Update on NBC's Kings

NBC has released more details of its autumn / fall schedule including a little bit more about Kings. The modernised version the story of David will be shown in prime time and is described by the NBC website as being a "one hour special". There's also the following plot outline which expands on the Variety piece I discussed last month.

HOPE LIES IN BRAVERY.

Kings is an inspiring exploration of the timeless David vs. Goliath struggle. The show is set in a modern metropolis under siege, where the fighting has gone on for too long and cost far too many lives. When David Shepherd, a brave young soldier, rescues the king's son from enemy territory, he sets events in motion that will finally bring peace. Suddenly, David is thrust into the limelight, earning the affections of women - including the king's daughter. When he's promoted to Captain, he becomes the reluctant poster boy for hope. But for David, the line between his allies and enemies will blur as the power players in the kingdom go to great lengths to see him fall.

From the director of the blockbuster movie I Am Legend comes the ultimate story of David vs. Goliath, and there's no telling who will win.

Pictured above are McShane who'll play King Silas, Christopher Egan as David, and Sebastian Stan as Jack. I imagine Jack is the aforementioned son of King Silas, which is presumably the equivalent of Jonathan. If so, I wonder whether the series will explore the theory that David and Jonathan were lovers. I never know which of the major US stations is the conservative BBC1 equivalent, and which is the more radical Channel 4 equivalent.

Script Reviews for Kings (NBC)

David W. Dunlap/New York Times

There are a few bits and pieces to report on the forthcoming NBC drama Kings. Firstly NBC's latest schedule has the show lined up for the 10pm Sunday slot in Winter 2009. It also has it lined up for possible "encores" next summer. What's unclear is how long Kings' initial broadcast will be. Reuters are claiming that the whilst this was originally just a two-hour pilot, "NBC decided to proceed with a full series order after executives saw (some) footage".

There are also two script reviews by industry insiders Brian Ford Sullivan and James Hibberd. Sullivan is left "confused" by the programme's alternative universe, although he does admire its ambition. Hibberd is more positive, although rightly cautious until he's seen what the director does with the script.

Lastly, David Dunlap reports on the filming of a scene incorporating the Columbus Monument.

First Reviews for NBC's Kings

Unfortunately, my screener for Kings has not arrived, so it will be a while before I'm able to offer my own review of tonight's NBC premiers. There are plenty of others around, however, for those wanting to read about it before or after tonight's showing. Kyle Smith at the New York Post is similarly impressed. His four out of five stars review calls McShane's performance "titanic" and notes how the "show sparkles with imagination, but he ends with the eternal dilemma for biblical adaptations:"Kings may be too campy for some, not campy enough for others". Entertainment Weekly gives it a B+, admiring McShane's acting, but still seeing it as a "work in progress". EW's review also speculates as to whether the show will succeed, a concern taken up also by Variety.

A handful of reviews find it fascinating even if they are ultimately not particularly taken with it. Time calls it "fascinating pretentious hoo-ha" whilst USA Today settles for "a fascinating mess".

But some reviewers don't even find it's curiosity factor sufficient to gain their approval. The New York Times finds it "plodding" in spite of it's "bold" reinterpretation, whilst the Los Angeles Times goes for "corny, ponderous, literary, ambitious, obvious and... as slow as molasses".

Christian reviews seems a little hard to come by, but Christian Cinema suspects that the writers "couldn’t decide whether to be philosophical, politically correct... or corny". But Hollywood Jesus's reviewer is impressed - "The performances from all involved are top notch, the direction is superb".

Meanwhile, my friend Peter Chattaway has posted a few additional comments about the pilot. His interview with series creator Michael Green has also gone up at BC Christian News.

All Labels

Here is an alphabetical list of all labels used on this site so far. They are a mix of film titles, biblical characters and various other groups of posts that I thought might be useful. Labels in italics represent film (or series) titles.

You can also view this data broken down into labels by character name, Jesus Film labels, Old Testament / Hebrew Bible film labels, and New Testament film labels.

