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Movies / On DVD / The Nativity Story
The Nativity Story

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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.

Rated: PG [See Full Rating] for some violent content.

Runtime: 2 hrs 41 mins

Genre: Dramas

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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Release:

Mar 20, 2007

No Details Exist
 
 

Reviews for The Nativity Story

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61 - 80 (sorted by date)
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For this viewer it felt a bit too much like a made-for-TV special.

Full Review Source: Kansas City Star | comment Comment
12/01/06
Robert W. Butler
Robert W. Butler
Kansas City Star

Catherine Hardwicke's original Christmas film is not the greatest story ever told. It is plodding, drab and boring.

Full Review Source: Jam! Movies | comment Comment
12/01/06
Bruce Kirkland
Bruce Kirkland
Jam! Movies

It might not hook nonbelievers, but the choir might sing hosannas.

Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | comment Comment
12/01/06
Amy Biancolli
Amy Biancolli
Houston Chronicle

Don't expect a Caravaggio, but if your taste turns to Hallmark, this is a good bet -- a straight-up Nativity story as safe as death and taxes.

Full Review Source: Globe and Mail | comment Comment
12/01/06
Rick Groen
Rick Groen
Globe and Mail

Not entirely disconnected from Hardwicke's previous work: It's the tale of an unwed pregnant teen whose parents worry about her getting stoned. The difference here is that the pregnant teen is a virgin, and we're talking about actual stones.

Full Review Source: Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN) | comment Comment
12/01/06
John Beifuss
John Beifuss
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)

Hardwicke and her cast and crew do remind us that the birth of Jesus is one of the most lyrical and emotionally resonant stories in all of religious literature.

Full Review Source: Detroit Free Press | comment Comment
12/01/06
Terry Lawson
Terry Lawson
Detroit Free Press
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The Nativity Story is certainly not the greatest movie ever made. If anything, it's a competent but only sporadically interesting biblical tale.

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
12/01/06
Jeff Vice
Jeff Vice
Deseret News, Salt Lake City

I'd call the results of Hardwicke's efforts mixed.

Full Review Source: Denver Rocky Mountain News | comment Comment
12/01/06
Robert Denerstein
Robert Denerstein
Denver Rocky Mountain News
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The movie itself is not a miracle. But it's working with pretty good material.

Full Review Source: Denver Post | comment Comment
12/01/06
Michael Booth
Michael Booth
Denver Post

For families looking for a Christmas outing, it should not disappoint.

Full Review Source: Dallas Morning News | comment Comment
12/01/06
Nancy Churnin
Nancy Churnin
Dallas Morning News
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Despite some admirably realistic casting, this is a dutiful and traditional film. And that's not necessarily a bad thing.

Full Review Source: Contra Costa Times | comment Comment
12/01/06
Mary F. Pols
Mary F. Pols
Contra Costa Times

It’s a dreary, depressing slog until finally there's a tiny, tiny hint that the world could possibly contain joy, love and peace, instead of a wealth of evil.

Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
12/01/06
Bridget Byrne
Bridget Byrne
Boxoffice Magazine

A refreshingly unadorned example of straightforward storytelling.

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
12/01/06
Bill Zwecker
Bill Zwecker
Chicago Sun-Times

At the very least, it's refreshing to see a holiday film that doesn't involve Tim Allen wearing 80 pounds of rubber padding.

Full Review Source: Boston Globe | comment Comment
12/01/06
Ty Burr
Ty Burr
Boston Globe

Stretching this biblical tale to 90-plus minutes requires a lot of padding.

Full Review Source: Salt Lake Tribune | comment Comment
12/01/06
Sean Means
Sean Means
Salt Lake Tribune

The pacing is so slow and the religious undertones so heavy that only Jesus himself could rise above the draining weight.

Full Review Source: Palo Alto Weekly | comment 2 Comments
12/01/06
Tyler Hanley
Tyler Hanley
Palo Alto Weekly

Because Nativity is so traditional, it doesn't bring anything new to the table, but it does offer a beautifully shot and terrifically acted Bible story that should last for generations.

Full Review Source: Reno Gazette-Journal | comment Comment
12/01/06
Forrest Hartman
Forrest Hartman
Reno Gazette-Journal

The film has moving moments, but it's also timid and tentative.

Full Review Source: Advocate (Baton Rouge, LA) | comment Comment
12/01/06
John Wirt
John Wirt
Advocate (Baton Rouge, LA)

A family-friendly Christmas pageant, a Christmas crèche brought to theatrical life.

Full Review Source: Christianity Today | comment Comment
12/01/06
Peter T. Chattaway
Peter T. Chattaway
Christianity Today

It avoids Hallmark greeting-card slickness and Cecil B. DeMille razzmatazz, but replaces them with a plodding earnestness that leaves it largely inoffensive but rather dull.

Full Review Source: One Guy's Opinion | comment Comment
12/01/06
Frank Swietek
Frank Swietek
One Guy's Opinion
 
 
61 - 80 (sorted by date)
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November 30, 2006: Box Office Guru Preview: "Nativity" Leads Trio of New Releases
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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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