The Nativity Story
Encyclopedia
The Nativity Story is a 2006
drama film
based on the nativity of Jesus
starring Keisha Castle-Hughes
and Shohreh Aghdashloo
. Filming began on May 1, 2006 in Matera, Italy
and in Morocco
. New Line Cinema
released it on December 1, 2006 in the United States
and one week later on December 8 in the European Union
. The film made history as being the first film ever to stage its world premiere in the Vatican City
.
. The remainder of the movie portrays the annunciation
(conception) and nativity
(birth) of Jesus Christ to explain why King Herod
(Ciarán Hinds
) ordered the murder.
Teenage Mary (Keisha Castle-Hughes
), betrothed to marry Joseph
of Judea
(Oscar Isaac
), is spoken to by God
and told that she is to deliver His child and call him Jesus. Mary then goes to stay with her cousin Elizabeth
for the harvest, when she witnesses the birth of John the Baptist
to Elizabeth (Shohreh Aghdashloo
), who is past child bearing age, and her husband Zachariah
(Stanley Townsend
). Mary returns from the visit pregnant, to the shock of Joseph and her parents. Mary is accused of fornication
, for which, if she is found guilty, she could be stoned to death
in a public execution
. At first Joseph does not believe Mary's explanation that she was visited by an angel
, and that she has not broken her vow of chastity. He resolves to quietly divorce her, but before he acts on this plan, he is visited by the very same angel. Joseph then believes Mary, and promises to stay by her side.
Meanwhile, Caesar Augustus has demanded that every man and his family must return to his place of birth for the census
. For Joseph, as a direct descendant of King David, this involves a 110 kilometres (68.4 mi) trip across rocky terrain from Nazareth to Bethlehem
, the place of his birth. Such a trip (with Mary on a donkey also carrying supplies, and given the terrain) would likely have taken several weeks. When they reach Bethlehem, Mary goes into labor. Joseph frantically seeks a place for the two to stay, but there is no room in any inn or home (thanks in part to the census). At the last minute, an innkeeper offers his stable for shelter.
While Mary's story is being told, a concurrent plot line features the travels of the three Magi
, Gaspar, Melchior and Balthasar
, who had previously discovered that three planets will align to form a great star. This Star of Bethlehem
appears before the Magi, after a visit by the angel, Gabriel
. The Magi eventually visit Herod and tell him that a King of the Jews has been born. Herod considers himself to be King of the Jews; thus, he asks them to journey to the East and pay a visit to the newborn Jesus, and report the location back to Herod under the pretense that he, too, would like to worship him. Unbeknown to Mary and Joseph, the Magi show up at the stable in which the family is staying, and present the baby with the well-known gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
As instructed by the angel, the Magi do not return to Herod, but return to their origin via a different route. King Herod realizes that the wise men have defied him, and in retribution demands the murder of every boy in Bethlehem up to the age of two. Joseph is warned in a dream of the danger and flees with Mary and the child to Egypt
.
of $
8 million, but its weekend draw over the extended Christmas weekend increased by 39%.
The movie closed out with almost US$ 38 million domestically and added to that almost US$ 9 million in foreign gross, bringing it to a worldwide total of almost US$ 47 million on a reported US $ 35 million budget.
, it holds a 38% ranking, but The Hollywood Reporter
described it as 'exciting' and 'scrupulously accurate'.
in America for some violent content.
's score of the film was released as an album on December 5, 2006. The album was nominated for a Dove Award for Instrumental Album of the Year at the 39th GMA Dove Awards.
An album of songs inspired by the film was also released under the title The Nativity Story: Sacred Songs. It featured music by artists like Point of Grace
, Amy Grant
, Jaci Velasquez
, and others.
