The challenge of turning any biblical story into a captivating visual experience is balancing Scriptural accuracy with the creative license to fill in the narrative, making it visually appealing to a contemporary audience. Mary, directed by Catholic director DJ Caruso, seeks to strike that balance. He says that the main purpose for telling the story of the Mother of God is “to honor her, to celebrate her grace, her courage, her sacrifice to bring [forth] the greatest gift; to give the world mercy.”
Unlike most visual interpretations of Mary’s life, this film begins with her parents, Joachim (Ori Pfeffer) and Anne (Hilda Vidor). They long to have a child and they receive a message from the blue cloak-clad Angel Gabriel (Dudley O’Shaughnessy) whose captivating, ethereal presence throughout the film represents God’s powerful intervention. When the child Mary is born, Joachim and Anne rejoice but are told that when Gabriel appears to them again, it is a sign that the young Mary (Mila Harris) must go to the Temple with the other young virgins.
While there, the teenaged Mary (Noa Cohen) learns the ways of the Lord from the Prophetess Anna (Susan Brown), the one who will recognize the Messiah in the newborn child at the Presentation. One of the most unique elements of this film is the presence of Lucifer (Eamon Farren), tempting Mary at various periods of her young life. The Scriptures speak nothing of this, but if we think about it, Jesus was tempted by Satan in the desert, so why not Mary? After all, Satan underestimates the power of grace in a soul, and Mary is “full of grace” (Lk 1:28 RSVCE). After the Annunciation, Satan comes to tempt Mary to give up on following Gabriel’s message to her because the suffering will be too great. Mary courageously rejects his temptations and continues to follow God’s design for her. Caruso says that his aim in the film is to show Mary as the person with “the sacrifice, the courage, the love…to deliver this gift to us.”
In a touching end credit, the film is dedicated to Bishop David O’Connell, the auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles who was murdered in 2023. Caruso developed a close friendship with Bishop O’Connell with whom he shared early concepts of the film. Caruso said the Bishop deepened his understanding about Mary. From his Catholic upbringing, Caruso had considered Mary untouchable and unrelatable. The Bishop encouraged Caruso to make this film a means to bring a young audience to Mary, to know her and love her. Caruso said he showed an early cut to his 17-year-old daughter, who afterwards said of Mary, “She’s so cool!”
Mary is a woman of faith. The film shows this when she bears the hardships of being with child before her marriage to Joseph, travels to Bethlehem while pregnant, rushes in the middle of the night to Egypt to escape Herod’s (Anthony Hopkins) fury. This film makes it all so real and palpable.
Though this film is an artistic interpretation of the biblical narrative, and that naturally requires leeway in showing something about which we only have scant facts, there are a couple of theological issues with the film. The Annunciation scene diverges from Scripture and misses the opportunity to show Mary’s emphatic “yes” to the Angel Gabriel, who disappears before she utters “Let it be me,” a phrase that sounds awkward and confusing, especially to those who know that Mary actually said, “Let it be done unto me.” The other issue is with her giving birth to Jesus in pain and suffering. Many films want to make Mary relatable and so this is one way of showing her suffering. However, the general understanding of the Church is that, since Mary was free from sin (the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception), she would not suffer the effects of sin, one of which is the pain of childbirth. Even with these issues, the film exudes the incredible faith, hope, and courage of the Mother of God.
Caruso also said that Bishop O’Connell pleaded with him to give Joseph a voice. And this film does that superbly. Joseph (Ido Tako) is no pushover, but a strong, protective provider for Mary and the infant Jesus. He comes to Mary’s rescue when no one, not even he, understands how she could be pregnant before their marriage. In almost superhero fashion, he defends Mary and Jesus at moments when it seemed like evil would win out. But, of course, God intervenes when the world seems the darkest and evil abounds. This film assures the audience that goodness wins, faith transforms, and love overcomes.
The masterful Anthony Hopkins does not disappoint as the evil, conniving King Herod. His corruption is so thorough that he kills anyone who threatens his reign, including the innocent baby boys in Bethlehem. He sends his most sinister soldier Marcellus (Gudmundur Thorvaldsson) to hunt down the Holy Family, only to be fighting against Joseph’s fidelity and angelic powers.
As a visual interpretation of the world’s most beautiful love story, Mary thrusts the audience into the darkness of “the fullness of time” (Gal 4:4) when the world receives its Savior. It leaves one realizing why we, as Catholics, hold Mary in such high esteem. Yes, she is full of grace and completely free of sin, but she also had the courage to overcome any discouragement and temptation to doubt God’s unconditional love. After watching the film, I could only say a prayer of gratitude to Mary for giving humanity the greatest gift possible and ask her for her same faith and courage to navigate the challenges of life.
Streaming on Netflix beginning December 6th.
To read further on the painless birth of Jesus, please consider these articles:
Mary and the Pain of Childbirth
Straight Answers: The Painless Birth of Christ
