Bowie's portrayal here is great, and not talked about much. His Pilate is a cold, calculating, and intelligent ruler, but there are many hints of sympathy and empathy in some of his expressions and lines. Bowie adds much depth to the figure.
Yes. The way he asks for a demonstration... its like he wants to be converted. He knows he is a prisoner of his system, yet he must fulfill his duties.
I met Bowie several times around the Tin Machine era. One of the nicest guys ever. If he met you once, he always remembered you, your name, and stuff you told him. Freakish memory. Iman was a nice lady, too.
I remember reading or seeing an interview with Dafoe about how he was awed by Bowie and it took him a couple of takes to relax and get his performance right, being in the presence of one of his idols. Bowie was the rare breed of performer who could actually bring character and charisma to film acting. You had to give yourself a couple of seconds to separate him from his great music and let his natural talent shine through. I got to see him at Tacoma Dome in 1984, I think. First rock concert of the new venue. Let's Dance! RIP David.
Pretty much. Pilate was caught between a rock and a hard place. He was doing his duty the best he could, but he didn't want to put an innocent man to death either.
In the Bible he's given sympathy because the target audience for early conversions were Roman citizens.... that's why they emphasise the Jewish hierarchy as guilty for Jesus' execution, not their Roman overlords.
@@adamlis9321 the rabbinical hierarchy was guilty. The Romans didn't rule a modern nation-state, they ruled a patchwork of areas with varying degrees of civil autonomy. Judaea was one of the most autonomous areas, having been most recently acquired. The province had practically no Romans in it aside from thousands of soldiers and a few administrators and traders. The day to day affairs, laws, and customs of the local populace remained in the hands of the local populace and pre-existing power structures, or else the Romans would have had no end to revolts there.
Of all the rock icons who went to acting, Bowie was one of the greats. You can't take your eyes off of him. Even if he never sang a note, if you went into acting only, he STILL would have been a star. There's no denying that.
Bowie is incredible in this. Probably the best scene of the movie. He's bored, and probably dealt with hundreds of people exactly like Jesus, but you can note a tinge of pity in him, because Christ's message is so contrary to human nature, and so clearly destined to fail. He's the only rational voice in the whole film.
He said it rightly and coldly, the world simply does not want to change. Wow that sent shivers down my spine but God is greater and always will be. He was on point that people that inspire are more dangerous than soldiers because motivation can move mountains and tear down kingdoms. Did Jesus know what would become of the Roman's and how they would be the proponent of the Christian faith all over the world? Well certainly, it was the plan all along.
@@matthewJ142 Couldn't it be argued that the Romans ultimately perverted the Christian message, cynically using it to consolidate earthly power and wealth? Look at the Vatican. It doesn't seem very aligned with Christ's teachings.
@@tuanjim799 you can blame it on the Romans, but they're just people like anyone else. If they didn't twist it to their own favor, someone else would have. It's so human to lose your way by trying to follow something good, but end up twisting that good thing to follow your own human desires instead.
Best portrayal of Pilate in the movies. Very cold and calculating. Seems to be more truthful to the historic Pilate. He sees the danger himself and is the one in power.
How would you know if it's truthful? The only accounts of Pilate & Jesus talking are in the gospels, which were written decades after Christ's crucifixion. Pilate likely had no extensive conversation with Jesus if any at all. Tacitus writes about how the Romans viewed Christians as superstitious Jewish cult and nothing more. I doubt Pilate had some great sympathy lol.
@@DontDrinkthatstuffit’s more the gospels make Pilate look weak who didn’t want to kill Jesus . Not accurate at all. Pilate probably didn’t care about Jesus until he admitted to being king of the Jews.
"It's one thing to want to change the way people live; but, you want to change how they think, how they feel" the phrase every human should remember by heart
Scorsese made a genius move by casting David Bowie for this role. This scene has become iconic because of Bowie's brilliant acting. He overshadows all the other actors in the film, including Defoe himself.
I think Bowie's performance adds something to Pilate that a lot of his others portrayals don't have. It's commonly believed in Bible-Lore (tm) that Pilate eventually converts to Christianity, which adds a Pilate bit of depth to his characterization that I don't think is often elaborated on in his fictional portrayals. Pilate is usually a black and white figure, either he's an uncompromising jackass who only realizes the error of his ways years after he condemns Jesus, or he's a weak puppet who was always with Jesus from the start but has his hands forced by those around him, forcing him to order Jesus's execution. Bowie's Pilate is simultaneously strong in will and in his convictions, but isn't entirely unsympathetic to Jesus's plight and sense of morality. There's a sense that Pilate has room to grow as a person, making his ultimate conversion much more believable.
