I have the feeling, those who did not read The Last Temptation of Christ by Nikos Kazantzakis or saw the film adaptation directed by Martin Scorsese, could find Last Days in the Desert original, provocative or globally creative.
Otherwise, I think this one is revisiting in a soft and a somehow minimalist style, Kazantzakis great literature and Scorsese's long and "explicit" adaptation.
The script / dialogues / and overall well crafted minimalist structure makes the Last Days in the Desert a very good candidate for a stage play.
Oh, and the cinematography is lovely...
Now, the film does not claim to be historically accurate, not at all...
However, I must admit that I keep experiencing this somehow funny feeling, when I watch "Hollywood" actors playing the role of the biblical or gospel characters on the big or TV screen... There is this perpetual awkward and off vibe floating in the air (of the film)... In the way they look, they move, they talk, they smile, they eat, they gaze (with their attractive blue or green eyes), they get angry, joyful, sad or... when it's time to pray...
A huge part of the whole spiritual and human factors and experiences in the biblical and gospel stories, with or without religion or faith, is deeply rooted in the ancient primitive societies of what we call now the Middle East... Unfortunately not a single "Hollywood" film or actor could render this properly...
Back to reality: This Arthouse (and one more) film about Jesus is fairly good for what it is...
And speaking of Arthouse films about Jesus , Pasolini's work remains, to me, the winner in this category.
