Last Days in the Desert

2016
5.6| 1h38m| en
Details

On his way out of the wilderness, Jesus struggles with the Devil over the fate of a family in crisis, setting himself up for a dramatic test.

Director

Producted By

American Zoetrope

AD
AD

Watch Free for 30 Days

Stream on any device, 30-day free trial Watch Now

Trailers & Clips

Reviews

Matialth Good concept, poorly executed.
AutCuddly Great movie! If you want to be entertained and have a few good laughs, see this movie. The music is also very good,
Kien Navarro Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.
Philippa All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.
shakib_djs Last Days also benefits immeasurably from the cinematography by three-time Oscar-winner Emmanuel Lubezki. His camera captures the desert with incredible clarity and sensitivity, from its deep skies and remote horizons to its sharp, clutching weeds and bushes. His ability to make such an inhospitable world beautiful echoes the movie's idea that even a circumscribed life is worthwhile.
sempervirentz I liked this movie. I liked the atmosphere, the soundtrack, the calm voice of Ewan. I also liked the idea of depicting the devil as double of Yeshua. I think the conversation that implies that God likes new outcomes that derive from little changes is essential. The "entanglement" of the three family members illustrates this. Yeshua tries to solve the 'social riddle' with words and compassion, not with godlike powers. But the outcome is unforeseeable, even for him. The movie should have ended after the scenario in the desert. I really wondered why Rodrigo García added the crucifixion scene with the hummingbird. Didn't he know that hummingbirds live only in America? A dragonfly would have had the same effect. But OK, it's the devil, he can do that ... winking smiley.
navi23 The film begins in an interesting way - immersing you (somewhat) into the atmosphere... but that's about it. From then onward, this movie has nothing to do with Jesus in the desert.If the director would have done just a liiiiitle bit of research into the life of ascetics who went into the desert to pray and fast... he would have made a much better movie. But this movie is a shame...This is not how a spiritual master (or even more, the Son of God Himself) prepares for the mission to save mankind by taking upon His shoulders all their sins... Not by wandering here and there and getting his head into mirages that the desert produces.According to this director, Jesus broke his fast (when the family invited him to eat, he eventually eats a bite), Jesus asks the devil (seriously?!) about the destiny of that kid, Jesus asks the devil how God is?!?!?!?!?! Seriously?!?!?! How huge an incompetence this is? What kind of person would make such a movie?...None of the dialogues from the Bible are there - just made-up stuff that doesn't rhyme with the tone of the story...No serious prayers or meditations from "Jesus" (he's also scared of the devil, mind you!...) - no significant insight into the human nature, into spirituality, into TEMPTATION... into evolution... into HIS MISSION... It could have at least been a movie about the old Obi-Wan in the wastelands on Tatooine... But this character is way below even that...Shame on you, Obi-Wan Kenobi - for taking up such a role... It would have been your most important role...
caspian1978 The concept of doing a movie about Christ's 40 days in the Desert is very intriguing. The idea of His trials and tribulations being tempted by Satan and battling his destiny as the Savior of the world would fascinate any Christian audience. The character of Jesus the Man and not Jesus the Son of God is present. The audience is not witnessed to any miracles or sermons. Instead, we see Jesus the young Rabbi and Carpenter and instead of making grand speeches, we see a soft spoken Man trying to be a family psychologist as he tries to help a family He meets while in the Desert. This is very different from your average movie about Jesus Christ. As he tries to deal with being the Son of God he comes across a Father and Son that have troubles of their own. Jesus tries to help in more ways than one and this takes up about 80% of the movie. The movie has many odd moments including a few times when Satan messes with Jesus throughout the Desert. Although this is an interesting concept and I enjoyed the originality of the movie, I feel it falls short. The movie should have been all about the Desert and how it impacted Jesus. We really don't see a difference in Jesus or any character development by the end of the movie. The relationship between Jesus and Satan was also weird. They go from being Enemies, which is obvious, to almost sympathetic friends. Their relationship could have used some more time to focus on. Finally, my biggest gripe with the movie is the ending. I felt the last ten minutes should have been cut entirely. We witness the Crucifixion and the Burial, but not the Resurrection. This decision by the Director, along with having the modern day scene at the very end, is up for debate. Why he decided to include this needs to be questioned and defended. My only opinion on showcasing this is whether or not it is needed for the story line. After all, this is about Jesus in the Desert, nothing else. I felt the ending took away from the plot of what Jesus was doing for those 40 days and why it is important to the overall Character. I feel the movie failed to show us that. Granted we can make parallels between Jesus and God and the Father and Son characters. Still, from what transpires between the characters, is anything learned from their decisions? Overall, Jesus becomes more and more a side character as the Family takes center stage. If the theme of loyalty is the overall message from the movie, the question remains, is it obvious?