Great scene. I love how they have the horse winning in the background when Bowie says something that has impending doom to it. And it's slow, not rushed. This is how poorly people really communicate
David Bowie didn’t do a lot of films (he turned down playing a Bond villain) but anytime he turned up in a film it was always something, he had such a cool elegance that came through no matter what the role was
if you dig bowie and his acting, you have seen The Prestige?? bowie is a godfather of electricity, Tesla. he makes a wild entrance with electricity storming around him. great work with hugh jackman and andy serkis in the movie. worth seeing if you haven't already.....
@@zigguratofur7298 Heard of it but never seen it. That’s another thing about Bowie and films, he didn’t always play the lead, I remember idly switching channels once and saw him in a weird 80’s film called Into the Night playing a villain, I’m not even sure he was credited in that one. And I believe he played Andy Warhol in another film. I wouldn’t be surprised if he avoided doing most films because he hated the waiting around that always happened on film sets
Don't know about his studies but he had already performed with accolades in some very classy movies like "The Man Who Fell To Earth" (1976) and "Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence" (1983).
Bowie was actually a very underated actor, who was exceptionally brilliant in his, sadly, few screen appearences. His portrayal of Pilate is a highly intelligent performance; Scorsese was incredibily wise to cast him for the role. Indeed, you actually wonder if Scorsese might, at some point, have pondered casting Bowie as Christ instead of Willem Dafoe.
I’m a huge Bowie fan but watching on a small screen I genuinely didn’t know it was him until half way through and from the first few lines I thought ‘who the hell is that playing pontius Pilate? He’s really good. Really naturalistic. He must be one of the all time greats and I’m just not recognising him...’ then it turns out to be BOWIE?? He is genuinely a phenomenal actor.
The dual substance of Christ -the yearning, so human, so superhuman, of man to attain to God or, more exactly, to return to God and identify himself with Him -has always been a deep inscrutable mystery to me... My principal anguish and the source of all my joy and sorrows from my youth onwards has been the incessant merciless battle between the spirit and the flesh... And my soul is the arena where these two armies have met and clashed. -Nikos Kazantzakis The Last Temptation of Christ
"More Dangerous than the Zealots"...yes, an Armed Rebellion is relatively "easy" to deal with, you have a defined enemy...but a Rebellion using words, deeds to change the hearts and souls of men? - nearly impossible to stop.
Bowie is so good here I couldn't even tell for sure he was Bowie. He was absorbed by the character. It's supposed to be that way, not the other way around. That is the mark of a great actor.
This film is vastly underrated. I remember seeing it in Edinburgh back in the autumn of 1988. - Do you have a last wish, Jesus? - We can be heroes just for one day. I will be King. Can I meet David Bowie?
Bowie had to learn his acting chops in front of the camera and with no formal training. He did a pretty good job in TMWFTE, but stumbled in his next few movies and got poor reviews. However, working on the stage production of The Elephant Man he demonstrated that he did have the ability to be a good actor. Having seen a few of his roles in other movies you can see him become more confident and grounded. This is a good scene which he plays with an understated authority and therefore shows more of what he could do. The difficulty for a singer crossing over in to movies is we invariably struggle not to see the star we are familiar with. Cher and Lady Gaga it has to be said, were more successful in their movie roles and crossed the line better, but Bowie still did some good stuff. His performance in The BBC production of Baal was damned good though and showed he could deliver, when given the opportunity to play a real character part.
Interesting interpretation of Pilate, as a world weary politician who believes he is executing a troublemaker to keep the peace, although the movie leaves out the role of the tribal leaders in forcing his hand. I think Bowie is very good here. He was an underrated actor.
I came here to mourn what could have been, after seeing Nostalgia Chick say Bowie wanted to play Elrond in the LOTR movies and *they didn't cast him*. WHYYYYYYYYY ?????
@@jaygordon7613 Man, what a missed opportunity. And what a weird way of thinking. "Sorry, Mr. Bowie, you're just too awesome and people love you too much to be in the film." Ha
I don’t think it would’ve worked had they stuck to the original format. This version seems to let Dafoe’s and Bowie’s personality shine. Many of the other Jesus movies are very stiff and sorta boxed in. This one feels like it could deviate in a number of directions despite what the book already has recorded.
