The Last Temptation of Christ

1988 • 163 minutes

About this movie

Powerful, passionate and thought-provoking, The Last Temptation of Christ is the extraordinary film that follows Jesus Christ's journey as He accepts His divinity and ultimate fate. Academy Award winner Martin Scorsese directs an all-star cast of Willem Dafoe, Barbara Hershey and Harvey Keitel through this visually breathtaking re-imagining of faith and sacrifice, guilt and redemption, sin and atonement. Based on the acclaimed novel by Nikos Kazantzakis, it is a masterpiece of cinematic achievement that has endured as one of the must-see films of all time.

Ratings and reviews

I heard from those who took acid that a "bad trip" can stay with you. Well, that's what this movie made me think about. A bizarre mish-mash of fantasy leaps (supposed to be from Jesus' point of view) drags the viewer in a dizzy way from the cross to a fantasy "marriage" with Mary Magdalen (ugh, most Bible accuracy people know she wasn't a prostitute)... I almost forgot to say it tried to make Judas some sort of hero, (in case there was an envelope left to "push"). Strange that a movie made to offend me should be so stultifyingly boring that some people even call it "hypnotic!" If you want a movie about the life of Jesus of Nazareth, don't waste money on this one!

Fascinating fictionalized interpretation on Jesus, Mary Magdalene & Judas. Willem Dafoe is a great character actor but I believe he was miscast in this one. But Martin Scorsese's stylized directing & the excellent cinematography, original score & strange dark abstracts of the story make this very nteresting to watch. If your easily offended by religious beliefs & inclinations based on Christianity that are not proper & accurate interpretations of the Gospels you probably should not watch this movie.

This film's reputation proceeds it, so you ought to know by now that this ain't your regular gospel flick. I understand most sentiments from the Christian community. It's blasphemous and is completely ignorant of the Biblical Canon if not an affront to the Lord Almighty himself. Still though, it's a pretty brilliant and compelling film imo.