The Nativity Story. One family. One journey. One child who would change the world forever
Your Business Blogger and Charmaine and the Penta-Posse were honored to attend a private screening of The Nativity Story Saturday morning before last, in Northern Virginia. This is an unpaid review. We even bought our own popcorn.
(Multi-plex Theaters: the movies are a front; The real money is in the concession stands.)
Pope Benedict XVI turned down an invitation to attend the premiere on Sunday, November 26th, even though 
Joseph and Mary and
baby Jesus it was screened in his backyard, The Vatican. The Nativity Story is a (true) story about an unmarried pregnant woman. The Catholic Church frowns on such conditions.
You would have thought that the Pope would have granted an indulgence for this one exception, this one out-of-wedlock birth.
Maybe just this one. Mary’s. The Pope should have watched The Nativity Story.
For the Baby Jesus: Prophet, Prince and King.
I don’t blame him, though, for being leary of a Hollywood interpretation of the Savior’s birth. Given their track-record. But they played it straight, remained faithful to the original script, and have made a movie well worth seeing.
The movie opens on December 1st. Even though the Pope didn’t see it; you should. Go see it this weekend and let us know what you think.
Charmaine didn’t care for the Deep Space 9/Gabriel the archangel character. Too much a-blending of science fiction and theology. Not that Godless liberals could tell the difference.
The film gets its PG rating for the violence. Which really wasn’t all that bad for our times, or for the turn of the last millennium. The movie opens with Roman soldiers drawing their short swords to chop up all the baby boys under two. No blood, no gore was depicted. (The Dude, pre-teen, was mildly disappointed.) But the scene was terrifying enough. Your women-folk will cry.
However, no actual babies or animals were harmed in the making of the film. Only in real life.
The Three Wise Men
Herod, right and his son. Really Bad Guys.
One of my favorite parts was where Herod’s tax collectors would extract interest and penalties totaling one-third of a man’s estate. Crucifixion compels compliance.
However.
However, we haven’t seen a 1/3 tax rate since, well, Christ was born.
Goodness, tax collectors nowadays take 45% of our income each year.
Maybe the Romans were more civilized than we are today.
When you go to the movie, do get there on time, it starts fast with little credit rolling at the beginning.
And as Keith Appell from Creative Response Concepts says, “Prepare to be entertained.”
My hero of the movie, and on this side of eternity, would be Joseph. His actions taking care of Mary, make him a better man than most. Especially for the shame he’d have to endure.
The other (anti) hero would be Herod, for keeping taxes low.
The Nativity, The Birth changed the world. The movie could change your life.
Thank you (foot)notes:
Publicity for the private screening was ably handled by Creative Response Concepts who invited Your Business Blogger, Kith and Kin to attend the screening for New Line Cinema.
For Cinephiles by a Cinephile has analysis and links.
UPDATE: Drudge reports The Nativity Story booted out of Chicago public festival.
By DON BABWIN, CHICAGO (AP) – A public Christmas festival is no place for the Christmas story, the city says. Officials have asked organizers of a downtown Christmas festival, the German Christkindlmarket, to reconsider using a movie studio as a sponsor because it is worried ads for its film “The Nativity Story” might offend non-Christians.
New Line Cinema, which said it was dropped, had planned to play a loop of the new film on televisions at the event. The decision had both the studio and a prominent Christian group shaking their heads.
“The last time I checked, the first six letters of Christmas still spell out Christ,” said Paul Braoudakis, spokesman for the Barrington, Ill.-based Willow Creek Association, a group of more than 11,000 churches of various denominations. “It’s tantamount to celebrating Lincoln’s birthday without talking about Abraham Lincoln.”
From Reuters via HecklerSrpay,
The audience of some 8,000 people who attended a benefit gala premiere in the Vatican’s vast Paul VI Hall broke into applause five times during the screening and again at the end. It was the first feature film to premiere at the Vatican. “It is well done,” said Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Vatican’s Secretary of State, who ranks second only to Pope Benedict in the Vatican hierarchy. “It re-proposes this event which changed history with realism but also with a sense of great respect of the mystery of the nativity,” he told reporters afterwards. “It is a good cinematic event …the judgement is positive.
