ZDF documentary “INRI – Why did Jesus have to die?” follows the last days of Jesus (Eidin Jalali) as he arrived in Jerusalem with his disciples. But what really happened after that?
What really happened in the last days of Jesus? The documentary drama “INRI – Why did Jesus have to die?”, which ZDF shows on Good Friday evening at 10:20 p.m. (or from Maundy Thursday in the ZDF media pool), is dedicated to this question. With what idea did Jesus (Eidin Jalali, “Sylm”) and his disciples come to Jerusalem? To make a fuss and pay for it with your life? Or was the group envisioning a real opportunity to change the Jewish religious life of the time, as determined by the high priest Caiaphas (Alexander Beyer) and the Roman prefect of Judea, Pontius Pilate (Stephan Grossmann)? Apart from the post-Easter perspective that defines our view, what were Jesus and his followers really like?
Documentary “INRI – Why did Jesus have to die?” – definitely a new approach
Screenwriter Friedrich Klütsch, an expert in religious material, explains the idea of his 90-minute film: “In doing so, we have created a space for humor, coolness, confident determination, the very youthful passion that was supposed to distinguish and lead the revolutionary group around Jesus at the time.” In the film, international experts – Christians, Jews and probably also atheists – talk about what we now know about the events that took place a good 2000 years ago, between the game scenes and animations of the Jerusalem of that time. .
Christian Twente, the director of the Amazon documentary All or Nothing, about the German soccer team in Qatar, made a somewhat different Jesus film for ZDF, which is quite serious and documentary in style, but also with protagonists who show feelings, because they did not know then that their days In Jerusalem, one day, the greatest story of all time will happen. The pictorial documentation reconstructs the last days of Jesus of Nazareth from his arrival in Jerusalem to his crucifixion at the city gates. The film tries to distinguish: What are historical facts and what are statements of faith?
Special crucifixion films
Although “INRI – Why did Jesus have to die?” with a significantly smaller budget compared to the big expensive Hollywood productions of the death (and resurrection) of Jesus, the film fits the passion genre that has always been popular with many. tried to retell the story for decades. His most important works are: Mel Gibson's “The Passion of the Christ” from 2004. A controversial film because it has Jewish and anti-Semitic overtones. According to Motto: The Romans didn't really want to execute Jesus, but the Jews demanded it. But the torture scenes – Jesus was whipped for the first time – and the crucifixion are depicted quite realistically in this film.
Then, of course, Pier Paolo Pasolini 1964/65 must be mentioned. from “1. Gospel – Matthew” (“Il Vangelo secondo Matteo”). A radical black-and-white film that shows only what is in the Gospel of Matthew (dialogues, characters, scenes). Garth Davis' 2018 film Mary Magdalene, starring Rooney Mara as Mary Magdalene and Joaquin Phoenix as Jesus, is also considered a special crucifixion film. The film focuses primarily on Mary Magdalene (portrayed by Laura Berlin in the ZDF drama), who historically was one of the most important people among the followers of Jesus, probably more important than some of the twelve apostles.
Jesus also died in a series format: “The Chosen” (2019), a series with excellent lines inspired and financed by the US evangelicals. Even Martin Scorsese has dedicated himself to crucifixion. His film “The Last Temptation of Christ” (“The Last Temptation of Christ”, 1988) with Willem Dafoe as Jesus, Harvey Keitel as Judas and David Bowie with a great soundtrack of Pilate and Peter Gabriel. In general, the Gospels are not a good historical source of what actually happened because they were not written without merit. But historians believe it is certain that Jesus was crucified outside Jerusalem, probably around AD 30 on Passover.
The original of this article “Special ZDF documentary examines the question: Why did Jesus have to die?” comes from Teleschau.