Jesus, the Gospels, and Cinematic Imagination

With this revision of their excellent 2007 handbook to Jesus on DVD, Richard Walsh and Jeffrey Staley have added an indispensable reference work to the groaning shelf of books on movies about Jesus. Not only have they added several films – old and new – but they have extensively revised the entire book, addressed the move from DVD to streaming platforms, and added a new introduction that makes sense of the diverse films they treat without homogenizing them. A must-read for both seasoned Jesus-movie-watchers and those who are newcomers to this corpus of films, this book will also work well as a textbook for college and adult-education courses on the Jesus movies. * Adele Reinhartz, University of Ottawa, Canada *
This fully updated and revised version of Jesus, the Gospels and Cinematic Imagination showcases twenty-two Jesus films, spanning silent cinema through to present day. Each chapter’s erudite analysis immerses readers in relevant scholarship as it situates the films within cinematic and cultural history. The attention to techniques such as cinematography, location, and casting is particularly elucidating, and sections highlighting problematic issues (e.g. orientalism, violence, androcentrism) facilitate important discussions about these films as cultural products. Written in a lively and engaging style and imbued with the field-leading expertise of Staley and Walsh, this is set to become an essential volume for anyone teaching, researching, or just plain interested in Cinematic Jesuses. * Michelle Fletcher, King’s College London, UK *
Walsh and Staley’s Jesus, the Gospels, and Cinematic Imagination is the most accessible, informative, and insightful book on Jesus films. Reflecting their decades of expertise, each of the twenty-two chapters is a dense tapestry of insight and illumination. In addition to expected classics (The Last Temptation of Christ, The Passion of the Christ), the authors also examine lesser known (La vie du Christ, Il messia, The Miracle Maker, Son of Man) and more recent films (Mary Magdalene). Walsh and Staley respect cinema enough to take it seriously on its own terms, rather than subsuming films within biblical narratives. Especially helpful is the material on each film’s cultural location/genre, director, and problematic issue. The valuable material in the endnotes of each chapter is alone worth the price of the book. Walsh and Staley’s book is ideal for undergraduates and anyone interested in Jesus films. * Matthew S. Rindge, Gonzaga University, USA *
This revised version offers a decidedly different take on Jesus films, shifting the focus from message to medium, from the interpretation of (mostly) biblical texts to their visual incarnations. Walsh and Staley do not limit themselves to what these films reveal about Jesus, but also address issues related to Jesus film genres, their specific characteristics and characters, actors and makers. As such, it offers fresh perspectives on a century of Jesus film-making. * Caroline Vander Stichele, Tilburg University, The Netherlands *
Walsh and Staley’s volume is a helpful tool for scholarly interaction with these films and for those who on occasion want to use scenes from such films in their teaching and in church contexts. For both purposes, the volume presents an excellent overview, provides instructive background information and sensible assessments, and is helpful for finding the chosen scenes in each film. * European Journal of Theology *