The Passion (TV serial)

Infobox Television Film
name = The Passion
format = Religious drama
runtime = 3 hours
director = Michael Offer
writer = Frank Deasy
executive_producer = Hilary Salmon
producer = Nigel Stafford-Clark
starring = Joseph Mawle
James Nesbitt
Ben Daniels
Penelope Wilton
Paloma Baeza
David Oyelowo
country = United Kingdom
location = Morocco
language = English
num_episodes = 4
network = BBC One
first_aired = 16 March 2008
last_aired = 23 March 2008

"The Passion" is a British television serial produced by the BBC and HBO in association with Deep Indigo Productions, telling the story of the last week in the life of Jesus. The drama is produced by Nigel Stafford-Clark in a similar format to his successful 2005 adaptation of Charles Dickens's "Bleak House". It was screened in the UK by BBC One in March 2008.

tory and format

The serial was screened over four nights during Holy Week, beginning with an hour-long episode on Palm Sunday, a half-hour episode on Monday, an hour-long episode on Good Friday, and finally a half-hour ending with the resurrection of Jesus on Easter Sunday. The first three episodes were repeated in an "omnibus"-style edition on Easter Sunday, prior to the concluding edition. Three separate points of view were presented—those of Jesus, the Romans and the High Priest Caiaphas and his colleagues.

Palm Sunday

In the first hour long episode, Jesus's arrival in Jerusalem causes a stir among the Jews. The Romans are having to deal with a small rebellion and the High Priest wants to be rid of Jesus, since he is causing a disturbance and challenging his authority.

Monday

In the second, half hour episode, the High Priest Caiaphas calls a council to determine how Jesus should be dealt with after he is overheard mocking the Temple, and his fate is sealed.

Good Friday

The third, hour-long episode related the events from the Last Supper to the Crucifixion.

Easter Sunday

The final, half hour episode features the Resurrection of Jesus, the sightings of him by Mary Magdalene and others, and his departure from the disciples after impressing upon Peter the importance of spreading his word. Caiaphus' wife gives birth to a son, and Pilate and his wife return to Rome.

Production

Former controller of BBC One Peter Fincham announced the drama in April 2006 as a continuation of the successful half-hour format adopted by "Bleak House" in the previous year. [cite news|first= Liz|last= Thomas|title= BBC plans big budget Jesus drama|url= http://www.thestage.co.uk/news/newsstory.php/12410|work= The Stage|date= 2006-04-26|accessdate= 2007-11-06] Nigel Stafford-Clark, who also produced "Bleak House", planned to tell the story of "The Passion" not, as so often, as though it happened in a vacuum, but firmly rooted in the tangled, vivid world in which it took place. [cite press release |title= BBC One and BBC Drama present a new production of the story of The Passion for Easter 2008|publisher= BBC Press Office |date= 2007-12-04|url= http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pressreleases/stories/2007/12_december/04/passion.shtml|accessdate= 2007-12-04] Frank Deasy, who wrote the seventh installment of the "Prime Suspect" canon, was contracted to write the drama, based on him understanding how Stafford-Clark wanted to produce it. The serial had a £4 million budget attached and was filmed on location in Ouarzazte and Zagora, Morocco in late 2007.cite news|first= Maggie|last= Brown|title= From Prime Suspect to The Passion: Deasy tackles last week in life of Christ|url= http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2006/jul/07/broadcasting.bbc|work= Media Guardian|date= 2006-07-07|accessdate= 2007-11-06] cite news|last= Staff writer|title= Morocco's south stage to Michael Offer's 'Passion' TV serial|url= http://www.map.ma/eng/sections/culture/morocco_s_south_stag/view|work= Maghreb Arab Press|date= 2007-09-20|accessdate= 2007-11-06]

Reception

The series was generally well received. The main review in "The Guardian" of the first episode was positive, remarking "you could watch "The Passion" and totally forget that this story was central to a major world religion. And that's a good thing, I think." [citenews|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/mar/17/television.tvandradioarts|title=The weekend's TV|first=Sam|last=Wollaston|date=17 March 2008|accessdate=2008-03-21|publisher=The Guardian] However, another article in the paper, discussing UK television over Easter 2008, called it "a dramatisation so conventional and reverent that the only harrumphing angle the papers have been able to find has been the position of the hands on the crucifix". [citenews|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/mar/20/television1|title=TV matters|first=Mark|last=Lawson|authorlink=Mark Lawson|date=20 March 2008|accessdate=2008-03-21|publisher=The Guardian] "The Independent" commented that "only the most zealously dogmatic Christian could complain that it was irreverent", [citenews|url=http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/film-and-tv/tv-radio-reviews/the-weekends-tv-the-passion-bbc1br-gavin--stacey-bbc3-796728.html|title=The Weekend's TV|title=Weekend TV|first=Thomas|last=Sutcliffe|date=20 March 2008|accessdate=2008-03-21|publisher=The Independent] "The Daily Telegraph" 's review of the same episode praised the humanising of Pilate and Caiaphas, and felt Mawle's depiction of Jesus, despite not having the same "spell-binding effect as Robert Powell did in "Jesus of Nazareth", nevertheless was "more appealingly human". [citenews|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2008/03/17/nosplit/bvtv17last.xml|title=Last night on television|first=James|last=Walton|date=20 March 2008|accessdate=2008-03-21|publisher=The Daily Telegraph] "The Times" praised "some nice touches", but was overall more critical, calling Mawle's portrayal of Jesus too "meek, mild and hangdog". [citenews|url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/tv_and_radio/article3555191.ece|title=Weekend TV|first=Andrew|last=Billen|date=20 March 2008|accessdate=2008-03-21|publisher=The Times]