1 and 2 Kings	Joshua
A.D. (Anno Domini)	Judges
A.D. (NBC)	Judith
Abraham	Killing Jesus
Adam and Eve	King of Kings
Aquarian Gospel	King of Kings (The - 1927)
Atti Degli Apostoli	Kingdom Come
BBC's The Nativity	Kings (NBC)
BBC's The Passion	Last Days in the Desert
Beckford	Last Temptation of Christ
Ben Hur	Life and Passion of Jesus Christ
Bible (The - Huston)	Life of Brian
Bible - A History (The)	Lists
Bible Collection (The)	Liverpool Nativity
Bible Films in Production	Living Bible
Bible Miniseries (History Channel)	Living Bible Acts
Bible's Buried Secrets	Living Bible Jesus
Biblical Studies Carnivals	Living Christ Series
Big Book Media	Lumo Project
Birdsong	Magdalena
Book of Life	Margate Exodus
Books	Mary (Abel Ferrara)
Children	Mary Magdalene
Christ the Lord	Mary Mother of Jesus
Christ the Man	Mary Mother of the Christ
Clavius	Mesih
Close to Jesus Series	Miracle Maker
Color of the Cross	Moses
Creation	Moses (1996)
Cross (The - 2001)	Moses the Lawgiver
Daniel	Moses und Aron
David	My talks
Dayasagar	Nativity - Mary Joseph
DeMille	Nativity Story (The)
Disciples	Noah
Documentaries	Noah (2014)
DVD News	Old BBC Bible films
Elijah	One Night With the King
Epic Stories of the Bible	Other Films
Esther	Paradise Lost
Evan Almighty	Passion - Religion and the Movies (The)
Exodus: Gods and Kings	Passion Films Faith and Fury (The)
Friends and Heroes	Passion of the Christ
From the Manger to the Cross	Paul
Genesis	Peter
Genèse	Peter and Paul
Gideon	Prince of Egypt
God Complex	prod
Godspell	Real Old Testament
Golgotha	Reel History (Guardian)
Gospel According to St. Matthew	Resurrection (The)
Gospel Comparisons	Reviews of the Years
Gospel of John	Risen - The Story of the First Easter
Gospel Road	Rock the Boat
Greatest Story Ever Told	RoGoPaG
Greenbelt	Ruling Class
Hail Mary	Ruth
Historical Jesus	Samson
Holiday Previews	Scene Comparisons
Il Messia	Scene Guides
Il Vangelo Secondo Matteo	Secrets of the Cross (Ch.5)
Inquiry (The Final)	Silent Bible Films
Intolerance	Silver Screen Beats
Islamic Jesus Films	Solomon
Jacob	Son of Man (1969)
Jeremiah	St. Peter
Jesus (1979)	Story of Ruth
Jesus (1999)	Sweet Baby Jesus
Jesus Cameos	Ten (The - 2007)
Jesus Christ Superstar	Ten Commandments (1923)
Jesus Films Podcast	Ten Commandments (1956)
Jesus of Montreal	Ten Commandments (2006)
Jesus of Nazareth	Ten Commandments (2007)
Jesus Seminar	Testament
Jesus the Spirit of God	The Ark (BBC)
Jesus Tomb	The Bible (BBC)
Jezile (Son of Man 2006)	UK Living Bible
Job	Visual Bible
Jonah	Visual Bible - Matthew
Joseph (Genesis)	Year One
Joseph of Nazareth

Last updated 17th January 2015

First Kings now Samson

With the release of NBC's Kings just weeks away, the show's director Francis Lawrence (I am Legend) has signed up for another futuristic Bible adaptation. Variety is claiming that Lawrence has signed up with Warner Bros. to make Samson "a futuristic retelling of the Samson and Delilah story." Scott Silver (8 mile) will be writing the script with Erwin Stoff producing. Thanks to Peter Chattaway for this one.

Oh and Kings will now première on Sunday, March 15, at 8 pm, not Thursday March 19th as previously stated.

