Best movie of this year hands down!

A different way of telling a story

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

What we have here is an interesting idea, finding the possible skeletons of Jesus. What follows is a political/religious intrigue between the Vatican, Israelis/Jews, and the Palestinians/Terrorists. I didn't read the book and will not. I think the idea of finding Jesus's skeleton is fine. The best part was in the beginning when the archeologist finds the bones, and then a Catholic priest goes into the tomb and coming out we see the horror on his face. The film devolves from there. We are introduced to Banderas as an ex-military man, now priest being sent by the Vatican to Jerusalem to investigate the findings and denounce that it is Jesus. He meets the archeologist, we get a stupid careless and nonsense car ride/comic relief. Back and forth between these characters with a lot of talking, boredom, Palestinian/Terrorist, Israeli government intrigue. Best part was when the orthodox jews started stoning Banderas. There was some serious beat down there. Later there's a car bombing. At the end, the movie ends with some kind of shoot out, helicopter and an explosion where the bones are destroyed. Banderas loses his fate in the church, but not in god. There's some nonsense romance with Banderas and the archeologist. Basically, this film is a complete borefest. The initial ideas was fine. But the execution/script was complete garbage. Finding the bones of Christ is great. But then you need a writer with some intelligence to come up with a compelling story. This one does not have it. It would have been better if they found the bones, someone cuts himself, blood flows on the bones, later the body comes back to life, not as Jesus, but as Juda, and this is the anti Christ, and then flows some kind of end of world death and destruction. Now that would be interesting. Forget Plan 9 from Outer Space. That is truly one of the worst films ever made. But it looks like The Body had a budget. So, with the budget, This is the Worst Film Ever Made. Banderas does fine with the material. It's not his fault.

The Body is a film beginning with an Israeli archaeologist named Sharon Golban (played by Olivia Williams) who discovers a hidden tomb in Jerusalem with bones that could possibly be those of Jesus Christ. The Vatican sends Father Matt Gutierrez (played by Antonio Banderas) with the sole purpose of proving that the bones do not belong to Christ. I first watched The Body a few years ago for a biblical traditions class, and didn't understand the concepts very well. I simply watched the movie with eyes for entertainment rather than learning, and in terms of religion, I couldn't fully grasp the consequences of what would happen if a person found the bones of Jesus Christ. However, after taking another religion of world religions, I was able to understand the second time when I watched The Body, why so many various groups were affected by this one possible discovery. This movie dives deep into the issue of issue of faith, especially the faith of Father Matt Gutierrez, who struggles between this duty to the Vatican and his duty to God and his beliefs. Watching this film, I also learned a great deal more about Christianity, as it focused a great deal on the details of Christ's death, as the gospels had stated. What I loved the most about the film was that it didn't just focus on the effects of the discovery on only Christians, but also brought in the viewpoints and backgrounds of Judaism and Islam; also not focusing only on the effect religiously, but also politically and scientifically, explaining various points about archaeology and evidence. In The Body, the effects of the discovery of bones that were possibly those of Christ's were not only explored in groups, but with individuals themselves. For Father Matt Gutierrez, he was forced to question whether he consistently denied the possibility of the bones being Christ's, due to the Vatican stressing the need to stand by that belief or if it was due to his own personal beliefs and faith. The film also connects to the present ongoing battle between Christians, Jews, and Muslims in the fight for control over the Holy Land. One of the main problems that I had about the film was that although throughout the film, new questions constantly began to rise, by the end of the film, most of those questions had gone unanswered, leaving me with many new unanswered questions. When the film ends, I am still greatly questioning the background and origins behind the bones found by the archaeologist. Overall however, The Body was a film that was both educational and entertaining to watch. Not only did it present an interesting and capturing story plot, but I learned a great deal more about several religions, like Judaism, Islam, and especially Christianity, the many conflicts that arise from a possible discovery of the bones of Christ, and finally the internal struggles that individuals are presented with regarding their faith and what they believe.

Good idea, good cast, good camera, poor script and lazy dialogs. I didn't expect it to be a landmark, but the production didn't even try enough.It could have been a great religious thriller (the idea was good) and a great political statement (at least three sides to depict).What the movie does instead, is deliver lazy dialog, simplify the religious implications and picture the local politics in the safest way possible.Nothing intense enough. After I saw the film, it felt like a soap opera :(

Actually, I'm a catholic priest, I have lived for six months in Jerusalem to study Bible and archeology. And that movie really absorbed me. The atmosphere of Jerusalem, halfway between East and West, the political problems are well depicted. All the city fly-by shots make me feel the Jerusalem mood. It's true sometimes that the Church stuff could have been better rendered : religious dresses or biblical references. I like too that the "love story" between fr Matt and Sharon doesn't go too far (as in the novel)... Last factor : the faith problem. At the end of the movie, Matt doesn't have any scientific proof whether it is the body of Christ or not... So, what remains to him is faith and not a scientific certainty. He is really "a man of God". "If Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain" says Paul. So Faith tells me that Christ is arisen and that Science should demonstrate that the body couldn't be Christ's (Science cannot prove resurrection but should prove that the facts don't contradict these beliefs). Even that scientific comfort isn't given to him. I have watched the movie with some traditionalist friends and they didn't like the movie for the very reason I liked it. Of course, the Body is not a masterpiece. But it cannot leave us unconcerned.