Forty Nights
Secular film critics may have dismissed this as ‘just another Jesus movie’, but user reviews say it is ‘inspiring’, ‘compelling’, and challenging.’
Technical assessment: 3★★★✩✩
Moral assessment: 3★★★✩✩
CINEMA rating: V 14
Winner of “Most Inspirational Feature Film” award in the International Christian Film Festival (2017), Forty Nights opens with Jesus’s (DJ Perry) baptism by John (Terry Jernigan), and takes the viewer through, as the title highlights, the forty days and forty nights he wandered through the wilderness. Here he struggles to do the will of his Father, reflecting on his past as a young boy (Joe Cipriano) growing up with Joseph (Taylor Nichols) and Mary (Melissa Anschutz) and recollects the events that brought him to the point of self-exile. But the devil would never leave him alone, presenting himself in multiple forms (Rance Howard, Taymour Ghazi, Drew Wise).
Forty Nights is a creative reimagining of the biblical account of Jesus being tempted in the desert three times by the devil. The movie’s principal production outfit, Collective Development Incorporated (CDI), says “The ’40 Nights’ script is an in-depth character story about one of the most known, questioned and mysterious figures in human history. While many films are being produced that illustrate the teachings of Jesus and his ministry, little is known of his personal life and story prior… We know next to nothing of his day to day interactions as a child; therefore in our telling of his story, we applied common events and themes that unfold in the average upbringing. Our story differs than most in that; we focused on a small piece of the Jesus saga that is often glossed over.” The result is an endearing depiction of Jesus’s upbringing which offers a refreshing portrait of an intimate interaction the boy and Joseph his father. Noteworthy, too, is the elaboration on the temptation attempts by the devil that is amusingly wordier than the bible narrates, with the devil patiently or persistently resorting to philosophy and history to expose his subject’s inner demons and to lure him away from God’s will.
Forty Nights may have been dismissed by secular film critics as “just one of those Jesus movies”, but user reviews reflect otherwise. Here are some comments: “Forty Nights is a film that will inspire, whether a believer or not. It is thought provoking and challenging.” “It’s a showing of how capable our spirit really is over our flesh, if we are willing.” “Flashbacks take the viewer back into the life of Jesus and addresses real issues that we all face every day. It is a film that will build your faith and inspire you as you apply it to your life. The ending is especially direct and challenging.” “Even though the 40 nights is imagined, it’s still grounded in Scripture and is quite believable. DJ Perry brings out the human, personal side of Christ, and you won’t read the Bible passage the same way after viewing this film.” Indeed, a commendable Lenten movie, in or out of season. — TRT
You may watch Forty Nights for free at multiple YouTube sites, for example, here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E52EV2FPT2I&t=4s
Lead cast: DJ Perry, Rance Howard (devil as old man), Taymour Ghazi (Devil as a man), Joe Cipriano (young Jesus), Melissa Anschutz (Mary), Shane Hagedorn (Gabriel), Drew Wise (Devil as a boy), Terry Jernigan (John the Baptist), Taylor Nichols (Joseph) EDITOR: Jesse Law, SCORE: Dennis Therrian CINEMATOGRAPHY: Jesse Aragon PRODUCTION DESIGN: Anthony Hornus PRODUCERS: Rebecca Lawlor, Curt Kufner, Tonia Kufner COUNTRY: USA, LAGUAGE: English