Kings: New Website & Cast News

NBC has posted an official website for their forthcoming drama series Kings(see previous posts). In addition to a atmospheric opening intro sequence they have also posted the interviews from Comic Con, bios for the cast and crew and the following synopsis (featuring at least one spoiler):

Kings is the story of David Shepherd, an idealistic soldier who is thrust into the heart of power by one act of heroism. After single-handedly defeating the enemies of his people, David is rewarded by being brought into the court of King Silas, monarch of the modern nation of Gilboa.

David is initially dazzled by the pageantry and glamour of life among the royals, only to learn that the palace is teeming with deception. The young hero soon becomes a target for the deadly schemes of those vying for control of the kingdom. But he finds support from a beautiful princess, the king's own daughter... and their forbidden romance will launch David on a daring path to adventure.

As the line between friends and enemies blurs, David must survive the treacherous corridors of power and forge a new destiny that will forever change the world.

"Kings" takes place in a modern-day kingdom named Gilboa, and its shining metropolitan capital of Shiloh. It is ruled by King Benjamin Silas, the nation’s much-loved monarch, who unified several warring territories to found Gilboa many years ago. They have since built a proud and prosperous nation. While not a perfect society, the kingdom is a beacon of hope and idealism.

But the dark clouds of war continue to rumble in the north, where the forces of enemy nation Gath are massing to invade, and threaten to destroy all that King Silas has created...

That is, until a young soldier named David slays a fearsome Goliath tank, rallying the nation... and turning the tide of history.

That final idea is an interesting move, keeping things realistically contemporary, whilst (hopefully) doing justice to the tale's most iconic story.

And Peter Chattaway has linked to an article at Entertainment Weekly which carries some more casting news. The biggest new name is that of Macaulay Culkin who will appear in a "multi-episode arc" as "the king's nephew... exiled for mysterious reasons". Miguel Ferrer (Crossing Jordan), Michael Stahl-David (Cloverfield), and Leslie Bibb (Popular) will also star.

Kings Broadcast Dates Announced

According to the official website for NBC's Kings (see my previous posts), the 2 hour pilot will broadcast on March 19th 9pm/ET. There's also a teaser trailer - although it doesn't feature any footage from the show. There's also a somewhat novel promotional feature - a fake news website from the programme's parallel world, which itself leads onto a history of "the Royal Kingdom". It's here where we finally get to see a few shots from the series itself and there's a bit of background information as well.

I'll be keeping an eye on the site over the next couple of months, and hopefully there will be an opportunity for me to review it when we come to the middle of March.

Kings Coming this Sunday

It's been a while since I wrote anything about NBC's Kings which premières this Sunday (15th March) at 8/7c. (In fact, I've been laid up after an operation so it's been a while since I wrote anything at all).

I'm still waiting for my screener, which is apparently in the post, so hopefully it'll arrive in time for me to be able to offer a review. Meanwhile, the cast and crew did a Q&A at a screening recently which Peter Chattaway linked to a couple of weeks back.

I'll be posting more on the pilot for this series over the next week or so.

Kings is Officially Cancelled

I've been meaning to post this up for a while. NBC's modernised version of the David story, Kings, has officially been cancelled. It's hardly surprising for anyone that has been following the show; halfway through it's initial broadcast the rest of the series got delayed until the summer. So on what was the news section of the show's official website there's a note from Kings creator, Michael Green. The jist of what Green says seems to be that NBC were great, but that if they'd promoted the show a little more then perhaps it might have been a hit.

Incidentally, the show is released on DVD on Tuesday.

Thanks to Brendan O'Regan for the tip off. Brendan's own write ups of the show have reached episode 9.

Brian Cox Joins Kings

A new article at The Hollywood Reporter claims that Brian Cox will star in four episodes of NBC's Kings. Cox will play "former King Vesper" - nemesis to Ian MacShane's King Saul figure. As Peter Chattaway notes, it's not immediately obvious whether Vesper relates to a particular character in the Old Testament text or whether the series spins off in it's own direction. Either way, Cox has good experience playing monarchs from the early second century BCE - the picture above is from his turn as King Agamemnon in Troy

Kings to Come to DVD

The fate of NBC's Kings goes from bad to worse. Having been bumped from Sunday night to Saturday and then back to June, producer/writer Bradford Winters has announced the inevitable - that the show has been officially cancelled.