2006 in film
- Highest-grossing films :Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top-grossing films that were first released in the United States in 2006...
drama film
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
based on the nativity of Jesus
Nativity of Jesus
The Nativity of Jesus, or simply The Nativity, refers to the accounts of the birth of Jesus in two of the Canonical gospels and in various apocryphal texts....
starring Keisha Castle-Hughes
Keisha Castle-Hughes
Keisha Castle-Hughes is a New Zealand film actress who rose to prominence at the age of eleven when playing Paikea "Pai" Apirana in the 2002 film Whale Rider...
and Shohreh Aghdashloo
Shohreh Aghdashloo
Shohreh Aghdashloo is an Iranian American actress.After establishing a theatre and film career in Iran, Aghdashloo moved to England during the Iranian Revolution in 1979, and subsequently became a citizen of the United States...
. Filming began on May 1, 2006 in Matera, Italy
Matera, Italy
Matera is a town and a province in the region of Basilicata, in southern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Matera. The town lies athwart a small canyon, which has been eroded in the course of years by a small stream, the Gravina.- History :...
and in Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
. New Line Cinema
New Line Cinema
New Line Cinema, often simply referred to as New Line, is an American film studio. It was founded in 1967 by Robert Shaye and Michael Lynne as a film distributor, later becoming an independent film studio. It became a subsidiary of Time Warner in 1996 and was merged with larger sister studio Warner...
released it on December 1, 2006 in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and one week later on December 8 in the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
. The film made history as being the first film ever to stage its world premiere in the Vatican City
Vatican City
Vatican City , or Vatican City State, in Italian officially Stato della Città del Vaticano , which translates literally as State of the City of the Vatican, is a landlocked sovereign city-state whose territory consists of a walled enclave within the city of Rome, Italy. It has an area of...
.
Plot
The movie begins with the portrayal of the Massacre of the InnocentsMassacre of the Innocents
The Massacre of the Innocents is an episode of infanticide by the King of Judea, Herod the Great. According to the Gospel of Matthew Herod orders the execution of all young male children in the village of Bethlehem, so as to avoid the loss of his throne to a newborn King of the Jews whose birth...
. The remainder of the movie portrays the annunciation
Annunciation
The Annunciation, also referred to as the Annunciation to the Blessed Virgin Mary or Annunciation of the Lord, is the Christian celebration of the announcement by the angel Gabriel to Virgin Mary, that she would conceive and become the mother of Jesus the Son of God. Gabriel told Mary to name her...
(conception) and nativity
Nativity of Jesus
The Nativity of Jesus, or simply The Nativity, refers to the accounts of the birth of Jesus in two of the Canonical gospels and in various apocryphal texts....
(birth) of Jesus Christ to explain why King Herod
Herod the Great
Herod , also known as Herod the Great , was a Roman client king of Judea. His epithet of "the Great" is widely disputed as he is described as "a madman who murdered his own family and a great many rabbis." He is also known for his colossal building projects in Jerusalem and elsewhere, including his...
(Ciarán Hinds
Ciarán Hinds
Ciarán Hinds is an Irish film, television and stage actor. He has built up a reputation as a versatile character actor appearing in such high profile films as Road to Perdition, The Phantom of the Opera, Munich, There Will Be Blood and Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy. His television roles include...
) ordered the murder.
Teenage Mary (Keisha Castle-Hughes
Keisha Castle-Hughes
Keisha Castle-Hughes is a New Zealand film actress who rose to prominence at the age of eleven when playing Paikea "Pai" Apirana in the 2002 film Whale Rider...
), betrothed to marry Joseph
Saint Joseph
Saint Joseph is a figure in the Gospels, the husband of the Virgin Mary and the earthly father of Jesus Christ ....
of Judea
Judea
Judea or Judæa was the name of the mountainous southern part of the historic Land of Israel from the 8th century BCE to the 2nd century CE, when Roman Judea was renamed Syria Palaestina following the Jewish Bar Kokhba revolt.-Etymology:The...
(Oscar Isaac
Oscar Isaac
-Personal life:Isaac was born in Guatemala to a Guatemalan mother, Maria Estrada Nicolle, and a Cuban pulmonologist father, Oscar Gonzalo Hernandez. He was raised in Miami, Florida. While in Miami, he played lead guitar and sang vocals for his band "The Blinking Underdogs"...
