RSS
Home
From the Manger to the Cross (1912) movie review
Print
Email
RSS
Subscribe
Image Entertainment graphic
“From the Manger to the Cross,” a rendition of the life of Jesus Christ, was one of the first feature-length motion pictures.
Produced in 1912, the movie lasts about an hour and 10 minutes – quite long for the early days of film.
Made long before sound was incorporated into movies, a copy is available for instant viewing on Netflix. The original was completely silent; the version on Netflix has a church organ soundtrack, which is an improvement.
An attempt to turn the movie into a talkie years later, with voice-overs, didn’t go over well.
It’s easy to understand why the movie was popular and made a lot of money for Warner Brothers.
The company faced a number of obstacles. Many churches in 1912 were against anyone watching movies. As soon as any medium is developed, someone uses it to display some variation of pornography and movies are no exception.
What passed for pornography in those days came into being shortly after it was discovered how to make pictures move. Many considered movies evil because of what some used the technology for.
Another obstacle was baptism. Churches disagree on what constitutes baptism. Some believe in immersion in water, others believe in the sprinkling of holy water. The producer kept baptism out of John the Baptist’s introduction of Jesus as the Messiah.
Thirdly, even in religious circles in 1912 some were beginning to question the Resurrection. The movie ends with Jesus’ death, while interestingly retaining the equally controversial Virgin Birth and variety of miracles.
What may have sold the movie is the decision to shoot it on location.
In 1912, very few knew what the Holy Land looked like. Photographs existed, but this was a movie.
The acting and special effects are not superb by 2009 standards, but it’s worth an hour and some minutes of your time. It’s an early attempt to treat the life of Jesus with reverence and respect.
I give it a B.
Related Articles:
Add a Comment