Meanwhile however, Amazon has created a page for the forthcoming DVD. Aside from the ASIN number, and the fact that it will be released by Universal Studios there's very little to go on (suggesting it will be a while until it's released), but it's worth bookmarking for those who might be interested in buying it when it finally does find it's way to stores.

Comic Con on Kings

Peter Chattaway has done a piece on NBC's Kings at the recent Comic Con convention in San Diego. Pick of pile is a video of the leading cast and crew discussing the pilot. He also links to Tara Bennett's interview with series creator Michael Green and a piece by Liz Shannon Miller.

Kings Moved to Summer

After disappointing reviews, and bad viewing figures. NBC's Kings has been taken off air until the summer (Hollywood Reporter). The first sign that the sci-fi series was under pressure was when it got switched from Sunday night to Saturday. Now it's been taken off air altogether to make way for Law and Order re-runs, with the intention of it resurfacing on June 13th and running until 25th July.

The concept was always going to be a difficult sell, particularly for a whole series rather than simply as a one off. And the strain of trying to make credible, audience-pleasing drama whilst simultaneously trying to allegorise obvious took it's toll. Either that or they really should have sent me a screener.

For me, the sad thing about all of this is that now I may never get to see it. If it's been pulled quite so quickly, then there's a good chance it'll never get released on DVD. Thanks to BethR for breaking the bad news.

NBC to Modernise King David Working Title Kings

I'm a bit pushed for time today, but just got time to post this one up. According to Variety, NBC are producing a modern re-telling of the story of King David, with the working title Kings.

As Peter Chattaway notes, NBC are owned by the same company who owns Universal studios who have themselves got J. Michael Straczynski to write the script for a new David film which may, or may not be the one which Ralph Winter is producing.

Biblical Studies Carnival 40

Photo by Tim Parkinson, used under a Creative Commons Licence

James Gregory has posted the fortieth Biblical Studies Carnival over at his self-titled blog. Many thanks to him for that. I had wondered if anyone else had writen anything else on NBC's Kings but it appears not.

Next month's carnival will be hosted by James McGrath at Exploring Our Matrix.

Top Ten Bible Films of the Noughties

I've been meaning to post this since around mid-December but haven't quite got to it. However, with the Oscars over a week in the past I figured it was now or never (unless I turn into one of those pedants who refuse to recognise the old decade as finishing until 31st December this year).

Before I reveal the "winning" films, there are a few notes on my selection. Firstly, I've not accounted for short films. There are a number that could have been considered, but the growth of YouTube and Vimeo mean that it's almost impossible to assess everything that might qualify under those conditions. This leads me onto my second point. I have not managed to see every Bible film that was released between 2000 and 2009. I've caught most but I'm aware of films like Corina van Eijk's Samson and Delilah, Mesih (Jesus, the Spirit of God) and even NBC's Kings which have escaped my grasp. Lastly there is always a line to be drawn between Bible films and those that reference the Bible in some way but are sufficiently well set in another time period so as to make it too much of a stretch to consider them for a list like this. Here I've decided to place the line somewhere between Son of Man (which qualifies) and A Serious Man (which, regrettably, does not).

So, without further ado, allow me to unveil my Top Ten Bible Films of the Noughties.
Jezile (Son of Man)
If, 4 years after proving a hit at Sundance Son of Man is still struggling to find a decent distributor, it's certainly not on account of its quality. Mark Dornford-May's modernisation of the Jesus story roots itself in a fictional African township which is run by corrupt officials and torn apart by violence. The unconventional treatment of Jesus' death and resurrection is only one of a number of the film's bold moves, but really the film's heart lies in its political handling of Jesus' message.The Real Old Testament
Whilst he idea of filming the opening chapters of Genesis in the style of MTV's "The Real World" would probably send most filmmakers running, TROT turns out to be a work of inspired genius. Telling a 3000 year old story in the style of the 21st century's most overdone television genre strips away the pomp and piety that has become attached to these stories and lays them bare, revealing odd little details that are all too frequently glossed over. The ending might not quite live up to the opening, but reading certain parts of Genesis will never be the same again.
The Miracle Maker
If ever there was a film that disproved that animation is solely for children, this is it (well maybe this and that The Simpsons). Sure it works for kids, but I've been amazed that no matter how many times I return to this film I always find something new. Jesus may be played by a puppet, but this remains one of the most credible portrayals of a human Jesus, and it's also arguably the most Jewish Jesus ever to grace our screens. And the tight screen writing (which is remarkably well-versed in 1st century history) does justice to the story in a mere 90 minutes.