), is spoken to by God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
and told that she is to deliver His child and call him Jesus. Mary then goes to stay with her cousin Elizabeth
Elizabeth (Biblical person)
Elizabeth is also spelled Elisabeth or Elisheva...
for the harvest, when she witnesses the birth of John the Baptist
John the Baptist
John the Baptist was an itinerant preacher and a major religious figure mentioned in the Canonical gospels. He is described in the Gospel of Luke as a relative of Jesus, who led a movement of baptism at the Jordan River...
to Elizabeth (Shohreh Aghdashloo
Shohreh Aghdashloo
Shohreh Aghdashloo is an Iranian American actress.After establishing a theatre and film career in Iran, Aghdashloo moved to England during the Iranian Revolution in 1979, and subsequently became a citizen of the United States...
), who is past child bearing age, and her husband Zachariah
Zechariah (priest)
In the Bible, Zechariah , is the father of John the Baptist, a priest of the sons of Aaron, a prophet in , and the husband of Elisabeth who is the cousin of Mary the mother of Jesus.In the Qur'an, Zechariah plays a similar role as the father of John the Baptist and ranks him as a prophet alongside...
(Stanley Townsend
Stanley Townsend
-Theatre:Townsend's work in theatre includes: Remember This, Guys and Dolls and Phedre at the National Theatre, London; The Alice Trilogy, Shining City , Under the Blue Sky and The Weir at the Royal Court, London; The Wake, Trinity for Two and Sacred Mysteries at the Abbey Theatre, Dublin; The...
). Mary returns from the visit pregnant, to the shock of Joseph and her parents. Mary is accused of fornication
Fornication
Fornication typically refers to consensual sexual intercourse between two people not married to each other. For many people, the term carries a moral or religious association, but the significance of sexual acts to which the term is applied varies between religions, societies and cultures. The...
, for which, if she is found guilty, she could be stoned to death
Stoning
Stoning, or lapidation, is a form of capital punishment whereby a group throws stones at a person until the person dies. No individual among the group can be identified as the one who kills the subject, yet everyone involved plainly bears some degree of moral culpability. This is in contrast to the...
in a public execution
Public Execution
Public Execution is a Mouse and the Traps retrospective album that has been released in both LP and CD formats. The LP has an unusually large number of tracks , while the CD includes 4 bonus tracks and catalogues almost all of the released music by Mouse and the Traps and their associated bands: ...
. At first Joseph does not believe Mary's explanation that she was visited by an angel
Angel
Angels are mythical beings often depicted as messengers of God in the Hebrew and Christian Bibles along with the Quran. The English word angel is derived from the Greek ἄγγελος, a translation of in the Hebrew Bible ; a similar term, ملائكة , is used in the Qur'an...
, and that she has not broken her vow of chastity. He resolves to quietly divorce her, but before he acts on this plan, he is visited by the very same angel. Joseph then believes Mary, and promises to stay by her side.
Meanwhile, Caesar Augustus has demanded that every man and his family must return to his place of birth for the census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
. For Joseph, as a direct descendant of King David, this involves a 110 kilometres (68.4 mi) trip across rocky terrain from Nazareth to Bethlehem
Bethlehem
Bethlehem is a Palestinian city in the central West Bank of the Jordan River, near Israel and approximately south of Jerusalem, with a population of about 30,000 people. It is the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate of the Palestinian National Authority and a hub of Palestinian culture and tourism...
, the place of his birth. Such a trip (with Mary on a donkey also carrying supplies, and given the terrain) would likely have taken several weeks. When they reach Bethlehem, Mary goes into labor. Joseph frantically seeks a place for the two to stay, but there is no room in any inn or home (thanks in part to the census). At the last minute, an innkeeper offers his stable for shelter.
While Mary's story is being told, a concurrent plot line features the travels of the three Magi
Magi
Magi is a term, used since at least the 4th century BC, to denote a follower of Zoroaster, or rather, a follower of what the Hellenistic world associated Zoroaster with, which...
