Just before Christmas, the epic “Maria” of Netflix deepens the trip of the Virgin Mary as a young woman chosen for an extraordinary destiny, but fighting with faith, social rejection and spiritual war.
In an interview with The Christian Post, the director Dj Carus Strive to present the trip through your eyes.
(We are at WhatsApp. Start to follow us now)
Receive our latest news for free
Subscribe to receive a newsletter with the most outstanding news (in addition to special offers!) From The Christian Post. Be the first to find out.
“Cinematographically, Maria’s story has been underestimated,” Caruso told CP. “She delivered the greatest gift that the world has received, but we have rarely seen their completely explored experience. I also felt that there was a real need to humanize his trip, so you can feel what she felt and you can identify with her … our daughters can identify with her. Everyone can identify with what was happening, because much of what Maria happened, the contemporary world is throwing us those same curved balls here today. ”
Filmed in Morocco, “María” is starring Israeli actress Noa Cohen as Maria, along with Tako as José and the winner of the Oscar, Anthony Hopkins, as King Herod. The film tells Maria’s miraculous conception and the intense challenges that occur as a result. Rejected by her community and forced to hide, Maria embarks on a dangerous trip with José to protect her newborn son from the violent search for King Herod to eliminate any threat to her throne.
By creating the film, Caruso emphasized the importance of presenting Maria not only as a sacred figure, but as a human being with which one can identify.
“Obviously, this young woman happened amazing things, from the visit of the Angel Gabriel to the understanding of how her birth occurred. But at the same time, the human world, the nature of man and all those things that are happening in this world are still forces that are against him, ”he said.
“She has to swim against the current. You have to fight all battles. When he accepts this, the Fiat, which I think is an incredible moment for all of us, and says: ‘Do’. She gives her life to the Lord and says: ‘You are in my heart forever. I am yours. And then his life does not become much easier; There will always be a fight and a fight to do something amazing. And I think that is a really strong message. “
The film shows conversations between Lucifer and the Angel Gabriel, a creative choice that Caruso said he made to highlight how much opposition Maria, both physically and spiritually, faced while bringing the Son of God to the world.
“The spiritual war is something that we all fight every day,” he said. “I think it was important to illustrate that, particularly when you can see the spiritual war that is happening to Mary. What happens is that Lucifer is like … ‘simply takes the easy way’ … but obviously, through suffering and pain is How we approach God. But there is always that temptation not to do so and say: ‘Why do I have to go through this?’ Okay, even if it is the easy way.
Caruso’s own faith greatly influenced his approach in history. Catholic practitioner and father of five children, the director told CP that it was based on personal spiritual experiences to give authenticity to the film.
“Faith is in my DNA,” he said. “When you are a spiritual person or you are a person of faith, you simply forms you in many different ways. Even in the films that I have made and directed that are not necessarily on this subject, you can feel spirituality … that element of Christ in your heart is always present. It may not always be evident and open, but it is in everything I do, so it affects every decision I make. ”
According to Caruso, the challenge of telling the story of the Nativity in “María” lies in finding the balance between staying faithful to the scriptures and filling the narrative gaps to create a convincing film experience.
“There is not much material about Mary in the Bible, only a few key texts in Mateo, Lucas and some other references,” Caruso explained. “As a filmmaker, you must respect the biblical frame and, at the same time, fill the gaps in ways that honor the spirit of their journey.”
For example, he said, the film deepens the heartbreaking of Maria and José to Egypt, imagining the dangers they could have found.
“If Herod was sending Roman soldiers to look for the messiah and destroy this child, and destroy these children, what would be for any mother to have to protect her son?” He said.
“Here we are with Maria. “So how do we experience that? And we do not know on the way to Egypt how many times they could have found them, because it is not in the Bible. So filling all those spaces that can make the film emotional, to make you sit on the edge of your seat, and at the same time stay faithful to the framework of biblical history was very vital and very important to me. ”
Caruso said that Joseph, traditionally a silent figure in the gospels, is given intentionally a more active voice in the film. “Joseph is a silent participant in the Gospel. It does not have a word. So how do you give Joseph, and how do you make him vital, and how do you make it important? And I feel that this is something that you can take freedom, as long as you are respectful of the text and everything else. Because José needed a voice, and as a filmmaker, I have to give him a voice. ”
The director said that, despite the creative freedoms that was taken with history, his film performance process was deeply influenced by an exhaustive investigation, which included consultations with theologians, pastors and biblical scholars, including the late bishop David O’Connell , “An expert in María” and a crucial advisor in the project.
Beyond the canonical texts, Caruso was also based on historical and apocryphal sources, such as the Gospel of Santiago’s childhood, to obtain an additional vision of life and the time of Mary.
“While they are not part of the canonized Bible, these texts provided a fascinating context about the parents of Maria, Joaquín and Ana, and other elements of their history,” said Caruso.
The historical stories, such as those of Josephus, also helped shape the representation of King Herod and the socio -political context of the film.
Hopkins, 86, contributed “a little repentance” to the character, said Carus is. Sir Anthony contributed that to the character, and it was really wonderful to see his process. ”
“María” is the last of a series of television programs and films based on Bible stories that were launched in recent years. In particular, “The Chosen”, a series of several seasons about the life of Christ and his disciples, began as an independent short film collectively financed in 2017 and since then it has become a global phenomenon. In January, Amazon MGM Studios announced that he had signed an agreement with Wonder Project and commissioned a new Bible -based series, “House of David”, for Prime Video.
“The public is hungry for these stories, and Hollywood is realizing their power,” he said. “But it’s not just about telling them, it’s about telling them beautifully. If we are doing something for the Lord, why not do your best?
The launch of “María” in Netflix marks a decisive moment for faith -based cinema, said Caruso. “The potential scope is amazing,” he said. “With Netflix, ‘María’ will be available in 45 languages and worldwide. “It’s amazing for me, it’s very powerful.”
On the eve of the Christmas season, Caruso said that he hopes that “María” is a film that inspires reflection and fosters a connection with one of the most notable figures in history.
“We must all say: ‘I am here,” he said. “It is very difficult to do that. When Maria did that … that was my revelation. That’s why I made the movie … It was such an important and vital moment; I pierced my heart. It was such a beautiful moment. In this world, it is full of chaos; There is a lot of beauty, but we all have to decide what we are going to do. Are we going to let the nature of man and all these things take us along this path, or are we going to follow the grace of God? And if we can follow the grace of God, it may not always be easy, but that is what we have to do.
“I just want viewers to feel inspired by the sacrifices and challenges she had to overcome, and see the incredible good that could arise from making those sacrifices,” he added. “I want everyone to love and appreciate it more … that they realize that it brought so much light to this world.”
Maria opens in Netflix on December 6. The film is also starring Stephanie Nur, Susan Brown, Ori Pfeffer, Eamon Farren, Hilla Vidor, Mili Avital, Gudmundur Thorvaldsson, Dudley O’Shaughnessy, Keren Tzur, Mehmet Kurtulus and Mila Harris.
“María” has TV-14 classification by language and violence.