Full Cast and Crew for The Nativity Story (2006) From IMDb, unpaid link,
IMDbPro.com offers representation listings for over 65,000 individuals, including actors, directors, and producers, as well as contact details for over 10,000 companies in the entertainment industry.
Directed by Catherine Hardwicke
Writing credits (WGA) Mike Rich (written by)
Cast (in credits order)
Keisha Castle-Hughes …. Mary
Oscar Isaac …. Joseph
Hiam Abbass …. Anna
Shaun Toub …. Joaquim
Ciarán Hinds …. King Herod
Shohreh Aghdashloo …. Elizabeth
Stanley Townsend …. Zechariah
Emilia Fortunato …. Bethlehem Townsperson #8
Alexander Siddig …. The Angel Gabriel
Nadim Sawalha …. Melchior
Eriq Ebouaney …. Balthasar
Stefan Kalipha …. Gaspar
Alessandro Giuggioli …. Antipas
Farida Ouchani …. Ruth
Saïd Amadis …. Tero
Maria Giovanna Donzelli …. Mary’s Friend #1
Francesca Piliero …. Mary’s Friend #2
Serge Feuillard …. Eldest Priest
Kais Nashif …. Benjamin
Andy Lucas …. Tax Collector #1
Tomer Sisley …. Tax Collector #2
Jeffery Kissoon …. Harod’s Architect
Lucia Zotti …. Elizabeth’s Aunt
Monica Contini …. Elizabeth’s Cousin
Paola Sotgiu …. Midwife
Gabriele Scharnitzky …. Palm Reader
Stewart Scudamore …. Street Preacher
Chiara Di Pede …. Girl Taken By Soldiers
Zinedine Soualem …. Girl’s Father
Luciana Paolicelli …. Girl’s Mother
Damir Todorovic …. Soldier at Collection
Matt Patresi …. Sentry Soldier
Ted Rusoff …. Old Shepherd
Sami Samir …. Thief
Yvonne Sciò …. Thief’s Accomplice (as Yvonne Brulatour Sciò)
Andrea Bruschi …. Bethlehem Townsperson #1
Jean-Claude Deret …. Bethlehem Townsperson #2 (as Jean-Claude Breitman-Deret)
Angela Iurilli …. Bethlehem Townsperson #3
Francesco Martoccia …. Bethlehem Townsperson #4
Alessandro Piscitelli …. Bethlehem Townsperson #5
Maria Antonietta DiMonte …. Bethlehem Townsperson #6
Emilio Adrisani …. Bethlehem Townsperson #7
Marty Bowen …. producer
Wyck Godfrey …. producer
Enzo Sisti …. line producer
Tim Van Rellim …. executive producer
Original Music by Mychael Danna
Cinematography by Elliot Davis
Film Editing by Robert K. Lambert (chief film editor)
Stuart Levy
Casting by
Priscilla John
Mindy Marin
Juliette Ménager
Shaila Rubin
Production Design by Stefano Maria Ortolani
Art Direction by Maria-Teresa Barbasso
Marco Trentini
Set Decoration by Alessandra Querzola
Costume Design by Maurizio Millenotti
Makeup Department, Abounouom Mariam Lee …. makeup artist
Production Management
Andrea Alunni …. unit manager
Jay Vinitsky …. post-production supervisor
Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Tarik Ait Ben Ali …. second second assistant director: Morocco
Inti Carboni …. first assistant director: second unit
Yann Mari Faget …. second assistant director: Morocco
Alessandra Fortuna …. second second assistant director
Richard Graysmark …. second assistant director
Ahmed Hatimi …. first assistant director: Morocco
Jamie Marshall …. first assistant director: second unit
Justin Muller …. first assistant director
Edoardo Petti …. second assistant director: Italy
Art Department
Francesca Birri …. construction coordinator
Massimo Ciaraglia …. props
Cristiano Donzelli …. storyboard artist
Roberta Federico …. assistant art director
Jon Marson …. key greensman
Monica Sallustio …. assistant art director
Daniela Voccia …. assistant art director
Daniela Voccia …. assistant production designer
Sound Department
Beau Borders …. sound re-recording mixer
Gary C. Bourgeois …. sound re-recording mixer
Joe Breaux …. assistant music editor
Rickley W. Dumm …. sound effects editor
Russell Farmarco …. supervising adr & dialogue editor
Richard Ford …. music editor
Luis Galdames …. assistant sound editor
Brad Haehnel …. scoring mixer
Catherine Harper …. foley artist
Darrin Mann …. foley mixer
Sarah Payan …. dialogue editor
Greg Steele …. adr mixer
Cameron Steenhagen …. dialogue editor
Dylan Voigt …. sound mixer: second unit
Greg Zimmerman …. adr recordist