, Gaspar, Melchior and Balthasar
Biblical Magi
The Magi Greek: μάγοι, magoi), also referred to as the Wise Men, Kings, Astrologers, or Kings from the East, were a group of distinguished foreigners who were said to have visited Jesus after his birth, bearing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh...
, who had previously discovered that three planets will align to form a great star. This Star of Bethlehem
Star of Bethlehem
In Christian tradition, the Star of Bethlehem, also called the Christmas Star, revealed the birth of Jesus to the magi, or "wise men", and later led them to Bethlehem. The star appears in the nativity story of the Gospel of Matthew, where magi "from the east" are inspired by the star to travel to...
appears before the Magi, after a visit by the angel, Gabriel
Gabriel
In Abrahamic religions, Gabriel is an Archangel who typically serves as a messenger to humans from God.He first appears in the Book of Daniel, delivering explanations of Daniel's visions. In the Gospel of Luke Gabriel foretells the births of both John the Baptist and of Jesus...
. The Magi eventually visit Herod and tell him that a King of the Jews has been born. Herod considers himself to be King of the Jews; thus, he asks them to journey to the East and pay a visit to the newborn Jesus, and report the location back to Herod under the pretense that he, too, would like to worship him. Unbeknown to Mary and Joseph, the Magi show up at the stable in which the family is staying, and present the baby with the well-known gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
As instructed by the angel, the Magi do not return to Herod, but return to their origin via a different route. King Herod realizes that the wise men have defied him, and in retribution demands the murder of every boy in Bethlehem up to the age of two. Joseph is warned in a dream of the danger and flees with Mary and the child to Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
.
Cast
- Keisha Castle-HughesKeisha Castle-HughesKeisha Castle-Hughes is a New Zealand film actress who rose to prominence at the age of eleven when playing Paikea "Pai" Apirana in the 2002 film Whale Rider...
as MaryMary (mother of Jesus)Mary , commonly referred to as "Saint Mary", "Mother Mary", the "Virgin Mary", the "Blessed Virgin Mary", or "Mary, Mother of God", was a Jewish woman of Nazareth in Galilee... - Shohreh AghdashlooShohreh AghdashlooShohreh Aghdashloo is an Iranian American actress.After establishing a theatre and film career in Iran, Aghdashloo moved to England during the Iranian Revolution in 1979, and subsequently became a citizen of the United States...
as ElizabethElizabeth (Biblical person)Elizabeth is also spelled Elisabeth or Elisheva... - Oscar IsaacOscar Isaac-Personal life:Isaac was born in Guatemala to a Guatemalan mother, Maria Estrada Nicolle, and a Cuban pulmonologist father, Oscar Gonzalo Hernandez. He was raised in Miami, Florida. While in Miami, he played lead guitar and sang vocals for his band "The Blinking Underdogs"...
as JosephSaint JosephSaint Joseph is a figure in the Gospels, the husband of the Virgin Mary and the earthly father of Jesus Christ .... - Stanley TownsendStanley Townsend-Theatre:Townsend's work in theatre includes: Remember This, Guys and Dolls and Phedre at the National Theatre, London; The Alice Trilogy, Shining City , Under the Blue Sky and The Weir at the Royal Court, London; The Wake, Trinity for Two and Sacred Mysteries at the Abbey Theatre, Dublin; The...
as ZechariahZechariah (priest)In the Bible, Zechariah , is the father of John the Baptist, a priest of the sons of Aaron, a prophet in , and the husband of Elisabeth who is the cousin of Mary the mother of Jesus.In the Qur'an, Zechariah plays a similar role as the father of John the Baptist and ranks him as a prophet alongside... - Ciaran HindsCiarán HindsCiarán Hinds is an Irish film, television and stage actor. He has built up a reputation as a versatile character actor appearing in such high profile films as Road to Perdition, The Phantom of the Opera, Munich, There Will Be Blood and Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy. His television roles include...
as King HerodHerod the GreatHerod , also known as Herod the Great , was a Roman client king of Judea. His epithet of "the Great" is widely disputed as he is described as "a madman who murdered his own family and a great many rabbis." He is also known for his colossal building projects in Jerusalem and elsewhere, including his... - Alessandro Giuggioli as Prince AntipasHerod AntipasHerod Antipater , known by the nickname Antipas, was a 1st-century AD ruler of Galilee and Perea, who bore the title of tetrarch...
