Jesus Christ Superstar, 1973

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My brother and I have gone through probably 12-15 8-tracks, cassettes, albums, and CD’s (and now 1 DVD). Our wives absolutely hate it.

When we saw the 25th anniversary show, Herod absolutely stole the show. Jesus and Judas were their usual fantastics selves, but Herod got the biggest ovation. It was funny!

NotWorthy
 
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RedDeathsMask:
I loved this movie! But what I want to know is would you let your children watch this? Or listen to the sound track? I have the sound track too and I play it all the time, the songs are catchy.
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I love the soundtrack of Superstar. I would let an older child watch it–one with an already firm catechetical foundation.

My favorite song from the original (brown cover) soundtrack album is Pilate’s Dream. Haunting!
 
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4HisChurch:
I love the soundtrack of Superstar.
My favorite song from the original (brown cover) soundtrack album is Pilate’s Dream. Haunting!
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NO, it’s got to be Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemene. That is so moving. I can almost see Jesus sweating blood, and can truly feel His pain.

NotWorthy
 
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NotWorthy:
NO, it’s got to be Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemene. That is so moving. I can almost see Jesus sweating blood, and can truly feel His pain.

NotWorthy
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The whole album is very emotional. I think as a rock opera, it was very well done. The rock aspect of it really got the emotion across throughout most of the album. I think I really like Pilate’s Dream because it stood out as being different, musically, because it was just acoustic guitar, yet it still had that incredible level of emotion there.
 
Oh, I tell my 17yo son that Superstar was my “emo” album when I was a teen.

:bigyikes:
 
I saw it on Broadway when it first came out and loved it. Was disappointed in the movie (tho’ I like the song, “I don’t know how to love Him” – which wasn’t in the Broadway version. My daughter has been watching the movie and listening to the records (yes, we still own a turntable) since she was born. A few years ago, a semi professional local theatre group staged it and dd (then age 7) noticed and remarked loudly after the show that Judas didn’t get the lyrics right . . .
 
What’s the buzz? Tell me what’s a happening.
What’s the buzz? Tell me what’s a happening.

Ah, yes. Good Times!

NotWorthy
 
This movie and the soundtrack sustained me, though at times by a thread, thru my own lack of faith in the past. Ten years ago, I saw the off-Broadway revival of the play with Carl Anderson and Ted Neeley on stage reviving their roles in the movie! It was great! Saw a couple of the sisters from my parish in the audience there, too…

…In any case, my favorite, FAVORITE song is “Everything’s Alright”…

:whistle:
 
I had a vhs copy of it, but I gave it to classmate to look at it for class back in college and never saw it again. I was kinda sad that I did not get it back, but also cauious (sp?) because even if I liked it some what, I felt that even you have to be careful of it at the sametime…
 
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Tonks40:
This movie and the soundtrack sustained me, though at times by a thread, thru my own lack of faith in the past.
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Tonks40 - Indeed — this film and soundtracks had the same sustenance effect for me too. Every year at Easter time, although away from practicing my faith, I would watch and listen to the songs, paying close attention to the words. At one point I think I could recite the entire thing form beginning to end – from that first “My mind is clearer now…” right on through to “it is finished.”

As for the poll question – I have a vivid memory of my Catholic parents telling me that I was not recommended (though allowed) to watch it since it was not the “whole” or “real” story (e.g. like “Jesus of Nazareth” was supposed to be) – that it was “for people who don’t really understand what Christians believe – the music makes it easier to understand” – Little did I know that I would come to rely on that film and music, not just to understand but also to simply hang on to amid the storm…

Wonderful stuff…
 
This musical is thoroughly Anti-Christian. In my city Catholic and Protestant groups staged quiet protests outside the theatres.
It insults Our Lord at a most basic level and completely denies the resurection. Having watched it when it first came out, not knowing what was in it, I would not want my kids watching it and I would never watch it again.
 