That dialogue, conceding artistic liberty, is still really very different from the gospels. Pilate only crucified him to avoid uprising by those who wanted him killed, not those who followed his message. He washed his hands of his blood because he thought Jesus was just delusional, but innocent.
I think that is reflected here in fact. It would be odd for Pilate to tell Jesus of his fear of his own people, thereby opening himself up to someone he sees as ‘not making his job any easier,’ as it were.
I don't think the 'washing of hands' is historically accurate. I think later Roman Christians added that touch so that they could lay greater blame on the Jews. The Romans killed Christ. Some of the Jewish leaders might have been secretly pleased that the troublemaker Jesus of Nazareth was done away with, but it was the Romans, taking a firm stand on the seditious info they got on Christ (he's the son of god, the kingdom of heaven is going to overturn Roman rule, etc.), that squarely sealed his fate.
BOWIE: So how long do I have to steal the whole movie? SCORSESE: Well, your only scene is less than five minutes. BOWIE: I suppose I’ll have to do it in three then…
"So your kingdom, or your world, it'll replace Rome. Where is it? "My Kingdom? It's not here. Not on Earth." "It wouldn't be, would it." Bowie gets the funniest line read of the movie!
David showing what a fine, intelligent actor he always was. His music career took precedence and we are grateful for that. Such brilliance is now being recognised after his death. Jackson missed an opportunity with David. Gandalf was excellently portrayed, as was Elrond. Who knows how much greater the movie could have been with David in it. The third movie showed Jackson unravelling. The Hobbit after that was dire. But that's another issue. The decision not to cast David in TLOTR was bottled
I like Bowie too. But people are talking about the wrong things here. JESUS CHRIST is the Lord God Almighty!!! He deserves praise and glory. Not the actors (although they did a great job 🙂).
"You want to change things but we don't want them changed," is easy enough for the conquering slave-owner to say. Ask the conquered slave if he's fine the way things are.
At first I hated this film but after watching it a few times I have come to appreciate it. Defoe is a brilliant actor as was Bowie and Scorsese (despite not liking every film of his) is still an outstanding film maker.
It's a very good movie - the one that makes you reflect on things, but not right away. It's straightforward and weird on the surface, but profound when you get deeper.
@@emilygracey well, he made superstar, just because he didn't like Bowie cause david was the only one who didn't write love songs in 70's, doesn't mean he doesn't have a taste.
Bowie's calm demeanor is way more intimidating and effective. If he had been shouting or spouting, it would not have worked. Truly a talented artist and performer, he was.
In this scene only, Pontius Pilate Robe should be purple not brown. Maybe, Rome did business with Lydia, a seller of purple. Who heart the Lord had opened. Is this not consistent with the sacred text?
It would hAve been funny if pilot at the end of the scene turned to Jesus and playing air guitar sang “and ziggy plaaaayed guiiiitar!” But then again it wasn’t exactly in the bible
![Martin Scorsese on The Last Temptation of Christ [deutsch untertitelt]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/5wzPks3JDYs/mqdefault.jpg)
Bowie's portrayal here is great, and not talked about much. His Pilate is a cold, calculating, and intelligent ruler, but there are many hints of sympathy and empathy in some of his expressions and lines. Bowie adds much depth to the figure.
Bowie was great at being menacing. His stare is intense and unnerving.
Yes. The way he asks for a demonstration... its like he wants to be converted. He knows he is a prisoner of his system, yet he must fulfill his duties.
Goodness, yes. Pilot didn’t want to have Christ crucified... he had to.
I met Bowie several times around the Tin Machine era. One of the nicest guys ever. If he met you once, he always remembered you, your name, and stuff you told him. Freakish memory. Iman was a nice lady, too.
pretty mediocre performance. he was a great artist but an average actor.
I remember reading or seeing an interview with Dafoe about how he was awed by Bowie and it took him a couple of takes to relax and get his performance right, being in the presence of one of his idols. Bowie was the rare breed of performer who could actually bring character and charisma to film acting. You had to give yourself a couple of seconds to separate him from his great music and let his natural talent shine through. I got to see him at Tacoma Dome in 1984, I think. First rock concert of the new venue. Let's Dance! RIP David.
I takes a couple of rewatches to separate Bowie as Pilate, from the Starman he was because he was the single greatest musician from the 20th century
I saw the Tacoma Dome show. Bowie was perfect for Pontius Pilate, who Nietzsche said was the most interesting character of the New Testament.
