NY Times Movie Review: ‘Mary’ — An Epic Biopic For The Mother Of God

New York Times, ‘Mary’ Review: An Epic Biopic for the Mother of God:

Horses gallop across a desert. Christianity’s most famous couple meet cute at a river. Swords clatter. A villain emerges from flames. Insect buzz accompanies the come-ons of a devil. (OK, the Devil.) No genre gesture goes untapped in the deliberately hagiographic “Mary,” a coming-of-age saga about the mother of Jesus. Directed by D.J. Caruso and written by Timothy Michael Hayes, the film aims to draw multitudes.

“I was chosen to deliver a gift to the world, the greatest gift it has ever known,” Mary (Noa Cohen) says in voice-over, as she stands in an arid landscape holding a newborn in her arms with Joseph (Ido Tako) nearby.

Christianity Today, Hail ‘Mary,’ Full of Violence:

Netflix has picked up its first original Bible movie: Mary, a film about Jesus’ mother, starring Bible-movie veteran Anthony Hopkins (Peter and Paul, Noah) as King Herod.

The film, which starts streaming this Friday and counts megachurch pastor Joel Osteen as one of its executive producers, isn’t your typical Christmas movie. For one thing, it dramatizes not only the birth of Jesus but also the birth of Mary, following an ancient tradition—well known in Orthodox and Catholic circles—that says her birth was a miraculous answer to her own parents’ prayers.

The film has more violence than some viewers might expect, enough to earn it a TV-14 rating. Much of it involves the cruelty of King Herod, though Joseph (Ido Tako) also grabs tools and weapons to protect Mary (Noa Cohen) from various threats: Herod’s soldiers, a judgmental mob, even Satan himself (Eamon Farren).

Lately, Mary has been controversial for another reason, with some calling for a boycott over the film’s use of Jewish Israeli actors in many of the key roles, including Mary, her parents, her cousin Elizabeth (Keren Tzur), and Joseph.

CT spoke with director D. J. Caruso (Disturbia, Redeeming Love), who is Catholic, about the conversation around Mary and what he hopes audiences will take away from the film. ...

This film gets into the birth of Mary herself, which is not in the Bible. I’ve seen some Protestants say, “Well, this movie is going to be very Roman Catholic because it has the miraculous birth of Mary, so it’s not for us.” But I’ve also seen Catholics object to the trailer because it shows Mary experiencing labor pains when Jesus is born.

How were these creative decisions made, keeping in mind your anticipated audience?

Well, where to start. First of all, regarding the labor pains: That’s about presenting Mary in a human way, acknowledging that she had apprehensions. I think something like a third of women died in childbirth in antiquity.

I also wanted to get at the transformative, beautiful moment when a mother gives birth to a child. Every mother has experienced it, right? The mother Mary is giving birth to the Son of God, to Christ. This is my interpretation of what that would be like.

Now to answer your other question: I grew up Catholic and always knew something about Mary’s parents: Saint Joachim (played by Ori Pfeffer) and Saint Anne (Hilla Vidor). But who are they really? Why are we celebrating them?

I went to the Protoevangelium of James and looked at the story of Mary told there. Also the historian Josephus gave me a lot about the geopolitical situation. Using these texts, I was able to put together this narrative.

But just because you see the birth of Mary doesn’t mean the movie is particularly Catholic. It’s really just a celebration of her as the mother of God. This is the story we chose to tell, and it is for everybody.

I’ve seen the film twice now, and the second time in particular, I was struck by how powerful it was to see, early on, the scene of Anne giving birth to Mary. Then Anne is there when Mary gives birth to Jesus.

You imagine that Anne on some level is reliving what she’s been through.

That’s exactly why she’s there. The actresses were committed to making the connection between mother and daughter and the birth of Christ. ...

A controversy has emerged recently over casting Israeli actors in the film. Can you talk a little about that?

When I started to cast the film, we looked all over the world. I wanted to get someone from the region where Mary was born to play her. That was my goal. I felt like if we could find a great young Jewish actress, that would be amazing.

When I saw Noa’s audition—there are certain things you just know. So I got her on the phone, we started working together, and she was my Mary.

I felt blessed to say, wow, there’s this authenticity of this young Jewish woman playing a young Jewish woman. I thought that was fantastic. But obviously, this horrible war in the aftermath of October 7—the world is in upheaval.

I just know that Noa did an amazing job. She’s a fantastic actress. She’s got this grace and beauty, and at the same time, she’s accessible. I’m so proud of her performance, and I think it should be celebrated. It has nothing to do with politics.

The idea of the movie is to spread love, and art is hopefully a uniter. It’s not supposed to be something that separates anybody.

Tudum, Mary Is a Stunning Biblical Epic:

This winter, you’re invited to journey back in time to experience the story of the Nativity from a fresh perspective: through the eyes of Mary of Nazareth, the mother of Jesus Christ. Directed by D.J. Caruso (Disturbia) and written by Timothy Michael Hayes, this uplifting biblical epic follows Mary, Joseph, and their newborn son, Jesus, as they flee the relentless pursuit of King Herod, portrayed by two-time Academy Award winner Anthony Hopkins. 

“Mary is the most extraordinary woman ever to walk this earth, yet her story remains largely unknown beyond a few passages in the Bible,” Caruso told Netflix. “I embarked on this journey — to create a film that presents her in her most human and relatable form. When I first read Tim’s script, I knew it could serve as the foundation for my goal: to portray Mary as someone we can all connect with, not just as a saint but as the young woman we all recognize before her sanctification.”

Producer Mary Aloe was a key force in the creation of this film and worked diligently to put together an amazing team both above and below the line. With Hannah Leader, Gillian Hormel, and Joshua Harris also serving as producers and Pastor Joel Osteen as an executive producer on the film, Mary will take audiences on the coming-of-age journey of one of the most revered young women of all time. 

• Forbes, The Most Important Christmas Movie Of The Year Lands On Netflix Today
• National Catholic Register, What Netflix’s ‘Mary’ Gets Right — and What It Gets Wrong

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