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rjs1:
This musical is thoroughly Anti-Christian. In my city Catholic and Protestant groups staged quiet protests outside the theatres.
It insults Our Lord at a most basic level and completely denies the resurection. Having watched it when it first came out, not knowing what was in it, I would not want my kids watching it and I would never watch it again.
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C’mon, what’s wrong with the following lines:
“Tell me what you think about your friends at the top.
Who’d you think besides yourself’s the pick of the crop?
Budha, was he where its at, is he where you are?
Could Mohammed move a mountain, or what that just P.R.?”

NotWorthy
 
Loved: “Jesus Christ, if you’re so cool, walk across my swimmin’ pool!” sung by Herod with the pastel-afro babes dancing to the beat.

It was sleazy, slimy, cheap and snide: Just like Herod.

What’s his name? Ah. Andrew Lloyd Weber. He ain’t Mozart but he’s a genuine talent with a vision. (Except for Cats. Deliver me from Cats.) Did you know he set up a private fund to enable churches in London to keep their doors open during the day. There’s more to the man than Broadway.
 
Please look beyond the good tunes (and I admit that much of the music is good) to the words and message conveyed. Much was written about this musical when it came out and it is anti-Christian. I won’t go into the whole script but Our Lord is portrayed as weak and doubting his own mission. The end absolutely denies the resurrection and presents Our Lord as a loser. Several critics said that the musical presents Judas as a far stronger character than Jesus.

Catholics must be as discriminating as our Protestant brothers about things like this.
 
The thing to remember about Jesus Christ Superstar is that its a play (or movie), not the Catechism, and should be taken as such.

I’m not concerned that writers felt Judas was stronger. He committed suicide! How can you take stock in that. He may have thought he was stronger, but he was a ruined man by the end.

I did appreciate the following themes:
Judas’ motives - Yes he wanted to use Jesus to overthrow Rome.
Herod’s motives - He, too, wanted Jesus to overthrow Rome.
Pilot’s motives - Yes, he didn’t want to touch this hot potato of an issue.
Jesus’ doubts in the Garden - I love the emotional roller coaster he went through. (True, it shows His doubts during His mission, but that shows His human side).

The rest of it is just that - entertainment.

NotWorthy
 
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rjs1:
Please look beyond the good tunes (and I admit that much of the music is good) to the words and message conveyed. Much was written about this musical when it came out and it is anti-Christian. .
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Are you saying I should quit working on my JCS Mass setting? I was thinking of “Hosannah” for the Alleluia; “Christ you know I Love You” for the Gloria; and, of course, for the Memorial Acclaimation, “Jesus Christ, Superstar”.

(We would exit on “I Don’t Know How to Love Him”)
 
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pnewton:
Are you saying I should quit working on my JCS Mass setting? I was thinking of “Hosannah” for the Alleluia; “Christ you know I Love You” for the Gloria; and, of course, for the Memorial Acclaimation, “Jesus Christ, Superstar”.

(We would exit on “I Don’t Know How to Love Him”)
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Don’t forget to have the Apostles singing “Look at all my trials and tribulations” in the background during the Eucharistic Prayer!!!😉

NotWorthy
 
I really like the film! 🙂 when i grow up i’ll let my kids watch it. i really liked the trial before pilate and john 19:41 (the music played when Jesus dies.). to anyone who has the 1973 film look at the scene where the people gets on the bus and the cross is shown in the sunset. you’ll see a person walking and a group of sheep following Him. 🙂
 
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rjs1:
It insults Our Lord at a most basic level and completely denies the resurection. Having watched it when it first came out, not knowing what was in it, I would not want my kids watching it and I would never watch it again.
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I believe in the stage production I saw with Ted Neeley, after the cruxificion scene, the music came up, and they had a silouette of the empty cross with cloth over it…

…that didn’t seem like denying the resurrection to me…
 
I used to love JCS.
My favorite song was HOSANNA.
Love, Jaypeeto3
 
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