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<\/a><\/p>\nIt turns out director Cyrus Nowrasteh<\/a> and producer Chris Columbus<\/a> aren\u2019t the only filmmakers who have been stumping for The Young Messiah<\/a><\/i>. I now know of interviews with at least two other people who were involved with the making of the film, including co-star Sean Bean. Check \u2019em out below the jump.<\/p>\n First, Sean Bean spoke to the Orange County Register<\/a><\/i>:<\/p>\n \u201cThe Young Messiah\u201d in many ways is a subtle story, a gentle telling of Jesus\u2019 slow realization of the truth of his life. Its open quality was another aspect of the production that attracted Bean.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m Christian, so I\u2019m familiar with the stories, though I\u2019m no theologian by any means,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s always interesting as an adult to go back on things and look at things in a fresh light. Because you\u2019re taught things at an earlier age and they\u2019re not really presented in an interesting manner.<\/p>\n \u201cI think this kind of brings this story to life, and it\u2019s actually very credible,\u201d Bean says. \u201cYou know, rather than having it drummed into you or having it taught, it leaves it open for you to make up your mind. It\u2019s very open-minded.<\/p>\n \u201cSo I think that\u2019s one of the good qualities and beauty of the film \u2013 that it\u2019s not a kind of sanctimonious, kind of pontificating deal with religion about what we should believe, what we should not believe. It\u2019s the story that\u2019s presented for the viewer to make up their own mind.\u201d . . .<\/p>\n With its opening two weeks before Easter, \u201cThe Young Messiah\u201d is perfectly timed for Christians. But Bean says he thinks the film can appeal to people of all faiths, or no faith at all.<\/p>\n \u201cIt doesn\u2019t beat you over the head with a stick about religion,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s not forcing you to believe anything. It\u2019s just a very, very interesting story, which I happen to believe is a true story.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Meanwhile, the Phoenix Business Journal<\/a><\/i> profiles one of the film\u2019s investors:<\/p>\n Ahwatukee businessman Bill Andrew has a vested interest in the premiere of \u201cThe Young Messiah,\u201d an $18.6 million movie debuting on screens Friday nationally.<\/p>\n Andrew is a principal and co-founder of Ocean Blue Entertainment LLC, the Santa Monica, California-based company financing the film. Originally minority investors in another company financing the film, Ocean Blue took over in 2013 after realizing the company was in trouble.<\/p>\n \u201cWe basically pulled the plug on \u2018The Young Messiah\u2019 at that time and spent 20 months restructuring the company,\u201d Andrew said. They were able to reduce the movie\u2019s budget from $40 million to $18.6 million. . . .<\/p>\n Andrew said he doesn\u2019t practice a religion, and he hadn\u2019t thought about faith in a long time prior to financing the film.<\/p>\n \u201cThis movie has brought me back to that,\u201d he said. \u201cOnce you see the film, it\u2019s hard not to contemplate faith. It\u2019s a movie that challenges you to think about Jesus and think about Christianity. For those who are faithful, it\u2019s a faith-affirming film.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n If I find any other non-Nowrasteh\/Columbus interviews, I will add them to this post.<\/p>\n Update:<\/b> Anne Rice, who wrote the novel the film is based on (Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt<\/i>), spoke to evangelical historical-Jesus scholar Ben Witherington III<\/a>:<\/p>\n ANNE: The Satan character in the film \u2014- an expansion of the Satan whom Jesus encounters in a dream in the novel \u2014 was the idea of Cyrus and Betsy Nowrasteh who wrote the script. But I do find it very much in keeping with active medieval beliefs \u2014 played out in Medieval religious plays \u2014 that Satan was suspicious of Jesus from the time of His birth and saw Jesus\u2019 crucifixion as a triumph. I was influenced by the medieval theological beliefs when I presented Satan in Jesus\u2019 dream as unable to figure out who or what Jesus is, and unable to see the future. . . .