompass everything either. That said, I did enjoy most of this film's attempt at widening our filmic knowledge of our Blessed Mother and, shortcomings aside, I'd still rather watch this than 90% of the drudge coming out of Hollywood today.

Excellent Production.......2007-01-09

Top quality product, well produced, will enjoy watching again and again. Thanks Barbara

Quite Unbiblical.......2006-07-07

I couldn't finish watching this movie because of the serious inconsistancies with Scripture. There were three advisors listed in the credits, two priests and a rabbi. I wonder how these Catholic priests allowed their names to be associated with this movie.

You can say it is inspirational but if key details are wrong and false, it will ultimately not lead you closer to the Real Jesus because the details are important and relate to the Incarnation as foretold in the Old Testament.

Showed Joseph angry, accusational and cruel about Mary's pregancy
Omitted Elizabeths greeting of Mary as "Mother of My Lord"
Implied Mary had pain at childbirth
Omitted presentation in the Temple
Showed Mary as the decision maker in going to Egypt
Implied by Jesus' questions that he didn't know he was God.

You can learn much more about the life of Jesus looking through the eyes of Mary when you pray the Rosary (which after all is simply the prayer of the Gospel).

Biography - Mary of Nazareth (A&E DVD Archives)

Average customer rating:

Thoughtfully put together and delivered
Blasphemy against Mary!
Worth watching but relies far too much on apocryphal texts
Good Bio of Mary!

Biography - Mary of Nazareth (A&E DVD Archives)
Starring: Biography
Manufacturer: A&E Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Documentary | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Television | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $14.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( B ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

Biography - Jesus: His Life
Biography - Mary Magdalene: The Hidden Apostle (A&E DVD Archives)
Biography - Adam & Eve (A&E DVD Archives)
Biography - Noah
A History of God (History Channel) (A&E DVD Archives)

ASIN: B0009K7S0G
Release Date: 2005-07-26

Amazon.com

Very little is actually known about the 13-year-old village girl who gave birth to the baby hailed by Christianity as the Son of God. But in this 44-minute Inspiring Lives A&E Biography, historians and theologians speculate about the Blessed Virgin based on sparse Biblical references, ancient documents, legend, and knowledge of the times. The documentary traces the story of Mary's life from her birth to a long-infertile elderly couple to her own miraculous (and scandalous) conception not many years later to her support of her controversial adult son. Some time is spent on the rest of Mary's family, including son James, who became one of the first bishops of the new Christian church. Scripture readings, paintings, and stock footage of biblical landscapes round out the telling of this most famous mother's tale. --Kimberly Heinrichs

Description

Though she is rarely mentioned in the Gospels, she is perhaps the most important and the most revered woman in history.Shortly after 13-year old Mary of Nazareth became engaged to Joseph, the fate of the world changed. Inexplicably pregnant, the frightened teenager faced the possibility of being stoned to death and she endured ridicule that continued even after the birth of her son. But Mary vigilantly stood by Jesus throughout years of scorn and prejudice, even as he was dying on the cross at Calvary. Some believe she founded the Jerusalem church after his death. In this penetrating program, biblical experts and leading historians probe for clues to the story of the woman who is revered by millions worldwide. BIOGRAPHY proudly presents the amazing story of the woman hailed as The Blessed Virgin and Mother of God Mary of Nazareth.

Customer Reviews:

Thoughtfully put together and delivered.......2006-03-17

This is a wonderful show for even the most devout Christian. It chronicles the life of Mary and talks about some of the less certain aspects of her life. Anyone of dedicated religious committment will not feel threatened by this video, but instead the enlightened person will open mindedly embrace this inquisitive, sensitive documentary about one of the world's most influential women. Those fundamentalist or radicle persons who might object to any type of historical account and inquiry of anything biblical might not be of the character to understand such a discussion, but for the person interested in learning and active dialogue, this is an excellent film with wonderful historical accounts.

Blasphemy against Mary!.......2005-07-13

This is blasphemy against the Mother of God! Whoever wrote this is a sick person. How dare they ever say that Our Lady is not a perpetual Virgin! This is sick blasphemy, and any true Catholic should not listen to their filthy and Satanic words.

Worth watching but relies far too much on apocryphal texts.......2004-07-10

There seems to be a fundamental weakness in the A&E Biography series of early Christians: a serious over-reliance on apocryphal texts. I do not know why this is; I can only imagine that the Bible does not contain enough facts for the series writers and so they go where "facts" are plentiful - much of the material in this video is taken from The Gospel of the Birth of Mary, the Protevangelion, and the Infancy narratives. This is a sticky issue because some believers accept these writings as factual, but Protestants such as myself do not put any credence whatsoever into these apocryphal texts. I will give credit to the writers for letting us know which texts they are relying upon at different points in the presentation, though - that was certainly not done in the A&E Biography video of Mary Magdalene. Still, it causes a problem with many viewers; at least half of the material in this video comes from apocryphal texts: the Immaculate Conception of Mary (meaning she was borne without the stain of Original Sin), details about the childhood of Mary, the Assumption of Mary into heaven - all things that are not to be found in my Bible.

The video certainly has its good points along with its bad ones. It does a very good job of emphasizing the scandalous nature of a pregnancy out of wedlock in those times - it could legally result in the woman being stoned to death for her sin. It emphasizes the toil, struggle, and humble nature of Jesus' birth in Bethlehem - in her final month of pregnancy, Mary had to travel the eighty miles from Nazareth to Bethlehem, only to be denied shelter and forced to give birth to the Messiah in a lowly stable or cave. It pays tribute to her love and devotion to her son, praises the courage she must have shown in dealing with her community's gossip and even disdain for her and her firstborn child, points out the fact that she may well have become a widow while Jesus was in his teens, having to care for Jesus as well as her later children (born to her and Joseph) all by herself after that point, and reminds us just how cut off she was from Jesus once He began His work. She may well have never heard Jesus' assertions that he would be killed yet arise in three days; the disciples, even if they didn't believe it at the time, had at least heard this promise to them. One can not even imagine the grief she must have felt as she watched Jesus die a horrifying death on the cross.

A lot of good Biblical material is included in this presentation, but I just think there are far too many "facts" that come along for the ride. I daresay many a Protestant will have never even heard of some of the "facts" to be found in this video. I might add, however, that it never gets into the business of the different churches and their beliefs concerning the Virgin Mary; there's no discussion of the sainthood of Mary or the visions of Mary that have been reported on a number of occasions. The story starts at the birth of Mary and ends with her "death" (or, as some believe, Assumption); it provides good insight into the life of a girl in the Nazareth of the pre-Christian era; and it pays respect to a remarkably courageous, pious young woman who followed the will of the Lord throughout her life. The video also features a number of beautiful, inspirational art works of Mary. It is well worth watching, but I much prefer to rely on the Bible alone for the definitive biography of the mother of Christ.

Good Bio of Mary!.......2003-05-30

This was a very good and interesting biography of Mary the mother of Jesus. You learn more about her, her life. I recommanded it to anyone who want to know more about her!

Average customer rating:

The Gospel According to Mary
Christian Bale bails Christians
Good effort
Excellent Production
Quite Unbiblical

Mary, Mother of Jesus [Region 2]
Starring: Christian Bale , Pernilla August , Melinda Kinnaman , David Threlfall , and Simone Bendix
Director: Kevin Connor
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD