Barabbas

Murkily-developed Biblical epic is long though not lumbering. Anthony Quinn goes through a grueling series of events as Barabbas, a hard-drinking thief and womanizer in Jerusalem who was spared death when Jesus Christ was chosen to take his place on the cross. Soon convicted on other charges, bad-tempered Barabbas slaved for decades in the hellish sulfur mines before being thrown into the gladiator arena, still spiritually torn over his religious vocation. Based on the Nobel-Prize winning novel by Pär Lagerkvist, this (rather melodramatic) 'expansion' from the Gospel of Mark is robotic instead of robust. Still, the momentum here for each new chapter in Barabbas' life is presented with tacky grandeur, and the picture manages to sweep the audience up in a theatrical fervor which is entertaining, if gaudy. **1/2 from ****

This is a first-class, reverent film that doesn't fall into Hallmark-card empty kitsch on one hand, or Mel Gibson's sado-masochistic * on the other. This movie does not insult the subject-matter or the audience, and that's rarer than we might like. Special credit goes to Aldo Tonti's Rembrandt lighting, consistently a joy. Mario Nascimbene's musical score rises above his usual brutality to real eloquence. The acting is without weakness, Quinn, Borgnine, Jurado and Andrews putting aside their sometimes numbing predictability for this special occasion. Richard Fleischer's direction is punchy without being vulgar, serious but not ponderous. There are some awful religious films out there. This is thankfully not one of them. It's definitely worth the viewing for Christians and non-Christians alike.

The story of the man whose place Jesus took on the cross is told here with power and imagination. Quinn gives an excellent performance in the role of a man who becomes blinded by the light of Jesus, figuratively descends into the tomblike hell of a salt mine, is resurrected to become a gladiator, and finally dies, knowing what Jesus had done for him many years before. The interweaving of parallels between Barabbas' life and that of Jesus are intriguing. Jack Palance is deliciously evil as the villainous sadist in the arena. Mario Nasimbene's score is haunting, using experimental musical approaches to describe the pain of Barabbas in conflict with the glory of Rome and the ultimate victory of the spirit over evil and death.

Having been an Anthony Quinn fan for many years, I came across this video recently and rented it. I wasn't sure what to expect, but was pleasantly surprised to see quite a different performance from Quinn. While he had moments of gruffness, for the most part he tackled this role as the confused, tormented Barrabas with a great deal of inner work. The most impressive moments where when his face reflected the conflicts of belief, choice, and commitment. As one of the most famous individuals in history it was an imaginative characterization of Barrabas, much like the other enigmatic individual in Christianity -Judas- as characterized by Ian McShane in Jesus of Nazareth (1977). Wonderful music score, and cinematography. Notice especially the care given to the staging of the scourging of Jesus in the beginning of the film -silence except for Heaven's angels screaming in anguish. Breathtaking.

Through Barabbas, complex themes of faith, spirituality, violence, peace, morality, human dignity and cruelty were examined in the guise of a Biblical epic directed by a competent filmmaker of action pictures... His film vividly captured the panoply of Rome, the stultifying sulfur mines, the savagery of the Roman arena, the gladiatorial sadism, Nero's fire in Rome, and the persecution of Christians Despite a lamentable weak script, the acting was often comfortable, and the action very entertaining Anthony Quinn made his best as the confused man of violence, the common thief and the assassin... Vittorio Gassman was good enough as the brave gladiator who stood on his faith... Silvana Mangano was beautiful as Barabbas' former lover who knew that Jesus was, for her, the true substitute... Jack Palance was, as always, great as the cruel and sadistic gladiator