Nativity Story

Because of surgery, we just couldn't manage to make it to a theatre last December to see The Nativity Story. We watched it last night, and I have really mixed feelings. The parts I like, I reeeeally like. The parts I don't like, I was quite annoyed by.

From the perspective of a woman who's been pregnant a few times and who has birthed two babies outside the hospital, it bothered me that they showed things like Mary feeling the baby move as early as 2 or 3 months along. And Mary didn't nurse her baby right away. I'm sure -- to men -- that seems immensely over-picky. But to the women who've had babies the old-fashioned way, we just want to say, "Oh, c'mon. Get real."

The timeline for the story was unsettling. The wise men did not come to the stable. They came when Jesus was more than 40 days old. The slaughter of the Holy Innocents was not something that happened when Jesus was a day or so old. I just don't understand how they could gloss over the Presentation of Our Lord as if it never happened.

There was something wrong with the visions and the messages from God. I can't pin down what was wrong with the way the movie did it. People aren't supposed to criticize unless they can say how it should've been. And I just don't know how they should've presented those scenes. But what they showed was simply not right.

However, there were some very good things about the movie. I liked the "culture" that was depicted in the film: the clothing, the houses, the worship, the family relationships, the jobs, the herb-gathering, etc.

I loved the way they showed Zechariah in the temple, ministering at the altar of incense, while the people were outside, participating in corporate prayer.

I loved the "realness" of several of the characters. Joseph being perturbed with Mary and her pa when he noticed her little tummy when she came back from Judah. Pa's skeptical glance in Joseph's direction at the same time. Mary's cradling her belly sometimes as pregnant mommies are wont to do. The wise men being ornery wise-guys to each other. Mary's "why me??" Mary's parents concern for her safety from the neighbors' self-righteousness. Both Joseph and Mary wondering "Now what? How do we do this?" and their fear.

I loved the catechization of the kids. Just telling the Bible stories over and over, with the same words, so that they would learn them by heart.

I'm glad we watched it. When I first heard the initial reviews, I thought I wouldn't want to see it, ever. But there was enough good there to outweigh the bad. I don't know if I'll watch again someday. It's so unlike Passion. Whereas Passion is the Gospel, whereas Passion doesn't have any mistakes or misinterpretations in it,* Nativity Story is merely a very nice movie. Good, to be sure. But I guess I've been spoiled by Passion, and now I want all my Bible-story movies to be as wonderful as the Christmas sermon and Good Friday sermon.

* The only mistakes I remember from Passion are
1) that the believing thief was on Jesus' left side, and
2) the shape of Jesus' cross on the Via Dolorosa.