<\/p>\n ANNE: Allow me to make two interesting points regarding the child Jesus performing miracles. It has been pointed out that when Mary urges her Son to help at the marriage feast of Cana, she seems to know that He CAN do something miraculous. Some have speculated that this must mean Jesus manifested His power earlier \u2014 perhaps in childhood Another thing I\u2019d like to point out: in the Gospel of Mark, we know that when Jesus encountered the hemorrhaging woman, \u201cHe felt the power go out of Him\u201d and He did not know who touched Him. This suggested to me that the child Jesus might have had occasion to experience the same thing\u2026.the power going out of Him without a lot of conscious control. \u2014- Of course your point about the Spirit entering into Jesus when He was Baptized is an excellent one. On the other hand, Jesus was God from the moment of conception, the pre-existent Word, so perhaps He always possessed the power to work miracles.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Rice also wrote a guest column<\/a> for The Hollywood Reporter<\/i> on the film.<\/p>\n March 17 update:<\/b> The Examiner<\/a><\/i> spoke to composer John Debney:<\/p>\n Mark Morton: How does it feel to revisit a world that you have already painted?<\/b><\/p>\n John Debney: The world is such a rich, wonderful world, in the sense of these instruments and the place and time, that I really jumped at the chance. Plus, working with this great director friend of mine, Cyrus Nowrasteh, who had directed \u201cThe Stoning of Soraya M.,\u201d there was just no negative to it. I just thought it would be a real joy to go back, re-immerse myself in that music, and that\u2019s what we did. The scores for \u201cThe Passion of the Christ\u201d and \u201cThe Young Messiah\u201d are loving cousins.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n You can read more about the soundtrack (and see a preview video) here<\/a>.<\/p>\n March 20 update:<\/b> Betsy Giffen Nowrasteh wrote a guest column for The Wrap<\/a> on \u2018How to Write a Movie With Your Husband and Live to Tell About It\u2019.<\/p>\n March 23 update:<\/b> Alice Cooper (!) interviewed Anne Rice for Billboard<\/a><\/i>:<\/p>\n Your book Christ the Lord Out of Egypt<\/em> was the basis for the film The Young Messiah<\/em>. In the co-writing of this movie many references were used from the Bible. Was the Apocrypha also used as a source?<\/strong> Everyone puts their faith in something or someone. Where would you say your faith lives?<\/strong> March 26 update:<\/b> Sara Lazarro, who plays Mary in the film, wrote an article for The Washington Times<\/a><\/i> on what the experience was like:<\/p>\n I am not a mother \u2014 not yet. I definitely hope to be one, one day. Actually, I recall that on-set, I was one of the few adult actors who wasn\u2019t a parent yet. Nonetheless, I asked myself: What would I do if I were the mother to such a special child, an empirical witness of a miracle of God, guided by faith, aware of her child\u2019s mission, but unsure of the difficulties and adversities that surely were awaiting for us ahead? The answers I had were varied and layered, but they ultimately came down to my instincts, and it culminated in a sense of love, trust and faith. As a mother, I would do all I can in my power, in love and in grace, to protect and support my child \u2014 together with my husband. The relationship that Vincent Walsh (Joseph) and I developed on-screen in this movie, I must say has been revealing to me in understanding how important the \u201cpartnership\u201d between a father-husband and a mother-wife is. They are a team, they support each other and they have at heart the well-being of their child, of each other and, ultimately, of the whole family.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Meanwhile, The Washington Times<\/i> also reports that producer Bill Andrew is offering to screen the movie for free<\/a> to any and all interested members of Congress.<\/p>\n April 2 update:<\/b> Rory Keenan talked to Christian Toto<\/a> about playing the Devil in the film, and whether his Satan is a \u201cmetrosexual\u201d:<\/p>\n \u201cI can see how this Satan could be perceived as someone who takes care of his appearance,\u201d Keenan says. \u201cI imagine there is a vanity to him. Part of his vanity is in the fact that he believes he can out-smart God, and this perhaps manifests itself in his appearance.\u201d<\/p>\n That presentation clashes with how other men appear in the film. Hard work and sacrifice don\u2019t allow for much primping.<\/p>\n \u201cTraditionally men of that era would not have taken so much care of their appearance. But this Satan knows he needs to seduce,\u201d the actor notes. \u201cHe needs to have a little something extra. He needs to be curious-looking enough to pique Jesus\u2019s interest.