Review of The Nativity Story (2006) by Robert E — 07 Apr 2016

The Nativity Story puts a human spin on the Divine. The story starts out with Mary, a young girl loved and looked up to by her peers in her small town. Her world is shaken by two events. The first being betrothed by her family to a older man Joseph and then by the pronouncement of her upcoming pregnancy by an Angel. Both aspects correlate quite well with the story as described in the book of Luke in the Scriptures.

What differs is the human struggle Mary and Joseph face as they get ready for the arrival of the Messiah. Joseph feels betrayed by Mary after she returns from a long visit with her family Elizabeth and Zechariah and he sees the she is definitely pregnant. The town begins to shun her and makes her feel like an outcast. Even Joseph has a dream of stoning her to death for her betrayal. Joseph is approached by the Angel and informed that it was all ordained by God.

An decree is issued from Caesar that all heads of households are to return to their country of origin for a census. King Herod finds out about the coming King from a group of traveling wise men from the East, informing the King about the prophecy, he plots to have the child killed.

Mary and Joseph's journey to Bethlehem helps the viewer to see inside the thoughts of a young couple who are ordained by God to help deliver the Savior of the world. Neither feels qualified to take on such a task and even Joseph, in a moment of connection with Mary, wonders "If I will be able to teach him anything.".

The arrival of Jesus comes and the wonder and amazement of the new birth brings hope from the lonely, outcast shepherd to the wise men. A beautiful picture of the arrival of the Savior is the climactic centerpiece of everyone's journey. A very emotional, stirring hope is born and the realization that something special has occurred is realized by all.

While the acting is not all that special, the story and humanity side of it put the emotions and thoughts of those who lived during that time on display to make the viewer realize a whole new perspective on what went down leading up to, and including, the birth of Jesus.