By REY FLORES
Not since I viewed Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ had I been so excited to watch a movie about Jesus. Risen, however, isn’t so much about Jesus as it is about one man who, like many of us, came to believe in God’s time under his own special circumstances.
God’s time for this man was Jesus’ Resurrection from the dead. I couldn’t imagine a more powerful way for one to start believing in our risen Lord than to be given the task of finding the holiest of fugitives.
Set exactly at the time of Jesus’ crucifixion and Resurrection, Risen was released by no accident at the beginning of this season of Lent. Hollywood, perhaps, isn’t completely clueless when it realizes and acts upon making movies for Christian audiences who have increasingly flexed their spending-dollar muscle at the box office in the last few years.
As with any Bible-based story, one could easily say that Risen says a lot about our own times. This is especially true given the soft persecution of Christians by an overreaching and overbearing government which likes to tear down public displays of crosses and the Ten Commandments.
In Risen, Clavius, a well-respected Roman soldier, is assigned by Pontius Pilate to ensure that the crucified Yeshua stays put in His tomb, but, as we all know, that wasn’t the plan. Instead, Clavius becomes a biblical version of Chief Deputy Marshal Samuel Gerard to Jesus’ Dr. Richard Kimble from the old The Fugitive television series — except Jesus is not running the way Kimble did in the series.
Clavius is played very well by veteran actor Joseph Fiennes who does a terrific job of balancing his tough macho exterior and bravado with his dramatic desire to get to the truth. Something inside him has been stirred, as he tries to save his own tail from Pontius Pilate’s displeasure because he allowed Yeshua to escape, and he also starts to believe that there really was a resurrection.
The film starts off with a bloody and violent sequence as crucifixions are, naturally, depicted on film. The momentum builds up after Yeshua is found to be missing — that’s when the “greatest manhunt in history” begins.
From there it’s Fiennes investigating, interrogating, and getting to know those who followed Yeshua before He was crucified. Without spoiling a story you already know for the most part, Risen is yet another tale of cold hearts who have been taught and conditioned to believe that this world is all there is and that all that mumbo-jumbo about a God is for the weak or crazy.
Coming from the Roman soldiers’ perspective is a refreshing angle because these are precisely the guys closest to our Lord, yet they are the most abusive ones — that is, until they see the light.
Altogether I think that even a nonbeliever might enjoy this film for its acting, terrific cinematography, the soundtrack, the costumes — and even bits of humor here and there not common to films dealing with such serious topics.
I know there are many parents who still will not allow their children to watch The Passion of the Christ until they are at least 12 years of age, mainly because of the extreme violence depicted in the scourging and crucifixion of our Lord. But since the violence in Risen is very brief, I think it’s a great film for families during Lent on Sundays.
You might want to leave anyone under age eight at home with the babysitter, but otherwise it’s a great story the entire family will enjoy.
The redemption of a Roman soldier is always a good lesson in my book. Any story to do with Jesus may not always be well portrayed in movies, but when done right, it is an absolutely powerful evangelizing tool in a world where more people attend movies than Mass.
Risen is one of these great films. Now if we can get moviegoers to go to Mass, then we’ve really got a blockbuster!
Risen is now playing at theatres nationwide. Visit www.risen-movie.com to view the trailer.
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