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Cyrus Nowrasteh also wrote an essay<\/a> on how they developed the Satan figure.<\/p>\n June 13 update:<\/b> Sara Lazarro spoke to The Gospel Herald<\/a><\/i>:<\/p>\n There are several poignant moments in the film where Mary is shown struggling with wanting to protect her son, but understanding she would need to tell Jesus about God\u2019s plan for Him.<\/p>\n \u201cI think that this duality you perceived, is the conflict that is at the core, that in some way defines and moves Mary,\u201d Lazzaro said. \u201cThis was a crucial aspect that Cyrus really focused on and it\u2019s something that needed to transpire: the task this young woman had to face, this dual (at times contrasting) role she had in being a mother, but also knowing that this child, in a way, was not \u2018her own\u2019. It\u2019s a constant coexistence of contrasting feelings, of layers and density that had to fill each silence, each word and each action that was going to take place.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n She also spoke to the Indie Movie Examiner<\/a><\/i>:<\/p>\n The Mary that was offered in the script of \u201cThe Young Messiah\u201d has a very earthy and relatable quality. What transpires so beautifully from the writing is her human quality. And that was something I could relate to, something I could play. Personally, I am not a mother (yet), but I inevitably asked myself : what would I do if I were the mother of this child? How would I go about this journey knowing what she and her family had already been through and unsure of what was awaiting for them ahead? I had to strip down and make myself available and vulnerable to it all. There is a fascinating \u201cquiet strength\u201d in Mary that is perceivable in this story, but also in her universally. That strength, I believe, anchors itself onto love, faith and family. Funnily enough, what I think was the most important thing for me, was to \u2018strip\u2019 down and have every moment be lived, spoken and played with the most honest and instinctual nature I could access.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Actually very little of the apocrypha was used in the novel, only the legends regarding Jesus' childhood in the Infancy Gospel of Thomas, which is NOT gnostic and contains legends that influenced Christian art for centuries. Nothing gnostic was used in the book whatsoever. I researched the First Century for something like ten years, off and on, probing history, archaeology, anthropology, and the bible, of course, the bible again and again and the early historians, Josephus and Philo of Alexandria. I sought to write a biblically sound and authentic novel about Jesus as a child that would bring Him alive for people, presenting a fictive day to day life for him. I wanted people to hear his laughter, smell the dust in the streets of Nazareth, to see the world in which Jesus lived; I wanted people to have a sense of Him as a real little boy, surrounded by mysteries \u2014\u00a0the Jesus whose birth was celebrated by angels singing to shepherds, the Jesus whose birth brought Magi from the East, the Jesus whose mother had been visited by an angel\u2026. The bible mattered infinitely more to me than the apocrypha.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My faith lives in my novels, of course. It lives in every word I write. It lives in my novels about Jesus. Though I've moved away from institutional Christianity and organized religion \u2014\u00a0and all its theological strife \u2014 my devotion to Jesus remains fierce. My faith blazes in my vampire novels, and in the Witching Hour<\/em> series, and even in the erotica I've written. I believe that people are basically good as Anne Frank put it; I believe the creation is basically good and beautiful; I believe that sex is beautiful and good. I believe our capacity to love, to know pleasure, to want to live lives of meaning \u2014\u00a0all this reflects the existence of a loving and personal Creator. I dream of all things human being reconciled in our ethical institutions and moral institutions; I dream of all of us being redeemed in every way. This is why the story of the Incarnation is so important to me, the story of Jesus being born amongst us, growing up amongst us, working and sweating and struggling as we do, and dying amongst us before he rose from the dead and ascended into Heaven. I write about outsiders seeking redemption in one form or another and always will.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n