This is historically correct as we all know pontius Pilate had a very strong South London accent it's on record
Lol that he did. Better than him having a salford accent
@@haczabim even worse than that I believe Jesus came from Glasgow that is why no one had a clue what he was talking about
Still better than Judas by way of Brighton Beach NY. 😆
He was also an Anthony Newley impersonator
Yes, and Jesus had a gravelly Wisconsin accent.
The school principal who feels for the student and secretly sees their point of view, but has to give them detention
A lot more than detention, here...
@@stevekaczynski3793 smartass
@@stevekaczynski3793 3 day suspension
Pretty much. Pilate was caught between a rock and a hard place. He was doing his duty the best he could, but he didn't want to put an innocent man to death either.
Surely crucifixion is a bloody good caning?!
I like how Pilate sits down next to Jesus. For a moment, he talks eye to eye with him, man to man. Brilliant but subtle.
One of the only times Pilot is portrayed as calm and almost sympathetic. Bowie is always brilliant
Also in The Passion
It's how he was presented in the bible.
In the Bible he's given sympathy because the target audience for early conversions were Roman citizens.... that's why they emphasise the Jewish hierarchy as guilty for Jesus' execution, not their Roman overlords.
Pilate is usually depicted as sympathetic.
@@adamlis9321 the rabbinical hierarchy was guilty. The Romans didn't rule a modern nation-state, they ruled a patchwork of areas with varying degrees of civil autonomy. Judaea was one of the most autonomous areas, having been most recently acquired. The province had practically no Romans in it aside from thousands of soldiers and a few administrators and traders. The day to day affairs, laws, and customs of the local populace remained in the hands of the local populace and pre-existing power structures, or else the Romans would have had no end to revolts there.
Of all the rock icons who went to acting, Bowie was one of the greats. You can't take your eyes off of him. Even if he never sang a note, if you went into acting only, he STILL would have been a star. There's no denying that.
He was a natural born actor, for sure. His earliest role, for example - The Man Who Fell To Earth - he was fantastic.
@@melizmatea I loved his performance in Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence
Recently saw Just a Gigolo made in 1978. I was struck by how natural his acting was. He was mesmerizing!
I just watched The Last Temptation of Christ and I was absolutely floored by Bowie’s performance. He’s absolutely brilliant in this one scene.
I'm not quite sure of that. I've seen actors languish in obscurity despite being amazing performers.
Whatever Bowie did, it was utterly mesmerizing. Just this performance leaves me in awe. Bowie is dearly missed.
Bowie is incredible in this. Probably the best scene of the movie. He's bored, and probably dealt with hundreds of people exactly like Jesus, but you can note a tinge of pity in him, because Christ's message is so contrary to human nature, and so clearly destined to fail. He's the only rational voice in the whole film.
He said it rightly and coldly, the world simply does not want to change. Wow that sent shivers down my spine but God is greater and always will be. He was on point that people that inspire are more dangerous than soldiers because motivation can move mountains and tear down kingdoms. Did Jesus know what would become of the Roman's and how they would be the proponent of the Christian faith all over the world? Well certainly, it was the plan all along.
@@matthewJ142
Couldn't it be argued that the Romans ultimately perverted the Christian message, cynically using it to consolidate earthly power and wealth? Look at the Vatican. It doesn't seem very aligned with Christ's teachings.
@@tuanjim799 you can blame it on the Romans, but they're just people like anyone else. If they didn't twist it to their own favor, someone else would have. It's so human to lose your way by trying to follow something good, but end up twisting that good thing to follow your own human desires instead.
@@whs1pmjazz
That's true, it's a human nature thing. Some of the worst things in the world have been done in the name of something good.
Wide is the path...
The green goblin and the goblin king both in the same room
Goblinception.
"You know I'm something of a Goblin myself"
Ha! Well done
I see what you did there ;)
Goblin D's Nuts
"You know, I'm something of a miracle worker, myself"
Bowie, Dafoe and Scorsese : Master team! great scene.
and Keitel
Movie itself was an incredible experience.
Yep. Utterly masterful casting!
Written by Paul Schrader.
This team should have made a Batman… a wasted opportunity :(
Best portrayal of Pilate in the movies. Very cold and calculating. Seems to be more truthful to the historic Pilate. He sees the danger himself and is the one in power.
