Pontius Pilate Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! ===Film=== Pilate has been depicted in a number of films, being included in portrayals of Christ's passion already in some of the earliest films produced.{{sfn|McDonough|2009|pp=278β280}} In the 1927 silent film ''[[The King of Kings (1927 film)|The King of Kings]]'', Pilate is played by Hungarian-American actor [[Victor Varconi]], who is introduced seated under an enormous 37 feet high [[Aquila (Roman)|Roman eagle]], which Christopher McDonough argues symbolizes "not power that he possesses but power that possesses him".{{sfn|McDonough|2009|p=283}} During the ''Ecce homo'' scene, the eagle stands in the background between Jesus and Pilate, with a wing above each figure; after hesitantly condemning Jesus, Pilate passes back to the eagle, which is now framed beside him, showing his isolation in his decision and, McDonough suggests, causing the audience to question how well he has served the emperor.{{sfn|McDonough|2009|pp=284β285}} The film ''[[The Last Days of Pompeii (1935 film)|The Last Days of Pompeii]]'' (1935) portrays Pilate as "a representative of the gross materialism of the Roman empire", with the actor [[Basil Rathbone]] giving him long fingers and a long nose.{{sfn|Wroe|1999|pp=38β39}} Following the Second World War, Pilate and the Romans often take on a villainous role in American film.{{sfn|Winkler|1998|p=167}} The 1953 film ''[[The Robe (film)|The Robe]]'' portrays Pilate as completely covered with gold and rings as a sign of Roman decadence.{{sfn|Wroe|1999|p=39}} The 1959 film ''[[Ben-Hur (1959 film)|Ben-Hur]]'' shows Pilate (the Australian actor, Frank Thring Jr.) presiding over a chariot race, in a scene that Ann Wroe says "seemed closely modeled on the Hitler footage of the [[1936 Summer Olympics|1936 Olympics]]," with Pilate bored and sneering.{{sfn|Wroe|1999|p=186}} Martin Winkler, however, argues that ''Ben-Hur'' provides a more nuanced and less condemnatory portrayal of Pilate and the Roman Empire than most American films of the period.{{sfn|Winkler|1998|p=192}} [[File:Ponzio Pilato 1962 Marais.png|thumb|Jean Marais as Pontius Pilate in {{lang|it|Ponzio Pilato|italics=yes}} (1962)]] Only one film has been made entirely in Pilate's perspective, the 1962 French-Italian ''[[Ponzio Pilato]]'', where Pilate was played by [[Jean Marais]].{{sfn|Wroe|1999|p=39}} In the 1973 film [[Jesus Christ Superstar (film)|''Jesus Christ Superstar'']], based on the [[Jesus Christ Superstar|1970 rock opera]], the trial of Jesus takes place in the ruins of a Roman theater, suggesting the collapse of Roman authority and "the collapse of all authority, political or otherwise".{{sfn|McDonough|2009|p=287}} The Pilate in the film, played by [[Barry Dennen]], expands on [[John 18:38]] to question Jesus on the truth and appears, in McDonough's view, as "an anxious representative of [...] moral relativism".{{sfn|McDonough|2009|p=287}} Speaking of Dennen's portrayal in the trial scene, McDonough describes him as a "cornered animal."{{sfn|McDonough|2009|p=290}} Wroe argues that later Pilates took on a sort of effeminancy,{{sfn|Wroe|1999|p=39}} illustrated by [[Michael Palin]]βs Pilate in ''[[Monty Python's Life of Brian]]'', who lisps and mispronounces his r's as w's. In [[Martin Scorsese]]'s ''[[The Last Temptation of Christ (film)|The Last Temptation of Christ]]'' (1988), Pilate is played by [[David Bowie]], who appears as "gaunt and eerily hermaphrodite."{{sfn|Wroe|1999|p=39}} Bowie's Pilate speaks with a British accent, contrasting with the American accent of Jesus ([[Willem Dafoe]]).{{sfn|McDonough|2009|pp=290β291}} The trial takes place in Pilate's private stables, implying that Pilate does not think the judgment of Jesus very important, and no attempt is made to take any responsibility from Pilate for Jesus's death, which he orders without any qualms.{{sfn|McDonough|2009|pp=291β293}} [[Mel Gibson]]'s 2004 film ''[[The Passion of the Christ]]'' portrays Pilate, played by [[Hristo Shopov]], as a sympathetic, noble-minded character,{{sfn|Grace|2004|p=16}} fearful that the Jewish priest Caiaphas will start an uprising if he does not give in to his demands. He expresses disgust at the Jewish authorities' treatment of Jesus when Jesus is brought before him and offers Jesus a drink of water.{{sfn|Grace|2004|p=16}} McDonough argues that "Shopov gives us a very subtle Pilate, one who manages to appear alarmed though not panicked before the crowd, but who betrays far greater misgivings in private conversation with his wife."{{sfn|McDonough|2009|p=295}} Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page