The Nativity Story
Rushed out to cash in on the success of The Passion of the Christ, The Nativity Story failed to find the audience of its predecessor. The opening scenes were wonderful however, depicting the gritty realism of life as a 1st century (BC) peasant, and whilst Keisha Castle-Hughes didn't perform as well as her début in Whale Rider, Oscar Isaacs portrayal of Joseph gave the film real heart. It was a shame that the earthiness of the first half of the film gradually gave way to kitschy Christmas card sentimentality, but even in spite of that The Nativity Story will feature as part of many a Christmas viewing tradition in years to come.

Mary
It's probably an oxymoron to call something a non-canonical Bible film, but Abel Ferrara's film about a film is not really the kind of picture to fit neatly into boxes. There is some representation of the canonical gospels here, as well as an interview with a well known Biblical scholar (Elaine Pagels), but there's also a modern day tale of infidelity and redemption and the first decent portrayals of one of the canonical gospels. And if that sounds deeply confused then it's probably a fair reflection of the film itself.

The Passion
It had been almost 40 years since the BBC had properly dramatised the Jesus story, and whilst nothing would be quite worth that kind of wait, it was certainly a fine effort. Shown in 4 parts, The Passion offered a 'real time' look at the events of Holy Week determined to be fair to the Romans and the Jewish leaders as well as the followers of Jesus. Joseph Mawle's performance as Jesus remains one of the very best though there's some great work from the lesser characters as well. And the programme offered some refreshing new takes on the old, old story.

The Gospel of John
Dwarfed by The Passion of the Christ looming in the background, this word for word adaptation of John's gospel did a surprisingly good job of enlivening a difficult, wordy text. It's due in part to a charismatic, if a little smug, performance by Henry Ian Cusick in the leading role, and a few flashes of brilliance from director Philip Saville. It may become a little turgid in places, and have floundered at the box office, taking the Visual Bible company with it, but there are plenty of strong moments as well. Not least the way the screenplay handles the gospel's anti-Semitic polemics.

The Passion of the Christ
Dividing religious leaders and film critics in equal measure Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ proved to be one of the most controversial films of all time, and certainly the surprise hit of the decade. It's easy to scoff, or to take offence at the subject matter, but there's much to admire in Gibson's film from the bold use of Aramaic to the Caravaggio-esque cinematography. And whilst those who find the film distasteful may have some valid points, what other film could unite Quentin Tarantino and the Pope?

The Apocalypse
Easily the least defensible choice on my list, not least because of a tagged on love story and poor (and by now dated) CGI. But at the same time it's one of the few films about Revelation to rely on the story's likely, historical context instead of the spectacular / bizarre.

Who Wrote the Bible
The noughties were the decade where documentary films began to emerge into the mainstream so it's more than fitting to include one on this list. Robert Beckford's controversial look at the authorship of the Bible challenged both those clinging to the traditional takes on the writers of the Bible and those who would disregard it completely. The documentary would spawn a string of films presented by Beckford which presented thoroughly 21st century takes on Christianity, unafraid to question and adopt alternative theories but rooted in belief nevertheless.

So over to you. What would you have included and what do you think I'm wrong to include?

Old Testament / Hebrew Bible Labels

Here is an alphabetical list of all the labels for films based on the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament) used on this site so far. In order to prevent the list getting too ungainly, I've grouped some films together by the lead character.

You can also view all labels, labels by character name, Jesus Films labels, and New Testament film labels.