How would you know if it's truthful? The only accounts of Pilate & Jesus talking are in the gospels, which were written decades after Christ's crucifixion. Pilate likely had no extensive conversation with Jesus if any at all. Tacitus writes about how the Romans viewed Christians as superstitious Jewish cult and nothing more. I doubt Pilate had some great sympathy lol.
I don’t see coldness in his portrayal at all.
@@DontDrinkthatstuffit’s more the gospels make Pilate look weak who didn’t want to kill Jesus . Not accurate at all. Pilate probably didn’t care about Jesus until he admitted to being king of the Jews.
"It's one thing to want to change the way people live; but, you want to change how they think, how they feel" the phrase every human should remember by heart
Dedicated to all woke souls. 😂😂
Scorsese made a genius move by casting David Bowie for this role. This scene has become iconic because of Bowie's brilliant acting. He overshadows all the other actors in the film, including Defoe himself.
The only problem with this scene is that Bowie didn’t have longer screen time
Ground control to major Christ
Hahahahahahahahahahahahah!!!!!!
I have seen and tasted that Jesus Christ is good
Grab your crown of thorns and drive those two nails in...
This is major Christ to ground control: I’m nailed to the board~
Stop being disrespectful to Jesus!!!
I think Bowie's performance adds something to Pilate that a lot of his others portrayals don't have. It's commonly believed in Bible-Lore (tm) that Pilate eventually converts to Christianity, which adds a Pilate bit of depth to his characterization that I don't think is often elaborated on in his fictional portrayals. Pilate is usually a black and white figure, either he's an uncompromising jackass who only realizes the error of his ways years after he condemns Jesus, or he's a weak puppet who was always with Jesus from the start but has his hands forced by those around him, forcing him to order Jesus's execution.
Bowie's Pilate is simultaneously strong in will and in his convictions, but isn't entirely unsympathetic to Jesus's plight and sense of morality. There's a sense that Pilate has room to grow as a person, making his ultimate conversion much more believable.
JC: "Yer fond of me teachings aint' ye?"
Say it! 'Yer fond of me teachings!
"killing or loving, it's all the same."
No matter how you change things ,
We don't want them changed. "
One of the truest lines in cinema.
One of the truest lines you butchered
Great scene. I love how they have the horse winning in the background when Bowie says something that has impending doom to it.
And it's slow, not rushed.
This is how poorly people really communicate
"Slow, not rushed" is a tribute to Scorsese.
Who knew Pontius Pilate could dance and sing as well as he did
I'm straight, but David Bowie was a very handsome man.
Garrus1995 , why explain that you're straight?
hes just a good looking man, theres no one that can deny it regardless of what genitals they prefer
Injun Samurai , good answer.
My husband is straight too and he agrees with you.🙂
Agree. I'm straight too.
David Bowie didn’t do a lot of films (he turned down playing a Bond villain) but anytime he turned up in a film it was always something, he had such a cool elegance that came through no matter what the role was
if you dig bowie and his acting, you have seen The Prestige?? bowie is a godfather of electricity, Tesla. he makes a wild entrance with electricity storming around him. great work with hugh jackman and andy serkis in the movie. worth seeing if you haven't already.....
@@zigguratofur7298 Heard of it but never seen it. That’s another thing about Bowie and films, he didn’t always play the lead, I remember idly switching channels once and saw him in a weird 80’s film called Into the Night playing a villain, I’m not even sure he was credited in that one. And I believe he played Andy Warhol in another film. I wouldn’t be surprised if he avoided doing most films because he hated the waiting around that always happened on film sets
@@zigguratofur7298 I will have to see it. Love that one of my fav performers portrayed one of my fav scientists.
@@zigguratofur7298David Bowie was also in an underrated hybrid film from Weinstein Company by the name of Arthur and the Invisibles
Bowie always knew how to play a role. It does help the man did _study_ acting, so he doesn't suffer the usual stereotype of "musician can't act".
Don't know about his studies but he had already performed with accolades in some very classy movies like "The Man Who Fell To Earth" (1976) and "Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence" (1983).
Mr Bowie’s versatility was incredible, his part in this movie was one of the highlights.
Bowie was actually a very underated actor, who was exceptionally brilliant in his, sadly, few screen appearences. His portrayal of Pilate is a highly intelligent performance; Scorsese was incredibily wise to cast him for the role. Indeed, you actually wonder if Scorsese might, at some point, have pondered casting Bowie as Christ instead of Willem Dafoe.
Too bad Bowie never really sought out starring roles except in a few cases.
the man who fell to earth. that performance sent him into a spiral of depression; such was his total immersion into the role @@Thunderchild-gz4gc
@@sapaincaI know he was messed up on cocaine at the time. That's true he might have been hesitant.
David Bowie (Pilate): you better say something
Willem Dafoe (Jesus): Sing for me
David Bowie (Pilate): I could escape this feeling with my china girls
Oh my god this cracked me up.
I mean, Pilate does sing in Jesus Christ Superstar
David Bowie (Pilate): Dance Magic! Dance!
@Dean Definitely. Him playing Pilate alongside Freddie Mercury playing Simon Zealotes 👌👌
Bowie actually feels scary and intimidating here. But of course he's directed by Scorsese.
It's safe to say that David Bowie knew his lines and hit his marks here.
He could have totally played Elrond.
Was that not the plan?
Absolutely!
Bowie is a legendary singer, but also a great actor too.
Bit dodgy though
Dafoe can sing better than Bowie can act.
Yeah, something about his role as Pilate makes me cast aside what I know of his rock stardom. Easily one of his best roles.
Let's dance...put on your red shoes and dance the blues!
I’m a huge Bowie fan but watching on a small screen I genuinely didn’t know it was him until half way through and from the first few lines I thought ‘who the hell is that playing pontius Pilate? He’s really good. Really naturalistic. He must be one of the all time greats and I’m just not recognising him...’ then it turns out to be BOWIE??
He is genuinely a phenomenal actor.
You can tell by his voice .. unmistakable
Don't watch any great (-scope-) film on the "small screen" from now on - or stop complaining about it.
@@tylsimys67 I’m sorry I’ll never do it again
The dual substance of Christ -the yearning, so human, so superhuman, of man to attain to God or, more exactly, to return to God and identify himself with Him -has always been a deep inscrutable mystery to me...
My principal anguish and the source of all my joy and sorrows from my youth onwards has been the incessant merciless battle between the spirit and the flesh...
And my soul is the arena where these two armies have met and clashed.
-Nikos Kazantzakis
The Last Temptation of Christ
That was such a powerful preface. It’s painful to read.
Wow! Thanks for the spiritual insight!
A Holy figure and Willem Dafoe.
lmao best comment ever!!
Two holy figures here.
Originally this film was going to be made a few years earlier with sting as Pilate.
That would’ve been interesting but I feel Bowie was the better choice.
"More Dangerous than the Zealots"...yes, an Armed Rebellion is relatively "easy" to deal with, you have a defined enemy...but a Rebellion using words, deeds to change the hearts and souls of men? - nearly impossible to stop.
It's a shame that most of those movements also cause much more harm than good - especially these days.
Jesus was stupid if he ever had thought that way. PIlate was down-to-earth. Jesus was crucified because he was a political agitator like many others.
One of the greatest musicians and one of the greatest actors re-enact one of the greatest moments in the bible.
wow
Bowie is so good here I couldn't even tell for sure he was Bowie. He was absorbed by the character. It's supposed to be that way, not the other way around. That is the mark of a great actor.
"Killing or loving is all the same"
He's cynical and jaded whilst stuck in a job he hates. Why should he care?
I could watch an entire film of the two of them in a room talking.
I really loved and love this movie, an underrated film.
Same, i'm not even religious!
Agree, and of course many Hollywood people worked hard to underrate it.
Me too
Same here.
@Vermillion_Codex Wel spelld.
David Bowie in a film with music by Peter Gabriel. Cool.
This is a very amazing movie. Great cast and cinematography. One of my favourite drama films based on a book
david bowie doing michael cera cosplay
AravenaScheid lmao
Thanks for ruining this scene forever for me lol
Rasch - Your comment is so bad, makes me want to flag it.
Ah yes Michael Cera, the singer of Radiohead
@@gustavgnoettgen yup
To think he'd be crucified under...Jareth the Goblin King!
And Tesla!
You know, I’m something of a king myself.
Omg thank you for this comment!
I love David Bowie,And to see him play the role Pilate is amazing!
Pilate was no fool. He was a very smart man. Closed minded but he is the physical manifestation how the world works
This film is vastly underrated. I remember seeing it in Edinburgh back in the autumn of 1988.
- Do you have a last wish, Jesus?
- We can be heroes just for one day. I will be King. Can I meet David Bowie?
Casting David Bowie as Pontius Pilate was an inspired choice.
