Lothaire Bluteau, Catherine Wilkening, Johanne-Marie Tremblay, Rémy Girard, Robert Lepage ...( see more  see more... ) , Gilles Pelletier , Yves Jacques

What happens to the people putting on a Passion Play? Someday Mel Gibson may tell us, but Denys Arcand's Jesus of Montreal proposes an engaging possibility. In hip present-day Montreal, a group...( read more  read more... ) of actors stages the Passion in an outdoor, somewhat avant-garde style, led by the quietly charismatic and increasingly uncanny young man (Lothaire Bluteau, Black Robe) playing Christ. His identification with the role, and the way it bleeds into real life, gives director Denys Arcand plenty of opportunities for social comment--some of it spot-on, some of it a little facile. But the fragile Bluteau is such a fascinating lead presence (the other actors are familiar from Arcand's Barbarian Invasions and Decline of the American Empire) that the movie's spell lasts long after it's over. Turns out the French-Canadian approach to the Passion can be just as intriguing as the original Aramaic. --Robert Horton

Flixster Users

86% liked it

4,625 ratings

Critics

92% liked it

12 critics

R, 1 hr. 58 min.

Directed by: Denys Arcand

Release Date: May 17, 1989

Invite friends to see

DVD Release Date: February 3, 2004

Stats: 240 reviews

Photos


None yet... Got one?

Your Rating



clear rating

Flixster Reviews (240)


  • March 5, 2008
    I liked the first half of this, but by the end it was just too much, and getting too obvious. The clever, calling-of-the-disciples allusion is my favorite, and the play itself is rather absorbing.
  • May 4, 2009
    Underrated film. Great allegory.
  • January 19, 2007
    Arcand's depiction on religion and Montreal itself have somewhat not change until now (almost 20 years later). The film opens on a lot of subjects that still not resolved yet which gives the viewers a great opinion on a part of Montrealers ways of living.
  • November 12, 2009
    Le film amène des réflexions intéressantes.
  • August 6, 2009
    nominated for best foreign film at the golden globes, oscars, and by NBR
  • March 9, 2009
    really good story, but cheezy ending
  • January 16, 2009
    Wow. Me voilà plongé dans l'univers du cinéma québécois. Léolo, avec une grande tête d'avance, qui s'approche de la ligne d'arrivée. Mais voilà qu'un inconnu surgit du lot et s'approche de plus en plus; impossible de distinguer s'il est parvenu égalité avec Léolo ou s'il traîne d...( read more)errière par quelques centimètres. Oui, oui, vous m'avez bien compris. Jésus de Montréal est mon deuxième petit bijou québécois, et j'ai été vraiment ébahi par la réalisation de Denys Arcand. Ce film, c'est comme notre petit Da Vinci Code québécois, mais sans budget hollywoodien.

    Et d'où sort ce Lothaire Bluteau?! Deux films en ligne que je le vois performer, et je dois dire qu'il est vraiment, mais vraiment incroyable dans Jésus de Montréal (et un peu pathétique dans Le confessionnal), et il mérite grandement son prix pour sa performance.

    Jésus de Montréal remet en question bien des théories, encore une fois sur la religion chrétienne, des théories nouvelles à mes oreilles qui m'impressionnent et me laissent perplexe. Chapeau Arcand.
  • September 4, 2008
    great table turning scene.
    i too have been affected by playing roles i didn't believe in. you?
  • July 27, 2008
    Il faudrait le revoir.
  • May 23, 2008
    interesting from an intellectual perspective

Comments


  • yeldarb68
    June 20, 2007
    Brilliant Quebecois film! Vive le Quebec!!

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Official Trailer

More Like This


Click a thumb to vote on that suggestion, or add your own suggestions.

  • Un Zoo la nuit (Night Zoo)
    Un Zoo la nuit (Night Zoo) (33%)

Facts


No facts approved yet. Be the first

Jésus de Montréal... : Watch Free on TV


Jésus de Montréal (Jesus of Montreal) Trivia

Movie Quizzes


No quizzes for Jésus de Montréal (Jesus of Montreal). Want to create one?

Video Clips


No video clips yet. Want to upload one?

Recent News


No recent headlines. Got one?

Most Popular Skin


No skins yet. Interested in creating one?