1 and 2 Kings	Noah (2014)
Bible (The - Huston)	One Night With the King
Bible Miniseries (History Channel)	Paradise Lost
Evan Almighty	Prince of Egypt
Exodus: Gods and Kings	Real Old Testament
Genèse	Story of Ruth
God Complex	Ten (The - 2007)
Jeremiah	Ten Commandments (1923)
Kings (NBC)	Ten Commandments (1956)
Living Bible	Ten Commandments (2006)
Margate Exodus	Ten Commandments (2007)
Moses (1996)	Testament
Moses the Lawgiver	The Ark (BBC)
Moses und Aron	Year One

Last updated 17th Jan 2015

Bible Films Blog Review of 2009

2009 was the year of the Old Testament. Whilst rumours of forthcoming Jesus films came and went, this year was all about his ancestors.

The biggest Old Testament film of the year was Year One. Harold Ramis's comedy had a good number of laughs, and made a few interesting points, and whilst the gross-out factor was always going to feature strongly, it seemed a little more reigned in than previous outings by various members of the cast and crew. I really meant to write more about this film than I did, but unfortunately it came at the busiest part of the year for me, and I didn't get a review copy to be able to re-watch certain parts. I did get it on DVD for Christmas so maybe I'll write more this year.

Year One wasn't the only film released in 2009 that used large chunks of Genesis for it's laughs. August saw the release of The God Complex. I owe the filmmakers a review here, but I'm not sure they're going to want to read it. I'd expected quite a bit from the film, and whilst there are certainly a few good gags early on, they peter out until all that's left is an anti-theistic rant. I'd certainly expected this to offend some, but I'd at least hoped for a good laugh. I guess it just wasn't my humour.

One of the characters to feature in The God Complex was Job and an modern take on his story was explored in A Serious Man. I'm a fan of the Coen Brothers anyway, so their most Biblical film to date has given me plenty to think about, and I hope to see it do well at this year's Oscars.

Modernised versions of Old Testament stories featured on the small screen this year as well. Kings attempted to modernise the story of David and Saul, but hit trouble early on, and in the end took a mid season break of several months before being allowed to run it's course. Whilst it managed to form a small but solid fan base, most reviews were only so-so, and viewing figures never matched up. 2009 was definitely the year of me not getting sent screeners, but this was the most annoying. NBC didn't send me a preview disc because I wasn't resident in the US. You guys do get what that WWW bit means don't you? So it bombed, and if the DVD price ever drops enough I might fork out and buy a copy, but I suspect it will be a while until I review it.

Lastly there was also Tutta Colpa Di Giuda(It's All Judas' Fault) about a passion play being performed inside a prison with a Jesus of Montreal-esque double meaning.

2009 also saw a number of Bible films released on DVD. Jesus the Christ was a new film mashed together from bits of the Visual Bible's , Gospel of Matthew. Johnny Got his Gun was a filmed version of a new stage production of the novel. There was also a special edition DVD release of The Robe as well as DVD releases for Kings and Year One.

There was only one new book written on the subject of Bible films. Pamela Grace's "The Religious Film" looked at how a number of Bible films compared to the characteristics of hagiopics. But the year also saw a reprint of Bruce Babington and Peter Evans' classic "Biblical Epics". And on the subject of books, a couple of chapters I wrote several years ago finally saw the light in Lee and Baz's Cut to the Chase 0.5.

As for miscellanaous highlights, the stand out event of the year was the Ancient World in Silent Cinema day, which screened a number of rare early silent Bible films. I've written a number of reviews for these films, but still have a few to attend to, if I can ever find my notes again. There was also the inaugural SBL consultation on The Bible in Film and the Reel Religion memorabilia exhibition at MoBiA. Also in this section are Ben Hur's enduring adaptability finding expression in a stageshow and on the radio.

On a more personal note, highlights for me this year included, my talks at Greenbelt (download mp3) and Regents Theological College, as well as being interviewed by Premier Radio and TWR radio.

2010 may produce a Jesus film or three, although I wouldn't be shocked if none of those lined up actually appear, and rumour has it that the BBC/HBO version of The Passion (although it may be under a different name).