He also would have been perfect for the role of Pilate in Jesus Christ Superstar.
Bowie was way underrated as an actor.
He didn't seek out staring roles.
He shows himself a man of the people when he sits next to him
Loved Bowie in this, Labyrinth and The Prestige. Underrated actor. Would have liked to see him in more movies. Has a commanding presence about him.
He preferred smaller roles
@@Thunderchild-gz4gcevery song artist who is also a star can be different
Pilate " Tell me what you tell people on the street "
Jesus " Yes "
Pilate: "Yes."
"You do realize what has to happen, don't you? You're going to have to fight Spiderman"
Bowie had to learn his acting chops in front of the camera and with no formal training. He did a pretty good job in TMWFTE, but stumbled in his next few movies and got poor reviews. However, working on the stage production of The Elephant Man he demonstrated that he did have the ability to be a good actor. Having seen a few of his roles in other movies you can see him become more confident and grounded. This is a good scene which he plays with an understated authority and therefore shows more of what he could do. The difficulty for a singer crossing over in to movies is we invariably struggle not to see the star we are familiar with. Cher and Lady Gaga it has to be said, were more successful in their movie roles and crossed the line better, but Bowie still did some good stuff. His performance in The BBC production of Baal was damned good though and showed he could deliver, when given the opportunity to play a real character part.
A very good performance from Bowie. William Dafoe on point as usual.
Bowie is so good here. I wish he was in more films.
Yup, he was more dangerous than the Zealots.
Interesting interpretation of Pilate, as a world weary politician who believes he is executing a troublemaker to keep the peace, although the movie leaves out the role of the tribal leaders in forcing his hand. I think Bowie is very good here. He was an underrated actor.
I came here to mourn what could have been, after seeing Nostalgia Chick say Bowie wanted to play Elrond in the LOTR movies and *they didn't cast him*.
WHYYYYYYYYY ?????
I'd never heard that before. He would have been fantastic!
Hugo Weaving did a fantastic job regardless
Weaving did ok but he just looked like less angry agent Smith. Bowie would have been perfect.
@@brunoblivious it's true. He did audition, and was fantastic. But they believed his superstar status would distract from the movie.
@@jaygordon7613 Man, what a missed opportunity. And what a weird way of thinking.
"Sorry, Mr. Bowie, you're just too awesome and people love you too much to be in the film."
Ha
I do wish you people would go out and count them sometime, you might learn a lesson.....probably not. Well said Bowie, probably not.
Yes David Bowie played the role well. Willem Dafoe - excellent as always.
Probably my favourite depiction of Pilate.
two goblins in the same room
"Funny little man who sold his soul, funny little man who sold his dreams."
He sold his soul...for a shot at fame...
Little fat man
Jesus: You know, I'm something of a scientist myself
YOU KNOW HOW MUCH I SACRIFICED??!!
Avenge me Pilate...........AVENGE MEEEEEEEE!
@@ZakJordan98 Pliate: Noooooo!!!
“I do wish you people would go and count them some time.” There is the historical Pilate.
He’s just trying to get Pontius... To The Church On Time.
…to marry…
Biggus…
Dickus! 😘
This is how I like to remember Pilate. A fair man who upheld the law.
Bowies voice is majestic he was one of a kind.....
This is one of my favorite scenes of this film. I'm a follower of Jesus and I know this film dose not follow the Bible, but it's still a great film.
I don’t think it would’ve worked had they stuck to the original format. This version seems to let Dafoe’s and Bowie’s personality shine. Many of the other Jesus movies are very stiff and sorta boxed in. This one feels like it could deviate in a number of directions despite what the book already has recorded.
Mesmerising realistic and cinema of pure poetry... masterpiece
The same also goes for the movie trailer
That dialogue, conceding artistic liberty, is still really very different from the gospels. Pilate only crucified him to avoid uprising by those who wanted him killed, not those who followed his message. He washed his hands of his blood because he thought Jesus was just delusional, but innocent.
John 19:12
I think that is reflected here in fact. It would be odd for Pilate to tell Jesus of his fear of his own people, thereby opening himself up to someone he sees as ‘not making his job any easier,’ as it were.
I don't think the 'washing of hands' is historically accurate. I think later Roman Christians added that touch so that they could lay greater blame on the Jews. The Romans killed Christ. Some of the Jewish leaders might have been secretly pleased that the troublemaker Jesus of Nazareth was done away with, but it was the Romans, taking a firm stand on the seditious info they got on Christ (he's the son of god, the kingdom of heaven is going to overturn Roman rule, etc.), that squarely sealed his fate.
