Tina W
Good in theory, but in practice.....pretty freakin' bad. Plot holes, needless intrigue, poor acting...what a bummer, I love conspiracy films! oh, one thing, using the "Thorn Birds" trope was pointless and made the film even worse.
Rated 1.5/5 Stars •
Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars
10/01/22
Full Review
Audience Member
It's a really stupid movie, it doesn't even know the facts well. It could have been so much better ... In one scene some Jewish people throw rocks at them and take the pot they found and she said the orthodox people don't leave her alone... WTF
Rated 1/5 Stars •
Rated 1 out of 5 stars
02/26/23
Full Review
Audience Member
"Thus God, determining to show more abundantly to the heirs of promise the immutability of His counsel, confirmed it by an oath, that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we might have strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us." (Hebrews 6:17-18)
Does the Church/a Christian believe this? Or in the machinations of fearful men and faithless superstition?
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
02/06/23
Full Review
Audience Member
This film was a sad waste of a talented cast. I tend to consider a lot of things in my overall review but this film was bogged down by a weak script and a plot that was very poorly written. By the time that the credits roll, I was so incredibly frustrated with this film. The big thing about making a film like this is that the main character is undergoing a spiritual conflict. Even though there are political concerns in this film, the main conflict is man vs self and therefore the resolution of that conflict must be satisfactory to the viewer to make the film worth watching.
The camera crew also did a very subpar job in this film. For goodness sakes, this is Jerusalem! I didn't feel much of the ancient mythos of the city. Instead, all I felt was that there were a bunch of people in a windy, sandy location that were trying to do an archeological dig without getting blown up by terrorists. The cinematography was sorely lacking.
On a similar note, it is odd that the main characters are only really threatened at 2 points in the film and in both cases there is only a weak tie-in to the main moral conflicts of the film. I wanted these people to blatantly risk their lives for what they believe in but only at the end do they come close to this and the reasons why the character did it were both unclear and not very good.
The soundtrack was one of the strengths of the film but I would have thought that they would have incorporated more of the Jewishness of the location into the score. Really, I think a lot of this film would have been better if they involved the fundamentalist Jews more and the Palestinians less.
The film only had one "gotcha" moment and it was only minorly surprising and clever. I was hoping for a whole string of surprises but any Christian could have predicted most of what went on in this film. If you are going to delve deep into a sensitive, religious topic, you have to go deep and come up with some obscure and cool stuff. I'd point to the art scenes from The Da Vinci Code as examples of this being well-executed.
SUMMARY: A film that had potential but weak writing and directing has removed any remorse that I might have felt for canning this one.
NOT RECOMMENDED.
Rated 2/5 Stars •
Rated 2 out of 5 stars
02/13/23
Full Review
Audience Member
Though The Body is marketed as a dramatic thriller, it turned out to be neither dramatic nor thrilling. The initial idea was interesting; what would happen if Jesusâ(TM) body was to be found? Would the entirety of the Christian faith be disproved because the Son of God, the Christian Messiah, never really ascended to heaven? Sharon Golban, a soldier turned archaeologist, the next most unrelated occupation, finds a body that she feels could potentially be Jesus in the would-be basement of a shopkeeper. After this occurs, the movie begins to spiral down into routine action scenes that only seem to be there to add some pockets of adrenaline into the otherwise kind of monotonous storyline. Obviously, the possibility of the body being Jesus Christ threatens the entire foundation of all branches of Christianity and to ensure the safety of the body and to hide the potential identity of the set of bones, a Catholic cardinal sends a young Jesuit priest, Matthew Gutierrez, whose only useful asset is his degree in theology and his own brute strength. Thrown into this entire mix are the psychopath priest, Lavalle, and a group of thug Palestinians that are relentless in their efforts to steal the bones, though their purpose is never really explained. As the excavation continues, some petty thievery is committed by the Orthodox Jews in the area, even though âYou shalt not stealâ? was pretty clearly emblazoned on Mosesâ(TM) tablet as one of the Ten Commandments. Eventually, the Palestinians are successful in stealing the bones and when the Israeli military tries to intervene, a grenade blows up the skeleton. The Israelis then blow up the tomb and just as the last rock closes in, an inscription that Sharon Golban managed to miss after days and days of painstaking work declares that the body is not of Jesus, and just like that, the entire panic that arose from this body became a giant waste of time. In the end, Gutierrez renounces his priesthood even though he feels more of a man of God after the excavation. All in all, The Body was a pretty terrible movie but with an interesting concept and it provides a lot of insight on how the Christian faith is precariously balanced on the edge of a cliff. There is so much at stake with Christianityâ"the faith of 1.7 billion peopleâ"and if one small set of bones were to be found, this faith evaporates into thin air and Jesus becomes just another false, dead Messiah.
Rated 1.5/5 Stars •
Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars
02/20/23
Full Review
Audience Member
The Body started with the interesting thesis of: what if the body of Jesus was found? However the plot of the movie dragged on and for half of the movie it felt as though there was no action. It starts with Sharon, an Israeli archeologist, who discovered a body in a rich man's tomb, which she believes is Jesus. Artifacts from the tomb are analyzed and evidence mounts supporting the theory that it is Jesus. This leads to the panic in the Christian church because if the body is Jesus, then he didn't rise from the dead and Christianity would be undermined. Worried that the information will spread (and people will lose faith) a Catholic cardinal assigns, Matt (a Priest) to investigate the site. The Cardinal makes it very clear that no matter what, the body isn't Jesus (even if science says it is). Father Lavelle also goes to check out the site, however he was slowly losing his faith and finally committed suicide. Political tensions in Jerusalem are increased when radical Palestinian declare East Jerusalem as the capital of Palestine. The group, " The Popular Front of Jerusalem" (PFJ) tried to sabotage the investigation by stealing the bones, stealing artifacts, and throwing rocks. The leader of the PFJ is Moshe Cohen. The ending scene is both Moshe Cohen and Matt holding the bones and a grenade together (after it is detonated) saying " There is no place for religion in politics". The second before the bomb is about to blow, Sharon comes and Alex pushes her and him out of safety. The bones were blown up however it is revealed later on that it was the bones of David.
In my opinion I feel as though the idea for the movie was thought provoking however the movie was poorly executed. It didn't get interesting until Father Laville commits suicide. I think the movie had some stereotypical background involved, like how the Palestinian people were portrayed as terrorists. I liked how at the end, the Palestinian shopkeeper, who betrayed the archeological team, took his life to save Sharon's children. I feel as though that shows the humane side of the movie because in this movie most of the Palestinian people are portrayed as terrorists. The one quote that stood by me is " I don't believe religion should play a part in the government", I like this quote because I stand by it. The Arab- Israeli conflict is how the government is colliding with religion, which I think, is wrong. Overall I think this movie isn't worth watching.
- Sabrina C
Rated 2.5/5 Stars •
Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars
02/23/23
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