You won't be disappointed!

Absolutely the worst movie.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

The tone of this movie is interesting -- the stakes are both dramatic and high, but it's balanced with a lot of fun, tongue and cheek dialogue.

"Patchiness" is the key word that describes everything related to "Jesus Christ Superstar" ever since the source material has been written. The Gospels are patchy piece of literature with an incoherent, anecdotal story of a Messiah. Tim Rice's libretto is a patchy attempt to give an earthly, plausible explanation of events that transpired, by applying a socio-psychological angle. Worthy and useful as it is, it still leaves gaping holes in motivation of protagonists. Patchy is, also, Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical score, ranging from repetitive pieces oblivious to demands of libretto to brilliantly poignant airs and duets that lean on best works of Romantisicm.Of course, with such foundation, no iteration of actual staging of this rock opera can ever be anything else but - patchy. Such was the 1970's concept album, the 1973's Norman Jewison's film, my 1993's high-school enactment and, obviously, this version updated for "21st century". There will never be a "definitive" version and every one will have it's downfalls, spikes of brilliance and everything in between. Directors will struggle to give it a proper setting, focus and rhythm, actors will struggle to squeeze a plausible and emotional performance out of at times wanting melodies and lyrics.So how does this "21st century" attempt fare in the eyes of this fan? I found it to be intriguing and done well enough, considering my initial skepticism and inevitable comparison with Jewison's cinematic work. There are "goods", "bads" and "inbetweens". Inbetweens first: the setting. Giving it a modern look is okay. Nothing of novelty, but nothing wrong with it either. Zealots are freedom fighters armed with assault rifles, Romans are Nazis in leather outfits, Jewish high priesthood is a board of directors. Getting back to staging indoors is also passable since it's all about mimicking MTV videos (mainly shot in studios), but it would benefit from using real locations (just like Jewison's film did) - it's more engaging for the viewer. Minor revisions of libretto were also useful although not very necessary.The "goods" are, most of all, Fred Johanson as Pontius Pilate with his mesmerizing baritone and an imposing presence; and the direction. Gale Edwards and Nick Morris gave it all they could in trying to visually plug the holes left by the script(ure), much like Jewison, but they even did one better on some occasions throughout the film. Frederick B. Owens and Renée Castle are very good in their roles (Caiphas and Mary Magdalene, respectively), not as much in the way of standing out as in the way of not messing up their parts. Unfortunately that's not that could be said for the rest of the cast.Which brings me to the "bads", which is - the rest of the cast. Jérôme Pradon as Judas should have at least been given a wig. The receding hairline, coupled with the sinister facial expression, made him look unnecessarily unsympathetic. The actor himself didn't seem too sure where to go with his character so he went all over the place. So did his singing. But he did seem enthusiastic about the role and the role of Judas is most volatile of all so whatever he does is at least passable. Rik Mayall with his gargling voice should never have been a part of any musical production. As good an actor as he is, he can't sing, nor even fake singing, even if it's a vaudeville number, that is king Herod's part. Michael Shaeffer as Annas is only interesting for being fashioned after Pinhead from Hellraiser, minus the pins. The pitch of his voice is irritating and so are the sudden switching of octaves for no good reason. Interpretations, or taking liberties with melodies and phrasing, turned out to be stumbling blocks for most, ending up in mangling melodies and rhythm more often than not.Interesting to watch but still the biggest flop of all is Glenn Carter as Jesus Christ. A flop not for his lack of talents, but for inability to carry the biggest burden: the one of playing the title role. Here is the "why": whatever liberties other characters are allowed to have with their interpretations, Jesus' part has to be done pretty much straightforward in order for everything to work. He has to go through the motions of emanating authority, wisdom, solemness, doubts, fear and suffering in that order, much like he did in the Gospels. He is traveling predestined, unwavering path while people around him are set to fall apart, puzzled about what he is supposed to be and mean. Ted Neeley once set the bar for that kind of performance and every aspiring Jesus Christ must come damn close to it or fail. Glenn carter failed. His vocal technique falls apart in heights which are crucial to his melodies. He can reach them alright, but lacks the power while up there, or at least a pleasant pitch. His acting is insecure and lacking in energy, which some other reviewers confused with "subtle". He is not all bad, has some moments while expressing solemness and suffering, but all in all he's just not Jesus Christ Superstar. Most of the entertainment coming from his role is watching him struggle.In summary, a pretty decent and courageous iteration of a classic, despite the flaws I zealously counted. Now that I finally discovered it, I'll be sure to recheck it in the future.