Stephen Green, from Christian Voice, voiced disquiet over the series giving sympathetic portrayals to Caiaphas and Pilate, though press reactions found this unjustified. [citenews|url=http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/film-and-tv/tv-radio-reviews/the-weekends-tv-the-passion-bbc1br-gavin--stacey-bbc3-796728.html|title=The Weekend's TV|title=Weekend TV|first=Thomas|last=Sutcliffe|date=20 March 2008|accessdate=2008-03-21|publisher=The Independent]

Cast

*Main characters [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/programmes/thepassion/actors/ BBC - The Passion - Actors] . Retrieved on 2008-03-22]
**Joseph Mawle - Jesus
**James Nesbitt - Pontius Pilate
**Ben Daniels - Caiaphas
**Penelope Wilton - Mary
**Paloma Baeza - Mary Magdalene
**David Oyelowo - Joseph of Arimathea

*Jesus' followers [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/programmes/thepassion/actors/ BBC - The Passion - Actors] . Retrieved on 2008-03-22]
**Paul Nicholls - Judas Iscariot
**Darren Morfitt - Peter
**Jamie Sives - John
**Dean Lennox Kelly - James, son of Zebedee
**Daniel Evans - Matthew
**Tom Ellis - Phillip
**Eoin Geoghegan - Andrew
**Lewis Clay - Thomas
**Eugene Wood - Bartholomew
**Stuart Kidd - Simon the Zealot
**Thomas Buchanan - James, son of Alphaeus
**Steve Morphew - Thaddeus
**Vinette Robinson - Mina

*At the Temple [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/programmes/thepassion/actors/ BBC - The Passion - Actors] . Retrieved on 2008-03-22]
**Denis Lawson - Annas
**John Lynch - Sagan
**Ben Caplan - Yehuda
**Laura Fraser - Abigail
**Laila El Mrabti - Caiaphas' daughter
**Simon Kassianides - Temple guard
**Munir Khairdin - Second Temple guard
**Elif Yeşil - Nita, Caiaphas' servant

*Romans [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/programmes/thepassion/actors/ BBC - The Passion - Actors] . Retrieved on 2008-03-22]
**Esther Hall - Claudia
**Mark Lewis Jones - Marcus
**Roger Ashton-Griffiths - Syrian prefect
**Martin Hutson - Pilate's secretary
**Gerard Monaco - Capito
**Robin Floriant - Rufus, tax collector
**Karim Doukkali - Garrison Centurion
**David Maybrick - First Roman soldier
**Ross O'Hennessy - Second Roman soldier
**Matthew Flynn - Third Roman soldier
**Driss Roukhe - Roman soldier at procession
**El Housseine Dejjiti - Centurion at bakery
**Mohammed Taleb - Robe centurion
**Mansour Badri - Roman sergeant at Golgotha

*People in Jerusalem [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/programmes/thepassion/actors/ BBC - The Passion - Actors] . Retrieved on 2008-03-22]
**Stephen Graham - Barabbas
**Johnny Harris - Asher
**Daniel Catlagirone - Eban
**Richard Katz - Money changer
**Gary Pillai - Merchant
**Peter Sullivan - Lawyer
**Rene Zagger - Bird seller
**Kiran Shah - Jude
**Mercedes Grower - Neta
**David Rubin - Pilgrim
**Jamila El Haouni - Widow
**Nadia Sadik - Screaming woman
**Abderrahim Moustaid - Simon the Leper
**Abdelouahed Sanouji - Young baker
**Mustapha Jamal - Unhappy butcher
**El Jirari Ben Aissa - Simon of Cyrene
**Craig Parkins - Man at tomb
**Barnaby Kay - Man on road to Emmaus

DVD

The Passion is due to be released on DVD on 20 October 2008.

References

External links

*imdb title|id=1100959|title=The Passion