The stories of Christ have been told from many different points of view and are generally based on the limited source material we have of His life. For many, He is the most important person to walk the earth in human history. One would hope that we would have more than a mere handful of detailed moments of His ministry. Because of this, films with Christ as the lead role tend to repeat themselves time and time again, telling the same stories of the miracles, crucifixion and resurrection. But what about the parts of Christ’s life that aren’t written down? What kinds of things would He say or how would He act in situations of which we have no record of? This is where filmmakers really get to use their imagination and fill in the gaps.
Directed by Rodrigo García, Last Days in the Desert stars Ewan McGregor as both Jesus and Devil. The film opens with Christ on his journey back from the desert where he has just fasted for forty days. He seems somewhat lost as he makes his way back to Jerusalem and stumbles on a family who He asks for water and directions. The family consists of a father, (Ciarán Hinds) a mother, (Ayelet Zurer) and a son (Tye Sheridan), all of whom remain nameless throughout the film. The son offers to take Jesus in to rest as he seems tired and weak. To return the favor, Jesus offers to help them build a new house that they have been working on. The rest of the film takes place in this small spot in the desert where Jesus is caught in between this family’s conflict and tries to help resolve their issues.
The mother is terminally ill, and the father and son are at odds with each other. The son is tired of living in the desert and wants to move to Jerusalem, or in other words, he is more of a city boy. The father has moved the family out to the desert because of all of the corruption and sin in the city and wants to shelter his family. He also thinks the desert is the only place where one can see his true self because its ruthlessness strips everything away. This statement possibly alludes to the reason as to why Jesus chose the desert as the place to “discover His true self.” For the rest of the film’s runtime, Jesus attempts to play therapist and sort out their differences and help mend their relationship, all while He is constantly nagged and provoked by the Devil himself.
This film is not your average take on the biblical stories of Christ. Here, Jesus is depicted as a young, soft-spoken rabbi/carpenter who has not yet begun his ministry. The family has no idea who He is beyond the fact that he is a religious man. The attempt to humanize Christ is successful on every level. There are no sermons, miracles, or mentions of His ministry or mission. The end of the film briefly cuts to His crucifixion and burial with no scene or reference to His resurrection. The Devil is humanized at the same time through conversations with Jesus. One scene in particular is one of the more interesting moments. Jesus and the Devil have a calm and civil conversation about God and gives some perspective on the Devil’s point of view. The depiction of the Devil is just as human as the depiction of Christ, from his demeanor to his appearance.
The film is not without its flaws, however. There are a couple dream sequences that don’t amount to anything. I am all for ambiguity and symbolism, but I found it hard to see why they were necessary. The performances from everyone were noteworthy, but the story did seem to drag at times as there is nothing really exciting or riveting that happens in the film. The last shot of the movie was also bothersome because it feels completely irrelevant and out of left field in context with the rest of the film. I would love to hear a director’s commentary as to why he chose to place that scene in the film because it is beyond me.
All that said, I think this is a unique take on Christ and García should be commended for imagining an entire segment of Christ’s life. He successfully humanizes the character of Christ in a way that most biblical films have not. If you want to experience a more intimate and human side to Christ, this will do the trick. This film is not meant to convert or even strengthen one’s faith in Christianity, but is an objective take on the humanity of the savior and redeemer of the world. This may not be the best movie to celebrate the Easter holiday. But when you want to shake things up a bit, this is worth putting on your list. Happy Easter.