First of all, I really want to say that I'm not in the "let's hate on Jerome Pradon" gang. Pradon has taken some fire for his portrayal of Judas but I really think the vitriol is undeserved in many cases. Pradon's voice and approach are different to the classic Carl Anderson portrayal l but their supposed to be. Give him a chance. In my opinion, Pradon gives a Judas who is conflicted, torn, twisted, pained, and pent up. You really need to watch his performance, and watch it carefully, to get the full effect of his characterization. He doesn't belt it out like Carl Anderson, but the fact that this is musical theatre at least as much as rock doesn't bother me, though it obviously niggles some. Nonetheless on their own, his vocals wouldn't be earth- shattering, although I quite enjoy hearing the hints of French in his enunciation and the soft yet still rock-tinged and sometimes edgy European sound about them, but when you watch him, Pradon is a born actor. He acts every sung line and his physical/visual performance is wonderful.There's comedy but there's also drama and angst in his performance. He makes Judas human and multi-dimensional. He does tend to wail when singing but nonetheless, The Last Supper is amazing at times in terms of emotional delivery as is the moment of betrayal. The connection between Judas and Jesus in that moment could not have been more effective. Judas ' Death is painful--but it's meant to be. The staging when Judas is alone singing I Don't Know How to Love Him is beautiful-- filled with primal emotion. Judas is splayed on the floor, looking almost like he himself is being crucified at one point. And the staging of Superstar, the title number, is really interesting in this production. It's just a completely different approach to the song and the vocals. That sequence, along with Pradon's version of Damned for All Time/Blood money are phenomenal and it's largely down to Jerome Pradon, who makes the character his own in a totally unique way. Let him not be Carl. He's Jerome. Let this be Jerome's Judas; don't demand that it be Carl's or Murray Head's.Otherwise, this production of Superstar is eye-catching, visually engrossing, and representative of a complete vision in its staging. Its setting leaps to life with a postmodern production design including broad strokes of distopic imagery. The back wall is covered in graffiti. Starting with a great close-up of a graphitized "HATE", much of the Overture is spent in close-up shots and pans across the wall, allowing us to really take in the designs. I find this device fascinating. It gives us a powerful sense of this story's setting; the life and times of the characters. The setting in this production carries an environment of heightened reality.Glenn Carter has a strong voice and is generally solid as Jesus. Other highlights include Fred Johanson's Pilate and Michael Schaeffer's Annas. The former is a striking new characterization, painting Pilate as a weak man in the guise of a strong one, a man who seems to view his role to be as much that of a showman as a governor and who lives in terror of losing the people's support. Annas is remarkable just for being a perfectly detestable villain.Drawing parallels with sociopolitical dynamics of today, disciples are portrayed as l revolutionaries rebelling against the Roman Empire. In this production, the segment beginning with Hosanna and moving directly into Simon's song perfectly exemplifies why Judas fears the "Jesus movement" is beyond anyone's control and is dangerous.There's an interesting moment immediately after I Don't Know how to Love him. Pradon's Judas catches Mary about to kiss Jesus, who is asleep. It does show the nastier smug side of this Judas that some people really don't like, but what's interesting to me is that the moment is played entirely with visuals, set to that fantastic piece of Lloyd Webber scoring that leads into Damned for All Time.Judas, Mary, and Jesus (who awakes on Judas' arrival) express their feelings only through their facial expressions. You can see the wheels turning in characters' heads from moment to moment. The intense lighting on Judas as we see a change come over him is the perfect finishing touch.This sequence captures what I like most about this production of Superstar, along with its emotional depth and three-dimensional character treatments: through visual abstraction, it paints an intense hyper-reality that represents characters' feelings and actions more than it directly shows them at times. Through its visuals, it is at times akin to visual poetry or a cousin to ballet. In Judas' Death the noose is lowered onto to the stage by unseen hands, presenting itself to him. During Blood Money, Judas crawls from the priests in a futile attempt to escape fate and Jesus later does the same, crawling desperately from the crowd baying for his blood as Pilate gives the death sentence.This Superstar is visually stunning at times in a way completely different to the equally powerful cinematic rendition. It uses a unique medium of visual storytelling to convey drama in a uniquely compelling way. Watch the final moments, as Jesus' body is placed on the stage. Gradually, the characters depart until only Judas and Mary, the two other key players, are looking on. And Judas fittingly does witness and feel the Crucifixion in this version even though he is dead. Judas and Mary, who have been stretched with tension throughout the story, stand together over Christ's body. This is a portrait of the characters and emotional journey of the play. It is poetry composed by moving people on a live canvas. It is visual and kinesthetic poetry. In short, it is theatre.

I must say I didn't think it was a good movie. The acting was quite fake in my opinion, and the songs you hear are way to classic. Some people may like that (the classical interpretations of the songs) but I really didn't. It's a rock-musical, and it stood stay that way.I've also heard the classic version of Gethsemane of Steve Balsimo. It was very very good, but not the way the should be sang, like Ted Neeley did in the original version in 1973. Gale Edwards raped the best song of the musical. I didn't had the feeling he really meant the words he said and that's what I should feel when I hear songs, especially that song.All in all, I didn't liked the movie.

Nearly thirty years after the original movie and over thirty years since the release of the play, an updated version seemed to make sense. Nevertheless, one should only do a remake if one is certain that one can improve on the original. This, I'm sorry to say, is not the case with this version of Jesus Christ Superstar.All of the characters, with the exception of Renee Castle (playing Mary Magdelene) appear to be very aware of the fact that they are playing roles that have become iconic. The entire production appears stagy and the songs have been reworked so that they sound pompous. It's clear that the direction was attempting to capture the sense of watching a live play, while using television direction techniques to make certain that the audience focuses on what the director thinks is important. That much of the production is clever. The characters, however, never break out of two-dimensions. They possess the bland detachment that one would expect from a cardboard box. One the rare occasion that the characters do demonstrate some honest to goodness pathos, it usually manifests in an irritating manner. Jesus comes off as whiny and slightly self-absorbed. Judas' motives are never clear–is he just trying to perform an elaborate "I told you so"? Does he really love or hate Jesus? I think it's clear that the director is trying to say that Judas is ambiguous and controlled by external forces, but at the end of the day makes a clear-cut decision to betray Jesus. Okay, I'll buy that. Just direct that actor so that is made explicitly clear. Peter is wooden and statuesque. Herod is pathetic. The priest are creepy. Which brings up another point: what is with all the leather. It appears that somebody in charge of this production has some kind of S&M fetish.Interspersed amidst all this disappointment are a few good moments. Whenever Renee Castle make up the bulk of those moments. The disciples forgiving Judas and hugging him after he stirred up trouble with his "Mystifying" song and angering Jesus where he berates all the disciples is another good moment. The Simon Zelotes number beginning with a riot was also well done; unfortunately is quickly devolved and became static.Overall, the strength of this production is to make one appreciate the 1973 movie all the more.