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What's the earliest film featuring Jesus of Nazareth as a character? (slrpnk.net)

submitted 5 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

15 comments fedilink hide all child comments

Follow-up question: was it controversial at the time?

top 15 comments

sorted by: hot top controversial new old

[–] [email protected] 33 points 5 months ago* (last edited 5 months ago) (1 children)

There were a bunch of them pretty soon after films started to be screened commercially, eg The Passion, directed by Lumierre, (France) 1898 and The Passion Play of Oberammergau dir Vincent (America) 1898 - cinema was developing in both places.

They weren't particularly controversial and they were very popular. Early cinema was basically following on from theatre, and there had been an accepted European cultural tradition of depictions of Jesus death dating back to Medieval times, aka Passion Plays, and of course Christmas Nativity plays.

So films using this template did very well. You soon see longer ones through the silent era.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 5 months ago

Thanks!

[–] [email protected] 15 points 5 months ago (4 children)

If your criteria allows for short films and ones from other languages, the five minute film La Passion Du Christ fits. It's from the 1800's, which was so long ago people were probably going to drive-in theaters on their horses to see it.

[–] [email protected] 15 points 5 months ago (1 children)

They'd likely have it in a darkened room instead. Horses don't have radios so there's no way to tune in to the audio.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 5 months ago (1 children)

I'm pretty sure they had silent films throughout most, if not all, of the 19th century

[–] [email protected] 2 points 5 months ago* (last edited 5 months ago) (1 children)

Here's the joke

Here's your head

[–] [email protected] 17 points 5 months ago

Horses not having radios is a tragedy no one should ever joke about. I don't care how long ago it was. We've moved on from such foal nonsense and society's put it's hoof down. You either saddle up or bite the bit and accept your joke isn't mane stream.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 5 months ago (1 children)

It would have to - that was the length of a film reel. I think Birth of a Nation was the first non-serial multi reel film to be shown in 1915.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 5 months ago

Definitely not, though that's often cited in old textbooks.

The Story of the Kelly Gang 1906 was over an hour long, and screened as one film in both Australia and Britain. Bunch of others from various countries before 1915 as well.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 5 months ago (1 children)

It does. Any length, any language is fine.

Thanks for the suggestion! Is it the Lumiere one you're referring to?

[–] [email protected] 2 points 5 months ago

Yes.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 5 months ago (1 children)

Early films did not have languages

[–] [email protected] 4 points 5 months ago

They often had text cards

[–] [email protected] 5 points 5 months ago

This one has to be up there.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 5 months ago

Aphod’s Believe it or Not (translated from the original Aramaic).

It was basically a movie about supposed supernatural phenomena. There was a cat with two heads, a horse with no legs, a brief shot of a man walking on water, and a juggler who could make the balls turn into birds.