It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

Asked to helm a stage play about the life of Jesus Christ that would appeal to modern audiences, a Montreal stage actor sparks controversy when his play proves a success due to its blasphemous nature in this Canadian drama. While there are some amusing moments early on (especially as he sets about recruiting actors who dub adult films), the movie is rather slow to warm up with the juice of the material only really emerging in the film's second half. That said, 'Jesus of Montreal' is encapsulating at its best as the protagonist becomes more and more like Christ while rehearsing (and playing) the role and as the Church figures start to show their real colours with their sponsoring of his show; "not everyone can afford psychoanalysis, so they come here" bluntly states one such official at a pivotal point. There is also much to like in how innovative the play is, with audience members literally walking around as the cast members change location, and there is a fun irony in how the play captures larger audiences than anything else ever sponsored by the Catholic Church, though for what they believe to be the wrong reasons. Some elements of the film may be a little over-the-top, such as an angry fit during an advert audition; one's mileage may also vary depending on one's familiarity with the biblical elements paralleled here, but this is generally solid stuff.

Okay, at the outset I must point out that some who watch this film might be offended. The passion play that is portrayed in the film contains quite a bit of non-Biblical material that tends to humanize Jesus and de-emphasize his divinity. A literal interpretation of the life and death of Christ, this is not! Also, Catholic hierarchy are deliberately compared to the Pharisees who persecuted Jesus and some Catholics might feel very uncomfortable with this. In addition, in parts of the play, Jesus is played naked. At first, this shocked me, but this was much more accurate than the usual loincloth portrayal of him--shocking, but not sacrilegious to me. So parents might want to think twice about letting the kids see this, or at least the would want to discuss the film with them.The film started relatively slowly, so I recommend you suspend your judgment until you've seen it all. A relatively unknown actor is asked by a hypocritical priest to re-write and perform the passion play at a shrine in Montreal, Canada. The play is quite a departure from the norm, as some of the actors are clearly not the "nice" sort of folks you'd expect to be doing religious plays. For example, one does voice dubbing for pornographic films and another does crappy ads that rely on her body more than her acting skills (a 20th century variation on followers like Mary Magdalene and other sinners--this was clever). These choices actually made sense as did many of the occurrences in the film because they were meant to be symbolic of the life of Christ. The characters themselves didn't realize this, but throughout the film they mirror the story from the Gospels. After a while, the actor who plays Jesus begins to lose himself in the role--acting out scenes such as chasing the money-lenders out of the temple and the actual death and resurrection of Christ. All the parallels are too many to repeat here, but someone with a decent knowledge of the life of Jesus will often notice the parallels.In many ways, the final results can be both affirming to believers yet frustrating as well. Frustration at some of the offensive lines of dialog and the way they've made the life of Christ rather revisionistic (saying that salvation is an individual thing--de-emphasizing Christ's part in this and making it more "touchy-feely"). But the script is so very clever and manages to also make Jesus come alive, in a sense, as the central messages are proclaimed well. Plus, after the death of Jesus in the film, it does a good job of showing how the message and legacy continues. Overall, an excellent and compelling film that is sure to make an impact on the viewer.By the way, this film was released on DVD by Koch-Lorber. While this company has a great track record for bringing independent and foreign films to DVDs, they also usually lack any sort of meaningful bonus materials. For the feature film, I give it an A. For the extras, I give them a D-.PS--Like the great BARBARIAN INVASIONS (also by the same director and starring some of the same cast), this film was highly critical of the Canadian health care system--showing it was being uncaring and overwhelmed. These two films make an interesting counter-point to Michael Moore's SICKO, which tends to glorify this same system!

A priest in a large Catholic church in Montreal thinks the church's annual passion play is getting stale and needs updating. He hires Daniel, an actor, to accomplish this task. Daniel takes his assignment seriously, thinking and studying and putting together a cast of talented actors. The quest for the cast is quite humorous - one actor is dubbing an adult movie, another is appearing in a perfume ad (where she is seen walking on water), and so forth. The actors indeed come up with a play that has the play's audience moving from location to location for the performance of each station.The passion play performed in this movie gave me a better appreciation and understanding of the power and significance of the Jesus myth than anything I have ever read or seen. As a lifelong atheist I can say it is wonderful. Lothaire Bluteau gives a powerful (even passionate?) performance as Jesus.I was uncertain where "Jesus of Montreal" was going after the performance of the passion play. But that is where things really got interesting. Performing the play has had a marked effect on the cast and Daniel's life starts to take on certain aspects of the life of Christ. Director/writer Denys Arcand is clever in the way he presents the parallels.Daniel is tempted by a publicist who tells him he can make him rich and famous and details some of the techniques. One suggestion is that Daniel write a book, and when Daniel says he doesn't have anything to say the publicist retorts, "Some ways of saying nothing go over so well. Think of Ronald Reagan." And there are plenty of writers who could write the book and, at the least, Daniel could publish a cookbook, since they always sell.There is a parallel to Christ's running the moneychangers out of the temple, healing the sick, and even the crucifixion. The play is too avant-garde for the Church and they try to shut it down - refusing to desist Daniel is arrested in the middle of the play while he is on the cross. The movie is filled with such pointed commentary.In passing Arcand touches on the deficiencies of the Canadian health care system (an emergency patient is told to take number forty-eight and wait in line), a topic that he would expand on in "The Barbarian Invasions." As a subtle commentary in the context of the story, Saint Mark's Hospital is seen as hopelessly chaotic whereas the Jewish hospital is shown as professional and efficient.As Daniel and his troupe of actors take on more and more of a modern day version of Jesus and his disciples the question arises as to what the reaction would be to Jesus in our modern society. The answer seems to be that he would be regarded as a nut case except by the few who knew him closely and identified with his message.Arcand's talents as a director are not to be underestimated. The staging of the passion play is beautifully done and some of the camera angles used in the church scenes are very creative. As in other Arcand films he uses music by Francois Dompierre mixed with some classical compositions (in this case Pergolesi) to great effect.I came to this movie after having seen and enjoyed Arcand's "The Decline of the American Empire" and "The Barbarian Invasions." After now having seen "Jesus of Montreal," I think I can say I am an Arcand fan.This is a clever, humorous, satiric, and absorbing film.

Truly a great film. I initially saw this in Montreal while living there a few years ago and have have been hooked on it since. This film portrays a wonderful parallel in the lives and situations of the characters in the film with the lives of Jesus and his followers. Right down to the dramatic end. Clear Representions made are Jesus, Mary Magdalen, and of course the Pharisees. Its certainly a thought provoking film just as the story of the crucifixion is thought provoking on both a personal level and in looking at the world outside. And to tease my fried who commented previously on this film. It is truly Quebecois, not Canadian. :)