Title: Noël
Type: Feature Film
Format: Nonlinear
Genre(s): Historical, Psychological Horror/Thriller
Compareable(s): The Passion of the Christ, The Witch, Memento
Dramatic Question: What happens when a holy and loving God enters into a world ruled by fear, power, and political survival?
Premise: I want to tell this in a nonlinear manner with two concurrent storylines.
On one side, Herod’s narrative tracks the psychological and political pressures that culminate in the Massacre of the Innocents: a fragile client king whose really under Roman rule the entire duration of his reign, threatened by Messianic prophecy, destabilized by rival religious factions (primarily the Pharisees and Sadducees), and pushed over the edge by the arrival of Parthian Magi whose acknowledgment of a “new king of the Jews” signals both religious illegitimacy and geopolitical danger.
(In those days the right to rule was heavily tied to religious institutions so by the Magi seeking out Jesus they, a rival political power to Rome (think sort of like how China and the U.S. today are rivals) are in effect giving their political endorsement, on behalf of the Parthians by the way, for Jesus’ rule. And for context, Rome cared about three things: loyalty to Rome, that taxes are paid, and that order is maintained. This prophecy threatens to destabilize all 3 of these. This is no longer something Herod can just ignore.
As a result, Jerusalem fears not the prophecy itself, but what Herod will do in response. And keep in mind, Herod was known for killing his wife, a Hasmonean princess (an arranged marriage meant to legitimize his rule in particular with the Pharisees – it didn’t work.), and at least two of his sons and another one after Jesus was born. They had to constantly be on edge when it came to Herod. But anyway the Herod storyline tries to unpack all of those psychological underpinnings.
On the other side, Joseph and Mary’s storyline explores the human cost of divine favor. Impoverished, teenage, socially marginalized, and unprepared, they endure public shame, physical hardship, and psychological trauma as their lives are irrevocably altered without consent. Their journey to Bethlehem is brutal and dehumanizing; the birth itself is uncomfortable, cold, and humiliating; and its aftermath leaves them burdened with survivor’s guilt as Roman violence sweeps through Bethlehem as innocent families become collateral damage because of Jesus.
Basically, I want to tell the Nativity story the way it was meant to be told (which was certainly not the heavily sanitized versions that you probably heard growing up at Christmas pageants): no farm stables but rather a cave with animal excrement everywhere, no donkey, Mary and Joseph are just average in appearance or even slightly below average based on what we know about Jesus in Isaiah 52, with middle eastern olive complexion, their feet would have been heavily calloused after the journey since they would have likely been too poor to afford sandals, they would have likely made the journey with an entourage as opposed to alone (the group likely would have been gossiping about them negatively the entire journey there since a virgin birth isn’t something that usually happens XD). Mary has to live with the aftermath of survivor’s guilt and PTSD due to knowing that all the babies aged 2 and under (or who even just looked young enough to be 2 or under) were killed because of Jesus, etc.
I’m envisioning this being a hard PG-13/R rated film, essentially the spiritual prequel to the Passion of the Christ.