The Chosen Last Supper Part One: A Mostly Excellent Premiere

The life of Jesus of Nazareth is nothing short of among the most sacred of matters in Christian circles, and I don't envy Dallas Jenkins and the task he and his crew have undertaken- tell the story of Jesus like it's never been told before, in a way that attracts both believers and people in search of something bigger than themselves. For seven years now, Jenkins has had to walk a fine line between bringing his writer's creative itch to bear, potentially alienating believers, and potentially alienating non-believers. As of today, I must say that he's done a remarkable job balancing faithfulness to and reverence for the source material with an obvious need to create something new, something original. Though it's imperfect, The Chosen is far better than any other adaptation I've seen of the life of Jesus of Nazareth, and for what the show is, I believe it's a truly impressive feat given that this now seven-year-long effort has been entirely independent of a larger studio and crowdsourced by fans. Christian or not, I think we can all admit that we need more shows like this, shows that can attract a large following and pose a threat to the status quo.

It's been said before, but this season of The Chosen continues a trend. The value of the sets and the production design is largely pretty remarkable, far better than any other adaptation of the narrative of Jesus to date. Breaking some more traditions is dialogue that doesn't just quote scripture. The way the characters in this show talk sounds much less like reading and far more like real people having conversations, which is as it should be. In other news, this premiere also does a lot of really effective reading into some of the implications of the Bible. For instance, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John all talk about Jesus creating a scene at the temple when he discovers that merchants are profiting off of selling sacrificial animals to people. This show makes you understand fully the sin and thievery that went into this practice and makes you understand why Jesus would be so upset. No one likes a hustler, much less a hustler at a site of worship, of all places.

A good rule to measure an adaptation by is how well it adapts a story and how well it does the same thing while keeping one under the spell that they are watching something new. The Chosen mostly does this well, better at some times than others. As we've come to expect from the show, there are some original scenes in the first couple of episodes, scenes that effectively expand on an existing narrative without overturning or subverting it. It helps that such scenes are superbly played in ways that flow completely naturally, weaving with the rest of the story rather than drawing attention to their originality. For instance, one such scene features Jesus waking up in the middle of the night to do some work. John spots him, and follows close behind as Jesus braids together a whip. For those with no knowledge of the Bible, it may mean nothing, but for those who know what this means, it should land with the weight of a threat.

I like how this show manages to capture both the power Jesus holds as well as the humanity and relative normalcy with which he carried himself. Perhaps my favorite thing about the first two episodes of this season of The Chosen is its ability to capture the frailty and weakness of his human form, something that I imagine would have become more and more apparent in his last days. It simultaneously deifies and humanizes Jesus, something likely becoming harder and harder to do the closer the show draws to the stated purpose of his mission on Earth. In a lot of ways, the first two episodes of this new season work their way up toward Jesus's dramatic overturning of the temple court, which works in some ways and doesn't work in others.

Second episodes tend to live in the shadow of the first, and this show isn't an exception to this trend in any way, so while it's certainly the smartest adaptation I've seen of Jesus's life and ministry to date, it doesn't deliver everything I could have ever wanted from a retelling of this story. Another shortcoming has to do with the fact that some of the production design is momentarily barebones and obvious. But more important than the view is the writing, and the show thankfully ditches just about every last tired cliche we've come to associate with Christian media, a long-overdue play. I now better understand why Christians are rallying behind The Chosen - it's a show about the life of Jesus that puts in the work to be a story rather than a mere sermon, and though that may not be the highest bar to clear, The Chosen hurdles it effortlessly. I have tentative plans to go see the rest of the season in theaters with a group, but I realize that this may not pan out as I am a full-time student.

Nevertheless, Last Supper has me interested in going to see what comes next, even though I already know the answer. Who's to say where my insatiable appetite for film will take me next?

Mark 11:15-18