Jesus Christ Superstar 4K 1973

An intriguing musical. Very much so, in fact. Of course, there’s nothing terrible about this new retelling of Christ’s story (in my opinion, the musical strictly follows the Bible). So what if Christ sings in a piercing voice? So what if, in the temple, instead of birds and clay pots, they’re selling pomegranates and soda? So what if Judas is Black and Herod is a fat joker? So what if the soldiers have German assault rifles and pink T-shirts? It’s all presented very charmingly and with a touch of humor. However, the director hasn’t forgotten that he’s making a serious film.

The film is as precise and accurate as a Swiss watch, which is quite surprising, considering its deliberate shabbiness in terms of sets, costumes, and just about everything else. In the entire story, I found only one deviation from the Book of Books—the scene where Judas suddenly comes back to life and teaches Christ how to live. Otherwise, everything is as it should be. Judas’s betrayal and his death, the journey to Herod and the “twist,” Pontius Pilate washing his hands, the trial, and Christ’s crucifixion. All of this looks quite authentic, just as in any other film that has touched on this subject in one way or another.

I can sum up the music in a word: fantastic. Another masterpiece by Andrew Lloyd Webber. Since there’s no official soundtrack, I extracted the songs directly from the movie, and I still listen to them from time to time. Personally, I’m a huge fan of *The Phantom of the Opera*. However, this film is in no way inferior to it. Even though it’s falling apart at the seams, *Jesus Christ Superstar* remains one of the best musicals in history and will most likely remain so. Judas fleeing from tanks in the desert—you have to see it for yourself!