Who do you think was there transcribing the conversation?
@@bashhalow2729 that, of course, if you believe that the christian Jesus is a historical figure, which there is no proof of
Under Pressure
ti ti ti ti ti ti, ti ti ti ti ti ti ti
@ it's din
@@MoonLanta u_u
society by 1988 minds did not let me watch that movie
Too bad that society changed.
BOWIE: So how long do I have to steal the whole movie?
SCORSESE: Well, your only scene is less than five minutes.
BOWIE: I suppose I’ll have to do it in three then…
Bowie's look is very patrician a minister senator or counsel it's spot on .that line your more dangerous than any sinner.
Pilate sure was under pressure
pushin' down on me, pressin' down on you...no man ask for...
"So your kingdom, or your world, it'll replace Rome. Where is it?
"My Kingdom? It's not here. Not on Earth."
"It wouldn't be, would it."
Bowie gets the funniest line read of the movie!
A great scene from my all time favourite film.
A genuine masterpiece.
David showing what a fine, intelligent actor he always was. His music career took precedence and we are grateful for that. Such brilliance is now being recognised after his death. Jackson missed an opportunity with David.
Gandalf was excellently portrayed, as was Elrond. Who knows how much greater the movie could have been with David in it. The third movie showed Jackson unravelling. The Hobbit after that was dire. But that's another issue. The decision not to cast David in TLOTR was bottled
I like Bowie too. But people are talking about the wrong things here. JESUS CHRIST is the Lord God Almighty!!! He deserves praise and glory. Not the actors (although they did a great job 🙂).
"You want to change things but we don't want them changed," is easy enough for the conquering slave-owner to say. Ask the conquered slave if he's fine the way things are.
The most self aware tyrant ever.
He wasn't the tyrant himself, only the tyrant's instrument.
Being governor of Judea was Rome's equivalent to being manager at a 711 in Bumfuck, Alabama.
The clothes and hair, spot on
-' I'm not a trained animal... I'm not a magician. I'm a Sergeant in the 25th Infantry, Bravo Company...oh wait!!!... Never mind! Different movie!'
Bowie is just evil in this scene. I think it's one of the most memorable in the film, and I wish we'd seen more of Bowie as Pilate.
not evil, just the utter embodiment of political pragmatism, a man who would execute his mother if necessary for the State.
The Green Goblin vs The Goblin King.
Bowie is very good in this scene. Very underplayed, no bombast.
At first I hated this film but after watching it a few times I have come to appreciate it. Defoe is a brilliant actor as was Bowie and Scorsese (despite not liking every film of his) is still an outstanding film maker.
It's a very good movie - the one that makes you reflect on things, but not right away. It's straightforward and weird on the surface, but profound when you get deeper.
Bowie's voice makes me cry
Bowie no doubt told his promoters, encourages etc: "I don't do tricks...and I'm not a magician fershure."
I think it would have been interesting to have seen Bowie in Jesus Christ Superstar...
But webber loyd didn't like bowie
David didn´t like it, he went with his wife and in intermission they left. I´s would have love to see him singing there too.
@@itsikolia That explains a lot about ALW and one of his shows is my profile pic. That guy barely has taste in his mouth, let alone artistic taste.
@@emilygracey well, he made superstar, just because he didn't like Bowie cause david was the only one who didn't write love songs in 70's, doesn't mean he doesn't have a taste.
My parents saw him do Elephant Man.
Frau Blucher’s horse in an uncredited role…
Bowie's calm demeanor is way more intimidating and effective. If he had been shouting or spouting, it would not have worked. Truly a talented artist and performer, he was.
This would have been so much less awkward if Pilate had just sung Suffragette City like he should be doing at all times anyway
Pilate’s message: Don’t rock the boat, dude
In this scene only, Pontius Pilate Robe should be purple not brown. Maybe, Rome did business with Lydia, a seller of purple. Who heart the Lord had opened. Is this not consistent with the sacred text?
The film is not based on the gospels
Two of the greatest actors of all time.
It would hAve been funny if pilot at the end of the scene turned to Jesus and playing air guitar sang “and ziggy plaaaayed guiiiitar!”
But then again it wasn’t exactly in the bible
But there was a star, waiting in the sky....
a lot of the movie wasn't exactly in the bible sooo...