Maria, Mãe de Jesus

This TV-movie is well-intentioned but mechanical. I knew from the opening that there was a problem with the production when the opening narrative was printed on the screen and read at the same time with a voice that sounded like the station-break announcer.

The film just goes through the motions and gives us every cliche of second-rate Biblical movies including Jesus as a fair-skinned Anglo-Saxon. Christian Bale does what he can with the material but is terribly mis-cast. His mother is presented as a politically-correct feminist who apparently is responsible for Jesus' teachings and parables which were, according to the plot, the bedtime stories she told Jesus when he was a child.

The sets and costumes are good, but the performances are flat and perfunctory. What we get here is a shallowness reminiscent of school plays. The Gospels are condensed into a 2 hour TV movie that has the profundity of a Readers' Digest version of the Bible.

...if you are theirs fan.or if the religious films are yous favorite genre. because the only virtue of film is to do a larger portrait of Mary. not uninspired, not without few special notes but not real convincing. Christian Bale has the bad luck to be associated with too many great roles for be more than another actor acting Jesus. and the story is far to be different by many other adaptations.in fact, the presence of the lead actors, only the presence, represents the good point of the film. and, sure, the obvious desire to do a decent work. and if it is not easy to define it more than a memorable movie, the cause is only the impressive number of the films about The Savior.

This movie was brilliantly made and delivered a profound message. I thought Pernilla August did a wonderful job of displaying emotions and being able to get an audience to empathize with her. Christian Bale's representation of Jesus was passionate and compelling. He did an excellent job of portraying Jesus in His later years and helping give viewers insight on what He went through. I enjoyed the idea of this movie putting emphasis on the relationship of Mary and Jesus, showing that even the most powerful person of all time remembers His mother and to love and care for her the way she did from the moment He was born. This movie was definitely unique and I hope to see more that are as great as this.

I found this a refreshing and thought-provoking interpretation of how Mary lived and what kind of a person she was. It was great to break the mold of the mousey, demure, glowing, silent waif. This Mary was a feisty activist without being harsh or stepping over the line.

Also, it is feasible that she taught Jesus some of the stories he later told, so thinking about her shaping role as his mother was also intriguing.

Of course, Jesus did have a mind of his own - God's mind - which Mary only shared in part, and I would have liked to have seen him stand more firmly on his own two feet and take more authority, during the picture. I also wonder about the healthiness of this very intimate, mutually-dependent mother-son relationship. It is not impossible that Mary was there at Jesus' baptism.... Lots to think about, from her perspective and the silence of the Bible on such matters. All in all, not a bad version of Christ's life, through Mary's eyes. Just wish Jesus and his disciples were stronger, as I feel the Gospels represent them.

When I watched it, I was filled with expectancy of a well-written and well-acted movie. The movie was well acted. The actors and actresses did a good job, especially Christian Bale. But the movie itself struck an ill-placed chord in me. The producers and directors made this movie the Hollywood way. There were many things that wasn't right, that didn't come from the scriptures. They could've followed the biblical story of Jesus and Mary and Joseph better. That's just my opinion.