The faces of Jesus in the cinema - Histories of Jesus' history. History of the histories of Jesus. Contemporary Figurae Christi

Abstract

The article analyzes the representation of Christ in the cinema, be it in films that tell the story of Jesus, or by arguments which are based on it. The text introduces the language of the cinema as a facilitator in the relationship with the invisible. In this commitment to give a Picture of what cannot be seen, the cinema is oriented towards the transcendent. The vision of the cinema can overcome the boundaries of what is presented. In this context, it is possible to perceive the stories of Jesus from different cultural and pragmatic backgrounds, where the productions take place. It is then possible to identify two groups that relate to Christ in the movies: those that refer directly to the story of Jesus and those Who translate the representation of Jesus through characters understood as figurae Christi. The complexity of the production takes place by passing the language of the gospels to the language of film. From the sasacred text to the display in the cinema, there are historical, theological and semantic impasses. The cinematographic text, however, allows an analysis of interpretation that can establish a relationship between Word and image. It is always the perception of the spectator, conclusions, interpretations and translations on the relationship between the history of Jesus and the cinematographic productions.