Movie Review: The Nativity Story

Written by Mike Rich (Finding Forrester) and directed by Catherine Hardwicke (Thirteen), The Nativity Story humanizes each of the key characters in a way I have not seen before. I enjoyed the nuances of the relationship between Mary and Joseph as they came to know and trust each other throughout their journey together to Bethlehem. The movie was well-cast and none of the actors over-played their roles. Oscar Isaac could not have been any more genuine and heart-warming as Joseph. Keisha Castle-Hughes seemed to effortlessly portray the life of young Jewish women at the time. She played a Mary who was strong-willed yet obedient, kind yet able to hold her own, young and seemingly frail, yet resilient. Though the story was predictable, Rich and Hardwicke took enough editorial license to fill in the gaps in the traditional Christmas story to add depth and compelling human qualities to the characters, yet remained true to the scriptural details.

The movie opens with the slaughter of Bethlehem's innocents under orders from King Herod, who fears a king will rise up from among the people and usurp his power. Ciarán Hinds stunningly portrays Herod as ruthless, cold-hearted and ambitious, revealing through dialogue with his sole living son, that he (Herod) has already killed one wife and two other sons for betraying him. The film then jumps back to the previous year and the prophecy that informs Zechariah (Stanley Townsend) that his wife, Elizabeth (Shohreh Aghdashloo), will bear a child, though both of them are far past their prime. The scene of Zechariah in the inner temple receiving this unlikely news was at the same time thrilling and frightening.

Meanwhile, Elizabeth's young cousin Mary receives a message of her own, via an angel, that she will carry, while still a virgin, the long-awaited Messiah who will liberate the Jews from Herod. Rich and Hardwicke do an excellent job of revealing the struggles with Mary's family to make ends meet and how she is promised to the carpenter Joseph, and the societal issues surrounding Mary's predicament. Initially, Castle-Hughes depicts Mary as somewhat resentful, bordering on young womanhood, straddling the fence where she is too old to run and play with the other children; yet too young to accept the fact that at fourteen years old she is engaged to a man she neither knows nor loves.

Thus begins a detailed account of Joseph and Mary's difficult 100 mile journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem. Their story is truly a classic love story, with Mary's love for her betrothed growing through adversity, where his true character as a good man with a big heart and moral fortitude is revealed.

In the meantime, three Magi have made a startling discovery that three planets will converge over the birthplace of a great king, and they spend months crossing the desert trying to rendezvous with some point below the convergence of the three heavenly bodies, seen in the night sky. The relationship between the three Magi had the potential to become a bit like that of the Three Stooges, but their bantering stopped short of falling into that trap.

The climax of the movie was stunning as the stable where Jesus was born is flooded with light from the perfect conjunction of those heavenly bodies sought after by the Magi from the east, and witnessed with wonder and awe by the shepherds on the surrounding hillsides. The story was beautifully told, and while many of the details of life in Nazareth and the Middle East at the time were extrapolations, they were true to the historical context, and acceptable as possibilities of how each part of the story unfolds.

Running Time: 1 hour, 40 minutes, Rated PG for mild violence. I give this movie 4 out of 5 stars because of its fresh, creative portrayal of the greatest story ever told.