The Gospel of John (2003 film)

The Gospel of John is a 2003 epic biblical drama film that recounts the life of Jesus according to the Gospel of John. The film is a word-for-word adaptation of the American Bible Society's Good News Bible and follows the Gospel of John precisely, without additions to the story from the other Gospels or omissions of the Gospel's complex passages. It stars Henry Ian Cusick as Jesus of Nazareth, Stuart Bunce as John and is narrated by Christopher Plummer.

Production
This film was created by a constituency of artists from Canada and the United Kingdom, along with academic and theological consultants from around the world. The cast was selected primarily from the Stratford Shakespeare Festival and Soulpepper Theatre Company, as well as Britain's Royal Shakespeare Company and Royal National Theatre. The musical score, composed by Jeff Danna and created for the film, is partially based on the music of the Biblical period. The film was produced by Visual Bible International. Filming took place in Toronto, Ontario, and Almeria and Andalucia, Spain.

Critical response
The website's critical consensus reads, "The Gospel of John takes a reverent approach to its story without ever bringing it to life, proving that cribbing from the Good Book isn't enough to guarantee a good movie." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 52 out of 100 based on responses from 14 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".

Criticism
While the film is largely a faithful depiction of the Gospel of John, one reviewer noted that the inclusion of Mary Magdalene at the Last Supper has no direct Biblical citation, and might cause issue with viewers who prefer only direct scriptural references.