Il vangelo secondo Clarence

The Book Of Clarence might not be for everyone. It does reimagine a few things from the Bible and tells it from another point of view. This however might upset some who think this is being a mockery of religion as it's certainly far from that. In fact after watching this if you think it is saying something bad about religion you weren't really paying attention to the film. LaKeith Stanfield does a great job here playing our lead Clarence. The rest of the supporting cast is also terrific as well. Jeymes Samuel is in the Directing chair and he knows the type of film he is trying to make here. Coming off a strong film with The Harder They Fall, Jeymes does another strong job. My only complaint is I wish a little bit more was going on toward the middle of the film as it does start to drag on just a tad. Also the music selection was hit and miss as well. Overall I feel The Book of Clarence is going to become a cult classic when the dust settles. The Book of Clarence gets a solid 8 stars out of 10 from me.

Clarence, a non-believer in the messiah Jesus and a debtor, is willing to do anything for the woman he loves and his mother. With the deadline for his debt fast approaching, Clarence decides to do something drastic. Clarence declares himself a messiah and travels around Jerusalem, spreading his word of knowledge and performing "miracles." The possible conflict with the Romans and God comes with the success of being a messiah.

This film is part satire, part Biblical re-enactment, and part alternate history. The satire comes from applying modern ideas, concepts, and solutions in ancient times. The Biblical re-enactment comes from many of the people from the Bible are characters in this movie and are portrayed the same way. The alternate history take is how Jesus is shown compared to other Biblical films. The movie has comedy, morality, drama, spirituality, and aspects of Christianity. The movie is broken up into parts and is a good length. This is a decent watch for anyone willing to approach history, religion, and spirituality with an open mind.

When I saw that Samuel was following up The Harder They Fall with a Black Biblical satire, I got pretty excited. I actually don't mind sacrilege or reinterpretation. Life of Brian? Blessed are the cheesemakers. Last Temptation of Christ? Other than Keitel's accent, I was onboard. Anyway, the problem with this one isn't the religious satire. It's that it tries to succeed at a few too many things. It wants to be an effective satire, drama, and romance all at once. It is hard enough to make a movie like Leap of Faith that cuts across all those genres, but doing it with a story that takes place at the time of Jesus might be just a bit too ambitious. In order to make everything work, the movie rushes through multiple genres (sometimes in a single scene) trying to fit it all in. As a result, the cast nails it and Samuel directs it well...but I still never quite settled in enough to care.

This film is very multi layered that many will miss the point of the movie.

One way to see this is a satire on people, particularly black people with little to no faith in God, and how they move in the world.

It's then a satire on how religion is exploited for one's personal gain. Think of many mega churches who look to prophesies on Jesus teachings and miracles.

Its then finally a satire on how people who we deem "unworthy" and how their soul is just as much worthy than everyone else's.

Intermixed in there is the relationship between the Judeans and the Roman's as an allegory between police/authority and the people they govern. Which may or may not have been somewhat factual since it has been proven that the people there would have been people of color. It may also give an introspection on why Jesus was hated by the Jews so much. But I digress.

I'd say give this film a second chance with these points, and you might find this movie a bit more favorable.

Oh and I love that Last Supper shot they had when they froze in place, that was dope.

My wife and I caught The Book of Clarence (2023) in theaters last night. The storyline follows two weed dealers in Jerusalem during the time of Christ, facing financial hardships and attempting to become apostles or create their own Messiah to solve their problems.

Directed by Jeymes Samuel (The Harder They Fall), the film stars LaKeith Stanfield (Knives Out), RJ Cyler (White Boy Rick), Alfre Woodard (12 Years a Slave), James McAvoy (Split), Benedict Cumberbatch (Doctor Strange), and Teyana Taylor (A Thousand and One).

This movie has a fantastic premise and a captivating start, especially in the first three quarters. The authentic attire and settings, along with stellar performances from the cast, contribute to the film's charm. The comedic elements are brilliant, reminiscent of a biblical Half Baked. Memorable scenes like the "get out" and "virgin" conversations, slap scenes, and baptism provide comedic gold. The inclusion of an '80s/'90s retro dance sequence adds to the enjoyment. Unfortunately, the conclusion takes a deep and serious turn, causing a drastic mood shift that dulls the movie and leaves the ending feeling flat.

In conclusion, The Book of Clarence offers enough worthwhile content to make it a must-see, but it falters at times, preventing it from achieving classic status. I'd give it a score of 6-6.5/10 and recommend it once.