Iain Jamieson …. assistant adr recordist (uncredited)
Special Effects by
Renato Agostini …. special effects supervisor
Danilo Bollettini …. special effects foreman
Maurizio Corridori …. special effects coordinator
Franco Simeone …. special effects technician
Visual Effects by
Brian Begun …. digital compositor: Digital Domain
Sean Coonce …. digital artist: Hammerhead
Lee Croft …. digital paint & rotoscope lead: Digital Domain
Brady Doyle …. visual effects coordinator: Hammerhead
Michelle Eisenreich …. visual effects producer: Hammerhead
Theresa Ellis …. visual effects supervisor
Florian Gellinger …. digital effects supervisor
Scott Harper …. visual effects supervisor
Darin Hilton …. matte painter
Brian Jones …. visual effects editor
James Kuroda …. digital compositor: Digital Domain
Dan Levitan …. digital supervisor
Mamie McCall …. animator
Daniel Mellitz …. digital artist
Todd Perry …. technical director
Corinne Pooler …. visual effects producer: Digital Dream
M. Zachary Sherman …. digital effects artist
Jay Shindell …. visual effects
Carsten Woithe …. visual effects: previz
Dan Patterson …. digital character artist: Digital Domain (uncredited)
Stunts
Joseph Beddelem …. stunts
Philippe Losson …. stunts
Stefano Maria Mioni …. stunt coordinator: Italy
Emiliano Novelli …. stunts
Marco Pancrazi …. stunts
Francois Poirier …. stunts
Cedric Proust …. stunt coordinator
Massimo Racca …. stunts
Gabriele Ragusa …. stunt double
Sgarbi Roberto …. stunts
Florian Robin …. stunts
Other crew
Ngadi Abdeslam …. assistant location manager
Barbara Adducci …. assistant production coordinator
Faith Allbeson …. casting associate
Khalid Ameskane …. transportation captain
Carlo Antonioni …. horse master: Italy
Andy Arnautov …. gaffer: Morocco
Mohamed Atbir …. production assistant
Yael Aviv …. casting: Israel
Cassandra Barbour …. rights and clearances
Ludovico Bettarello …. digital dailies encoding: Technicolor Rome
Ludovico Bettarello …. digital dailies online
Alessio Bramucci …. best boy electric
Gary Burritt …. negative cutter
Sabrina Canale …. assistant to executive producer
Giovanni Casalnuovo …. associate costume designer
Houssna Choukri …. assistant: M. Tim Van Rellim
Claudia Cimmino …. travel coordinator
Leonardo de Angelis …. transportation captain
Jessica Drake …. supervising dialect coach
Saida Elidrissi …. production secretary
Julio Ferrario …. creative director: main titles
Alice Filippi …. set production assistant
Paolo Frasson …. dolly grip
William J. Fulco …. consultant: theology and aramaic
Gian Claudio Giacomini …. second assistant camera: “a” camera, second unit
Pamela B. Green …. main title producer
Holly Hagy …. production coordinator
Harvey Harrison …. director of photography: second unit
Rebecca Higginson …. costumer: second unit
Rob Hoffman …. assistant: Catherine Hardwicke
Russ Howard III …. music programmer
Zinedine Ibnou Jabal …. casting: Morocco
Hervé Jakubowicz …. casting: France
Silvie Janculová …. travel coordinator
Lara Khachooni …. first assistant editor
Kara Lipson …. casting associate
Norma Marie Mascia …. production coordinator
Alex Matcham …. production controller
Ryan Miningham …. general assistant
Nata More …. set production assistant
Cariddi Nardulli …. assistant: Enzo Sisti
Daniela Ovi …. post-production assistant
Erik Paoletti …. location manager
Jim Passon …. color timer
Robert E. Phillips …. digital intermediate assistant producer
Cedric Proust …. animal trainer
Hicham Regragui …. transportation coordinator
Prokop Satochin …. key grip: second unit
Annalisa Schmid …. accommodation coordinator
Russell Scott …. casting associate
Laura Sevier …. rights and clearances
Jaromir Simek …. rigging gaffer
Stefania Sisti …. production secretary
Jesse Springer …. consultant: visuals and story
Wanda Zaccaro …. assistant to actress
On the film: Looks completly uninteresting, and its not a true story. That Y chromosome had to come from someone.