Egan, McShane Head Kings Cast

I mentioned back in November that NBC were producing a modern day version of the life of David called Kings. Well Variety has just announced a couple of pieces of casting: Christopher Egan (Home and Away) will play David whilst Ian McShane (Lovejoy, Deadwood) will play the role of "the monarch". I'm guessing McShane's role will be akin to that of Saul, but it's also possible his role is the modern day equivalent of Achish or Maoch. Come to think of it he could also be playing David later in life. Time will tell I guess. McShane is, of course, no stranger to the Biblical TV drama having played Judas in 1977's Jesus of Nazareth and 1985's A.D. Anno Domini.

The Variety piece also clears up one other thing: This is not the David production that J. Michael Straczynski is writing. Michael Green (Heroes) is cited as the writer for this one.

Thanks to Peter Chattaway for spotting the story.

Nativity Films Revisited

In the run up to the release of The Nativity Story back in 2006 I drew up a list of films about the birth and childhood of Jesus. I've come across quite a few more over the last decade so here's an update. I've put in a few links of interest, but haven't had time to link even to all the bits and pieces on these films even on my own blog. Overall, if you include this year's forthcoming The Star and Chasing the Star, that makes 53 films excluding documentaries (which compares to the mere 19 films I listed in 2006)

-La naissance de Jésus (1908) - Gaumont
-The Star of Bethlehem (1908) - Edison - 10 mins - B/W
-The Birth of Jesus (1909) - France - short - hand tinted colour
-La Nativité (1910) - France - short - B/W
-Herod and the Newborn King (1910) - France - Gaumont - B/W
-Star of Bethlehem (1912) review B/W - 3 reeler -
-The Three Wise Men (1913) - US-Selig - - 1000 ft - B/W
-The Birth of our Saviour (1914) - US - Edison - - 1000ft - B/W
-Naissance de Jésus (1914) link Dir: Maurice-André Maître, starring: Jacques Normand
-L 'Enfance de Jesus (1914) link
-Der Stern von Bethlehem (1921) - Germany - B/W - Lotte Reiniger
-Reina de reinas: La Virgen María - Mexican (1948)
-Mater Dei (1950) - Italy - 80 minutes - dir: Emilio Cordero
-A Child is Born (1950) - US-NBC TV - 30 mins - B/W
-The Play of the Nativity of Jesus Christ (1952) - US - Studio One in Hollywood
-The Star of Bethlehem (1954) - James Mason brief review
-The Star of Bethlehem (1956) - D/GB - 90 mins (re-release of the Reiniger film with narration in English) brief review
-Erode il grande [Herod the Great] (1959) - Italy/France - 93 mins - colour - dir: Arnaldo Genoino
-Hvezda Betlemska (1969) - Czechoslovakia - (The Star of Bethlehem) - 10 mins - animated colour.
-Jesús, el niño Dios (1971) - Mexico. Director Miguel Zacarías also directed...
-Jesus, Maria Y Jose (1972) - pictured - 92 minutes YouTube
-The Small One (1978) - US-short - 20 mins - colour
-The Nativity (1978) - US-TV - 98 mins - colour
-Mary and Joseph: A Story of Faith (1979)- Ca-TV - 152 mins - colour (review)
Cammina, Cammina [Keep on Walking] (1982) - Italy - 171 mins - colour
-Deux heures moins le quart avant Jésus-Christ (1982) review
-Hail Mary (1985) link, review
-Un bambino di nome Gesù - A Child Called Jesus (dir. Franco Rossi, 1987) FilmChat
-L'Annonce faite a Marie (1991) - dir. Alain Cuny
-Per amore solo per amore (1993) - Penélope Cruz
-Marie de Nazareth (1994) Jean Delannoy Fr/B/Mor
-La Estrella de Belen [Star of Bethlehem] (1998) Spain
-Mary Mother of Jesus (1999) Bale
-Close to Jesus: Joseph of Nazareth (2000)
-Maria, figlia del suo figlio (2000) dir: F. Costa, Italy
-The Nativity (2000) Latter Day Saints
-Saint Mary (2001) dir. Shahriar Bohrani, Iran
-Los Reyes Magos [The Magi-Kings] (2003) Spain
-Maria - Mãe do Filho de Deus (2003)
-The Nativity Story (2006) central page
-La Sacre Famiglia (2006)
-The Fourth King (2006)
-La stella dei re (2007) Italian - 90 minutes
-Birdsong (2008)
-Little Baby Jesus of Flandr (2010)
-BBC Nativity (2010)
-Io sono con te (2010)
-On Angel Wings (2014) animated short - review
-Joseph and Mary (2016)
-The Young Messiah (2016) review
-Le Fils de Joseph (2016)
-Chasing the Star (2017)
-The Star (2017) - Sony Animation

