Friday, March 29, AD 2024 7:15am

Screen Herods: Jose Ferrer

 

 

Jose Ferrer had a stage and film career for half a century, and from almost the first he was recognized as a rising star.  My favorite screen role of his came early in his career as defense attorney Lieutenant Barney Greenwald in The Caine Mutiny (1954).

His opportunity to portray Herod Antipas came in The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965)

Ferrer plays Herod Antipas as a world weary cynic who fears that Hell is all too real, feebly trying to deny the coming damnation that he knows he has richly earned:

 

 

His execution of John after the dance of Salome seals his damnation as far as Herod is concerned. (Charlton Heston’s portrayal of John is a wonder to behold.)  By the time Pilate sends Christ to him, Herod is a drunken wreck who can only mock the Truth he has rejected, and sends Him back to Pilate.

The film is available on Youtube with ads.  Go here to watch it.  Go here to view a making of documentary on the film.  Anyone who has not seen this masterpiece, I heartily recommend viewing it this Holy Week.

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Cathy
Cathy
Tuesday, March 30, AD 2021 6:54am

Thank you, Don! Wishing you and your bride a blessed Holy Week

TomD
TomD
Wednesday, March 31, AD 2021 6:35am

Yes, Don, God bless you and your loved ones.

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