- Hiam AbbassHiam AbbassHiam Abbass , also known as Hiam Abbas or Hiyam Abbas, is a Palestinian actress and an Arab citizen of Israel. She is known for her roles in the films Satin Rouge , Haifa , Paradise Now , The Syrian Bride , Free Zone , Dawn of the World , The Visitor , Lemon Tree , and Amreeka...
as AnnaSaint AnneSaint Hanna of David's house and line, was the mother of the Virgin Mary and grandmother of Jesus Christ according to Christian and Islamic tradition. English Anne is derived from Greek rendering of her Hebrew name Hannah... - Shaun ToubShaun ToubShaun Toub is an Iranian-American film and television actor. He is perhaps best known for his role as Farhad in the 2004 movie Crash, as Rahim Khan in the movie The Kite Runner, and as Yinsen in the movie Iron Man.-Personal life:...
as JoachimJoachimSaint Joachim was the husband of Saint Anne and the father of Mary, the mother of Jesus in the Roman Catholic, Orthodox, and Anglican traditions. The story of Joachim and Anne appears first in the apocryphal Gospel of James... - Alexander SiddigAlexander SiddigSiddig El Tahir El Fadil El Siddig Abderrahman Mohammed Ahmed Abdel Karim El Mahdi is a Sudanese-born English actor, also known as Siddig El Fadil and his stage name Alexander Siddig. He is known for playing Dr...
as The Angel Gabriel
Box office
The film opened to a modest first weekend box officeBox office
A box office is a place where tickets are sold to the public for admission to an event. Patrons may perform the transaction at a countertop, through an unblocked hole through a wall or window, or at a wicket....
of $
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
8 million, but its weekend draw over the extended Christmas weekend increased by 39%.
The movie closed out with almost US$ 38 million domestically and added to that almost US$ 9 million in foreign gross, bringing it to a worldwide total of almost US$ 47 million on a reported US $ 35 million budget.
Reception
The movie received mixed reviews. On Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
, it holds a 38% ranking, but The Hollywood Reporter
The Hollywood Reporter
Formerly a daily trade magazine, The Hollywood Reporter re-launched in late 2010 as a unique hybrid publication serving the entertainment industry and a consumer audience...
described it as 'exciting' and 'scrupulously accurate'.
MPAA rating
The film is rated PGMPAA film rating system
The Motion Picture Association of America's film-rating system is used in the U.S. and its territories to rate a film's thematic and content suitability for certain audiences. The MPAA system applies only to motion pictures that are submitted for rating. Other media may be rated by other entities...
in America for some violent content.
Music
Mychael DannaMychael Danna
Mychael Danna is a Canadian film composer.-Life and career:Mychael Danna is the brother of fellow composer Jeff Danna. He has been scoring films since his 1987 feature debut for Atom Egoyan's Family Viewing, a score which earned Danna the first of his thirteen Genie Award nominations. He has won...
's score of the film was released as an album on December 5, 2006. The album was nominated for a Dove Award for Instrumental Album of the Year at the 39th GMA Dove Awards.
An album of songs inspired by the film was also released under the title The Nativity Story: Sacred Songs. It featured music by artists like Point of Grace
Point of Grace
Point of Grace is an all-female Contemporary Christian music group. The trio consists of Shelley Breen, Denise Jones, and Leigh Cappillino. The group started out as a quartet in 1991, with original members Breen and Jones, as well as Terry Jones and Heather Payne...
, Amy Grant
Amy Grant
Amy Lee Grant is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, media personality and actress, best known for her Christian music. She has been referred to as "The Queen of Christian Pop"...
, Jaci Velasquez
Jaci Velasquez
Jacquelyn Davette Velasquez is an American Contemporary Christian and Latin Pop singer—in both English and Spanish languages....
, and others.
External links
- Official site
- The Nativity Story at Allmovie