The very earliest films about Jesus were Passion Plays and as the twentieth century began these began to expand to include other episodes from the life of Jesus, including the Nativity story. The situation is complicated by the fact that these earliest tableau films were often sold in individual sections so it is difficult to work out which of the Pathé films were released in their own right.

Nevertheless, the first Nativity epic was probably Thanhouser's 1912 The Star of Bethlehem which at three reels would have run for approximately 45 minutes. Whilst only a reel's worth of material survives it's clear to see rudimentary elements of the biblical epic already in place. Herod's lavish palace is packed with beautiful courtiers in exotic dress and Herod's outfit reveals his muscular limbs. According to the Thanhouser Vimeo page for the film, its special effects, which "took a week's work",  include a bright star that appears to shepherds and magi alike and a choir of angels appear in the stable to celebrate the saviour's birth, both indicators of divine activity. There is also impressive architecture, a 200-strong cast and a reputed cost of $8,000. .

Whilst there were a number of other silent films based on the Nativity, such as Lotte Reinger's silhouetted Der Stern von Bethlehem (1921) it would not be until 1948 that a more expansive film was released. At 85 minutes, the Mexican Reina de reinas: La Virgen María (Queen of Queens: The Virgin Mary, 1948) was the longest film yet primarily focussed on Mary. Two years later the Italian film Mater Dei (Mother of God, 1950), covered the period from Mary's own childhood to Jesus' ministry. The decade witnessed vast swathes of 'pepla' such as Erode il grande (Herod the Great, 1959) which ends with Herod ordering the slaughter of the innocents as an almost casual command after hearing the story from a shepherd (there's no sign of the magi).

The 1950s also saw the first television adaptations of the Nativity story with four productions in the decade's first six years. A similar trend occurred in the latter part of the 1970s when both The Nativity (1978) and Mary and Joseph: A Story of Faith (1979) were broadcast. The only possible contenders for feature length Nativity films produced in this period, were two low-budget Mexican films by Miguel Zacarías Jesús, el niño Dios (1971, though it's length is unknown) and Jesus, Maria y José (Jesus, Mary and Joseph, 1972).

Widely regarded as quiet period for biblical films in general, there were a number of significant, feature-length, films released in the 1980s. Whilst this included traditional style Bible films such as Un bambino di nome Gesù (A Child Called Jesus,  1987) the majority took more unconventional approaches such as Jean Luc Godard's controversial Je vous salue Marie (Hail Mary, 1985), the comedy Deux heures moins le quart avant Jésus-Christ (Quarter to two before Jesus Christ, 1982) and the longest of all Nativity-themed films the Italian Cammina, Cammina (Keep on Walking, 1982). This popularity continued into the 1990s and the start of the twentieth century. Notable releases include Penélope Cruz in Per amore solo per amore (For Love, Only for Love, 1993) and Christian Bale in Mary, the Mother of Jesus (1999) as well as several films from Italy France and Spain, however none of these were the kind of big-budget spectacles that are associated with the biblical epic.

This was about to change however with the unexpected success of an independently made Bible film which also gave significant focus to the relationship between Jesus and his mother - The Passion of the Christ (2004). This emboldened New Line into giving the green light to The Nativity Story (2006) and there have been several other films since which I suspect wouldn't have seen the light of day otherwise. It is noticeable, for example, that almost all of the films made since The Passion have been English language films. Regular readers may have noticed I have discussed a few of these in recent weeks and I intend to cover some of the others in more detail than fits here in the next few weeks as well.