Journey to Bethlehem

Journey to Bethlehem
Starring Fiona Palomo, Milo Manheim, Joel Smallbone, Antonio Banderas
Directed by Adam Anders

It's the greatest story ever told for a reason - the birth of the world's Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and has been a story told and retold throughout the centuries. Even non-believers know the story of a young virgin girl named Mary who was visited by the Archangel Gabriel and told that she would become pregnant and give birth to Jesus, the Savior of the world. The story was told in epic fashion in the classic 1965 film "The Greatest Story Ever Told," and now it's being told again in the lesser-classic "Journey to Bethlehem," but that's not saying it's necessarily bad. It's an easy, breezy, creatively licensed look at Mary and Joseph and their trek to Bethlehem to give birth to Jesus while the evil King Herod tracks them down. What makes this film different is that it's a musical, with some catchy pop-oriented songs and a cast of committed players, including powerhouse Antonio Banderas.

Mary (Fiona Palomo) is a young woman who's arranged to be married to Joseph (Milo Manheim) without ever meeting him, and she doesn't want to go through with it - she wants to be a teacher, and feels getting married will get in the way of her dreams. Even after meeting him she's hesitant, but is visited at night by the Archangel Gabriel (Lecrae) who tells her that she's pregnant with the King of the world. While the three Magi visit King Herod (Antonio Banderas) seeking to find this new King, Herod becomes suspicious and wants the child killed because he fears he will usurp his authority, so he enlists his son Antipater (Joel Smallbone) to find him. Mary and Joseph flee for Bethlehem while they fall in love with one another as they anticipate the birth of Jesus.


The Good:
The film was directed by Adam Anders, and along with his wife Nikki and collaborator Peer Astrom wrote all the songs for the film. You might not know Anders if you've never watched "Glee," but he served as one of the producers for the popular musical show that ran for several years and made household names out of the likes of Lea Michele, and he uses his pop-influence style here with grand acclaim. The songs are catchy, fun, and full of life and enjoyment. It's not "The Greatest Showman" levels, but you'll be tapping your toes to the rhythm and enjoying some of the remixes of classics like "Silent Night" and "O Come, O Come Emmanuel."

It's surprising Christians have rallied around this film considering the creative license being made to the story. Here, Mary is a strong, independent woman who doesn't want to marry because she wants to follow her own dreams, and is headstrong and relatively disobedient to her father. Her mother encourages her to be her true self, and this is something never mentioned in the Bible. Joseph here isn't a strong male head of the household, but rather a bumbling fool who relies on his charm to get him through tough situations as opposed to leading the way. After they actually fall in love, it's Mary who asks Joseph to marry her, and again I don't think that's what actually happened. I actually liked this take, but with the whole "woke" feeling Christians have been going through lately I'm surprised they didn't picket the film for going in this direction.

Fiona Palomo and Milo Manheim have great chemistry together as they progress their story from strangers to friends to husband and wife, and it's enjoyable to see their lighthearted banter toward one another. Their songs specifically are the film's highlights, including "Can We Make This Work" and "We Become We." The three Magi are also enjoyable, as they drop the term "wise" in favor of "Three Stooges" as they travel to Herod to celebrate the upcoming birth of Jesus. They give great laughs and also work well off one another.

Antonio Banderas understood the assignment and delivered a cheesy performance that's over-the-top and fun, and he even gets to sing his own song that's fun and entertaining. He's a classic Disney villain thrown into the Biblical story and leans entirely into the performance.


The Bad:
While I was in the church I worked heavily with the drama aspect, forming drama ministry teams and participating in numerous shows that we'd perform all over the Northeast. "Journey to Bethlehem" looks like one of those church service plays they put on during the Easter season, which isn't necessarily a totally bad thing, but it gives off a cheap feel that really took me out of the film. The Centurion costumes looked like something they pulled out of a megachurch closet, and overall there was a cheap feel to the production. Obviously there wasn't a huge budget allotted for it, but to me it still was a downside. King Herod's set design specifically was abysmal, with that cheap plastic lion face over his throne.

When it comes to Antipater, King Herod's son, his role was completely reversed in the film. In reality he was a ruthless man who conspired to kill his brothers so he could succeed the throne of Judea. Here, he's a conflicted man who wants to do his father's bidding but also struggles with what needs to be done, ultimately ending in a way that really feels strange in comparison to the story we all know.


The Summary:
While providing catchy pop songs and lovely dance numbers, "Journey to Bethlehem" is weighed down slightly by its cheap production designs and liberties that turn the greatest story ever told into the generic musical ever written.


The Score: B+