The Life and Passion of Jesus Christ
About The Life and Passion of Jesus Christ
Pathé's tableau film follows the Gospel story from the Annunciation and the Nativity through the Passion to the Ascension. Each episode is announced by a title and then acted out. There are no other intertitles. Several scenes copy Gustave Doré's Bible illustrations. Madame Moreau and Monsieur Moreau are the named players.
Cast & crew
More about The Life and Passion of Jesus Christ
Ferdinand Zecca and Lucien Nonguet directed for Pathé. A release date of 15 May 1903 is recorded. The film runs 44 minutes and was colored by Pathé's stencil process, Pathéchrome. In 1932 it was reissued in the United States on a states-rights basis, printed on red stock instead of stencil color, with a score compiled by James C. Bradford.
Themes
Making
The crew rebuilt familiar Doré plates as staged scenes, one Gospel episode after another, rather than inventing a new plot.
Look
Each episode is a staged tableau. Pathéchrome stencil color was applied to the release prints.
Music
Silent on the 1903 release. James C. Bradford compiled a score for the 1932 American reissue.
Preservation
Prints survive, including stencil-colored copies and the later red-tinted American issue. A copy is on the Internet Archive.
Notes
- At 44 minutes it has been called the first feature-length narrative film.
- The French title is Vie et Passion du Christ. An English release title is Life and Passion of the Christ.
- Madame Moreau and Monsieur Moreau are the only players named in the usual cast lists.
- The 1932 American reissue dropped the stencil colors for an all-red print.
- Pathé both produced and distributed the original.
Scenes
- A title names the Annunciation, and the actors play the scene with no further words.
- The Passion episodes follow Doré's plates through to the Ascension.
Influenced by
- Bible illustrations by Gustave Doré
Also available
- Internet Archive (LaVieEtLaPassionDeJsusChristpassionAndDeathOfChrist1903)
