- A short, accessible introduction to religious film, exploring the genre as spectacle, as musical, and as controversy
- Examines the historical, cultural and critical background for religious films from the silent era through to the present day
- Introduces the complexities and characteristics of this iconic genre of film, including common sounds and images, and the values that most traditional films of this kind uphold
Acknowledgments.
1. Introduction: The Religious Film and the Hagiopic.
2. Historical Overview.
3. Critical Overview.
4. King of Kings (1961): Spectacle and Anti-Spectacle.
5. The Song of Bernadette (1943): The Religious Comfort Film.
6. Jesus Christ Superstar (1973) and Jesus Christ Superstar (2000): The Religious Musical.
7. The Gospel According to Matthew (1964) and Jesus of Montreal (1989): The Alternative Hagiopic.
8. The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928) and The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc (1999): Transcendence and Exploitation.
9. The Last Temptation of Christ (1988) and The Passion of the Christ (2004): The Sacrificial Hagiopic.
Notes.
Bibliography.
Index.