Review of The Last Temptation of Christ (1988) by Spangle — 01 Mar 2016

The Last Temptation of Christ is an awkward film for me. I think it is a brilliant depiction of the battle between the spirit and flesh that takes place within believers, as alluded to in the opening quote of the film.

Thus, the film is very good. It accomplishes this goal with precise skill thanks to Martin Scorsese's skill as a director and Willem Dafoe as an actor. Together they craft this image of a man tortured by the feeling that God wants something from him that he does not want to give.

Rather, he wants to be a normal human man, but eventually, he realizes he truly just wants God. For this, The Last Temptation of Christ is brilliant. Where it becomes awkward for me is that this is a film about Jesus Christ.

I do not know if this is a great depiction of Jesus in this sense. All that makes him a great depiction of humanity makes him a bad divine depiction. Thus, I am divided in this sense, much like Jesus is often believed to be.

From a technical standpoint though, the portrayal and dedication to such is fantastic. Scorsese crafts this really human Jesus who really has the same temptations as everyone else ("Son of Man") and really makes the character's religious struggles incredibly relatable.

While watching the film, I was incredibly mixed as I watched the film, especially with the odd dream sequences for the temptations and odd depictions of the divine, but when I saw what the film was going for at the end, I gained an appreciation for it that lacked while I watched it.

Thus, I really liked The Last Temptation of Christ. It is not a film you can watch pieces of. as without the full picture, you will be lost. Scorsese's direction is masterful as always and Willem Dafoe is phenomenal as Jesus.

Overall, the film is a brilliant technical work and phenomenal character study.