Just about as perfunctory and old-fashioned as can be.
The Nativity Story (2006)
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Reviews Counted:125
Fresh:47
Rotten:78
Average Rating:5.3/10
Consensus: The Nativity Story is a dull retelling of a well-worn tale with the look and feel of a high-school production.
Theatrical Release:Dec 1, 2006 Wide
Box Office: $37,617,947
Synopsis: A cinematic journey into the heart of history's greatest story, The Nativity Story is poised to come to the big screen for the first time in a major motion picture event. New Line Cinema's The... A cinematic journey into the heart of history's greatest story, The Nativity Story is poised to come to the big screen for the first time in a major motion picture event. New Line Cinema's The Nativity Story chronicles the arduous journey of two people, Mary and Joseph, a miraculous pregnancy, and the history-defining birth of Jesus. The dramatic and compelling film traces the perilous journey of a young couple who must travel from their home in Nazareth to Bethlehem, Joseph's ancestral home, to register for a census ordered by King Herod. It is a journey of over 100 miles, through treacherous terrain, made much more difficult by the fact that Mary is nine months pregnant. A New Line Cinema Presentation of a Temple Hill Production, The Nativity Story stars Academy Award® nominee Keisha Castle-Hughes (Whale Rider) as Mary, Oscar Isaac (upcoming Guerrilla) as Joseph and Academy Award® nominee Shohreh Aghdashloo (House of Sand and Fog) as Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist. The international cast also includes Hiam Abbass (Munich, Paradise Now), Shaun Toub (Crash), Alexander Siddig (Syrianna), Nadim Sawalha (Syrianna), Eriq Ebouaney, Stefan Kalipha, Said Amadis, Stanley Townsend and Ciarán Hinds (Munich). The film is directed by Catherine Hardwicke (Thirteen, Lords of Dogtown) from a screenplay written by Mike Rich (The Rookie, Finding Forrester). The producers are Wyck Godfrey (I, Robot) and Marty Bowen.The executive producers are Toby Emmerich, Cale Boyter, Tim Van Rellim, Mike Rich and Catherine Hardwicke. The co-executive producers are Judd Funk and Michael Disco. The film also features an outstanding production team which includes cinematographer Elliot Davis (White Oleander, I Am Sam, Out of Sight), Production Designer Stefano Maria Ortolani (Art Director on Gangs of New York and The Talented Mr. Ripley), Film Editors Robert K. Lambert, A.C.E. (Three Kings, I Heart Huckabees, Ask the Dust) and Stuart Levy, A.C.E (Any Given Sunday, Jesus' Son), Costume Designer Maurizio Millenotti (The Passion of the Christ, Tristan and Isolde, Immortal Beloved) and composer Mychael Danna (Little Miss Sunshine, Capote, The Ice Storm). New Line Cinema will release The Nativity Story (rated PG by the M.P.A.A. for "some violent content") in theaters nationwide on December 1st, 2006. -- © New Line Cinema [More]
Starring: Shohreh Aghdashloo, Keisha Castle-Hughes, Eriq Ebouaney, Ciaran Hinds
Starring: Shohreh Aghdashloo, Keisha Castle-Hughes, Eriq Ebouaney, Ciaran Hinds, Alexander Siddig, Shaun Toub, Tim Van Rellim, Oscar Isaac, Stanley Townsend, Star, Stefan Kalipha, Farida Ouchani, Alessando Giugglioli, Said Amadis
Director: Catherine Hardwicke
Director: Catherine Hardwicke
Producer: Marty Bowen, Wyck Godfrey
Composer: Mychael Danna
Studio: New Line Cinema
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Reviews for The Nativity Story
A motion picture depicting the birth of the Savior ought to stir the soul, not just pass time during a frantic holiday season.
There's a reason why Christmas pageants tend to clock in at about 20 minutes -- a reason that Hardwicke's 100-minute film demonstrates with tedious tenacity.
Hardwicke should have looked to the animated The Prince of Egypt, which made the visual and storytelling possibilities of Bible movies breathtaking. This one's just cashing in on a target audience's debt to its faith.
Call me a Scrooge, but director Catherine Hardwicke's rendition of Silent Night, Holy Night plays like a dirge.
You have the feeling that if the camera panned just a little to the left or right you'd see a a catering truck and trailers for the actors.
The film is made with intelligence, restraint, and it shows proper respect for the story.
...a filmed Sunday-school lesson that favors a dry, by-the-Book approach over even a suggestion of dramatic interpretation. It's more Christmas pageant than movie.
Many moments are overpowering and humbling, thanks to the source material. This is not a great film or an especially good one, but I don't have to remind you where its story ranks among those ever told.
A complete surprise: Joseph comes across in this Biblical drama as a more engrossing and mysterious character than Mary.
Hardwicke takes scripture that is at once deeply troubling ... and filled with profound hope, and renders it inert on both counts by playing things so safely that the result is almost irreverent.
Everything is handled with an anvil-like importance, forgetting that, in essence, this is tale of great joy and hope.
With only twenty-four praying days left before Christmas, New Line opts for the filmmaking commandment "Thou Shall Not Seek Controversy."
Director Catherine Hardwicke pays attention to details about simple things like clothes, food and activities that make 'The Nativity Story' seem so real.
Tailor made for future Sunday school classes everywhere, this by-the-numbers account adds nothing new to the story but has lots of pretty pictures
I have to hand it to Hardwicke: I was a lot less bored by The Nativity Story than I feared I'd be.
If you've ever gazed at Christmas cards featuring artworks of the great masters and wished those images would magically come to life, [this] is your kind of movie.
Latest News for The Nativity Story
November 29, 2007:
Box Office Guru Preview: Mr. Skywalker and Ms. Storm in New Thriller
Only one new film ventures into wide release. Studios typically avoid opening worthwhile pics during the weekend after the Thanksgiving frame since moviegoing subsides and... More...
November 30, 2006:
Critical Consensus: "Nativity" Is Too Safe; "Turistas" Not Worth Trip
This week at the movies, we've got a new take on the first Noel ("The Nativity Story," starring Keisha Castle-Hughes), endangered Americans in Brazil... More...
November 30, 2006:
Box Office Guru Preview: "Nativity" Leads Trio of New Releases
The post-turkey blues will kick in as the North American box office should slump this weekend following a busy Thanksgiving holiday frame. More...
November 10, 2006:
The Weekly Ketchup: "Borat" Great Success, A New Sarah Connor, "Transformers" Travails, And More!
In this week's Ketchup, "Borat" blows away the box office competition, a new Sarah Connor is set for the small screen "Terminator," and Shia LaBoeuf... More...
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