Christmas: A Christian holiday? Only by adoption. Christmas has bits and pieces from many sources. Christian, pagan, secular, and just commercial. Even its date has no connection to Christ, it was just times to coincide with a romen celebration for the sake of convenience.
Holly, berries… pagan. Santa, who probably gets more attention than Jesus at this time of year, was a vague myth based on a christian saint but now distorted beyond all recognition. The whole north-pole-and-raindeer thing is pure fantasy with just a hint of pagan influence. Yule log, pagan fertility and new-year ritual. Its so un-christian, that just after the English Civil War a very strict Christian – Cromwell – tried to ban celebrating the holiday entirely – on the grounds that all this dancing and present-giving is no way to celebrate the birth of the savior.
A friend of mine wrote a post on the subject which makes very interesting reading. I dont want to link to his blog here, so I made a copy of it: http://moronality.blogspot.com/2006/11/i-wanted-to-show-an-entry-on-friends.html
How come this never remembers my personal info? 🙂 Heh…
Randall and I saw a private screening of this movie last night and the place was packed out. The audience cheered at the end and that was very cool.
I also didn’t like the angel…to me it was creepy….augh….but the overall movie was pretty good.
Although I think it started out boring and kids under 10 or 11 might not enjoy or understand the film.
I loved the ending though…and the wise men. They were cool.
Oh and our popcorn and slurpee was only a mere $15 🙂
Hi there. I loved the film. Just saw it this morning (Australian time). I’ve come across this site while looking for information about the costumes used. I am a knitter who is also getting into weaving and would really like more info on how these costumes were made and the clothing of the time. Does anyone know where I could get this kind of info? Please email me on knit_aholic@yahoo.com.au if you do.
Thanks.
Today, we took our whole staff at Park Community Church to see The Nativity Story. My instant review is that it is faithful to the Biblical story, given that there is not a lot of scriptural text to work with in making the film. I agreed with Peter Chattaway of Christianity Today who said ” Castle-Hughes was a bit of a blank”.
Overall, I felt the strongest character was Joseph, who faced a cultural uncomfortable situation, (pregnant fiancée), yet continually showed us that he would do the right thing and make the right decision, in leading and guiding his family. In this film, Joseph is freed to show us the struggles that he faced – no whitewashing of the strain he felt in his home village and the sense of betrayal by Mary. Yet he shows us a sense of humor on the journey.
I think this was brilliantly filmed in Morocco, Italy, Nazareth and France and served as an authentic story-telling of the Nativity story when the God of the universe stepped into our reality and allowed His son to be born of a human mother.
Tax Carnival #7: Merry Taxes!
You think my greeting is a bit early, right? Not so, my skeptical little elves. Even as you rush from store to store, online cart to mall, you need to make a little time for taxes this month so that you don’t end up with a terrible tax surprise when Ap…
I don’t think the movies are a “front.” I think they’re a loss-leader…
…and I’m looking forward to seeing this. Regarding the first comment: too archly uninformed about the historical development of the Christmas holy day. Superficial knowledge of coincidental information doesn’t prove an argument.
Haven’t seen the film yet but definitely looking forward to Ciaran Hinds as Herod the Great. How can someone not get interested in the machinations of a character that is the King of Judaea but was not considered Jewish. Plus Hinds has now played Julius Caesar, the premier of Russia, a child molester and Rochester(not the Jack Benny one).