Movie
The adaptation of the book by Shūsaku Endō, who wrote the original novel for 2016's Silence, is believed to be largely set in the present day
Martin Scorsese will follow his triumphant true-crime epic “Killers of the Flower Moon” with an 80-minute film about Jesus that aims to “take away the negative.”[s] … associated with organized religion.”
In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, Scorsese explained the idea behind the project, an adaptation of “A Life of Jesus” by writer Shūsaku Endō (a Japanese Catholic whose 1966 novel Silence was previously adapted by Scorsese). Scorsese said he and fellow screenwriter Kent Jones have completed the script and are “swimming with inspiration” for a film that is reportedly largely set in the present and has “focus.”[es] on the core teachings of Jesus in a way that explores the principles but does not proselytize.”
Scorsese said, “I'm trying to find a new way to make it more accessible and remove the negative baggage of what is associated with organized religion.”
The 81-year-old director added: “Right now you say 'religion' and everyone is up in arms because it has failed in many ways.” But that doesn't necessarily mean the initial impulse was wrong. Let's go back. Let's just think about it. You can reject it. But it could make a difference in the way you live your life—even if you reject it. Don't dismiss it out of hand. That’s all I talk about.”
Scorsese said he is preparing to shoot the film in 2024 after meeting with Pope Francis in 2023 and attending a conference called “The Global Aesthetics of the Catholic Imagination” organized by the Jesuit publication La Civiltà Cattolica was inspired to begin work on it. At the time, Scorsese told the press, “I responded to the Pope's call to artists in the only way I know how: by conceiving and writing a script for a film about Jesus.”
Scorsese has a strong track record of making films with overtly religious themes. His 1988 adaptation of The Last Temptation of Christ by Nikos Kazantzakis sparked global controversy and protests for depicting an alternative timeline for the life of Jesus, while 2016's Silence portrayed the struggles of Jesuit priests living in 1980s Japan 17th century were persecuted because of their religion. In 1997, Scorsese also released Kundun, a biographical film about the Dalai Lama.
Production on the Life of Jesus adaptation appears to have pushed back another recently announced Scorsese project: an adaptation of “Killers of the Flower Moon” author David Grann's 2023 nonfiction book “The Wager,” about the so-called Wager Mutiny of 1741. Scorsese suggested in a recent interview with Indiewire that the pressure of the Killers awards campaign meant he needed a break and that filming at sea might mean he would become a co-director.
On Sunday, “Killers of the Flower Moon” won a Golden Globe for Best Female Actress for its leading actress, Lily Gladstone, and is expected to receive several major award nominations in the coming weeks.
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