In the past, when a film has asked the question "what was it like to be part of the early Church in the 1st Century" the answer has usually been "a Roman soldier becomes a Christian and switches from getting into sword fights for paganism to getting into sword fights for Jesus" (e.g. The Robe, Quo Vadis, Risen.) Paul: Apostle of Christ eschews all of that to focus on the altruism and pacifism of early Christians and their struggle to endure persecution.
The film imagines what the end of Paul's life and the writing of the Book of Luke might have been like, from Luke's point of view. Luke makes a likable protagonist, but Paul's role is large and impactful enough that naming the film after him was a fair choice. The film highlights both Paul's confidence that God has used him for good since his conversion and how much Paul has sacrificed over the years, as well as Paul's guilt over his persecution of Christians early in his life. It also looks at the kinds of debates people in Rome might have had at the time over Christians, Nero, and what to do in a difficult situation. The moral dilemma facing the Christian community in the film is a messy one: should they stay in Rome and allow the government to keep killing them and their children, or should they leave Rome and in the process take away the aid they have been providing to poor and orphaned people?
All of the acting is good, and the filmmakers' decision to have the camera pan just slightly away whenever an act of violence takes place simply makes the violence more terrifying. This is a film that aims to give you the feeling of being part of the past. It's easily the best movie ever made about the early Church.
Film The best film about the early Church ever made
In the past, when a film has asked the question "what was it like to be part of the early Church in the 1st Century" the answer has usually been "a Roman soldier becomes a Christian and switches from getting into sword fights for paganism to getting into sword fights for Jesus" (e.g. The Robe, Quo Vadis, Risen.) Paul: Apostle of Christ eschews all of that to focus on the altruism and pacifism of early Christians and their struggle to endure persecution.
The film imagines what the end of Paul's life and the writing of the Book of Luke might have been like, from Luke's point of view. Luke makes a likable protagonist, but Paul's role is large and impactful enough that naming the film after him was a fair choice. The film highlights both Paul's confidence that God has used him for good since his conversion and how much Paul has sacrificed over the years, as well as Paul's guilt over his persecution of Christians early in his life. It also looks at the kinds of debates people in Rome might have had at the time over Christians, Nero, and what to do in a difficult situation. The moral dilemma facing the Christian community in the film is a messy one: should they stay in Rome and allow the government to keep killing them and their children, or should they leave Rome and in the process take away the aid they have been providing to poor and orphaned people?
All of the acting is good, and the filmmakers' decision to have the camera pan just slightly away whenever an act of violence takes place simply makes the violence more terrifying. This is a film that aims to give you the feeling of being part of the past. It's easily the best movie ever made about the early Church.