The King of Kings

Synopsis

Cecil B. DeMille's account of the last years of Jesus of Nazareth opens in the palace of Mary Magdalene, whose lover Judas has abandoned her to follow a carpenter from Galilee. From the healing of a blind child and the raising of Lazarus through the cleansing of the Temple, the betrayal, the trial before Pilate and the Crucifixion, the film follows the Gospel narrative to the Resurrection, staged with the full resources of a Hollywood studio at its peak.

Critique

The most widely seen religious film of the silent era, The King of Kings played for decades in churches, missions and schools around the world. DeMille combined piety with showmanship, opening in two-strip Technicolor, sculpting H.B. Warner's Christ in radiant light and staging an earthquake at the Crucifixion that remains a feat of special effects. Its images shaped the popular iconography of Jesus for generations, and the restored version reveals a composition of remarkable formal control.

Technical sheet

Director

Cecil B. DeMille

Year

1927

Country

United States

Running time

155 min

Genre

Drama, History

Written by

Jeanie Macpherson

Cinematography

J. Peverell Marley

Cast

H.B. Warner, Dorothy Cumming, Ernest Torrence, Joseph Schildkraut, James Neill, Joseph Striker

Production

DeMille Pictures Corporation

Music

Newly composed original score

Licensing