Bible on the Big Screen, The: A Guide from Silent Films to Today's Movies [Paperback]

J. Stephen Lang (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 2007

Hollywood has been producing biblical movies for over a century. Starting with mini-Passion stories from the 1890s, bestselling author J. Stephen Lang takes readers through blockbusters and busts, miniseries and Mel Gibson, covering film plots and characters based on the Bible. More than just a list, The Bible on the Big Screen gives movie buffs film credits, running times, and release dates and answers intriguing questions about motives for making the movies, critics' reactions, and much more. It also offers a comprehensive filmography with a chronological listing of all biblical movies ever made, and if they are available on video.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Your gateway to every Bible movie ever made! Hollywood has been producing movies based on Bible stories since 1897. Starting with grainy, silent, mini-Passion stories and moving on to The Passion of the Christ and beyond, bestselling author J. Stephen Lang takes you through the blockbusters and the busts. More than just a catalog listing, The Bible on the Big Screen gives movie buffs film credits, running times, and release dates. It answers intriguing questions about motives for making the movies, offers critics' reactions, and provides much more insider information. The book is also richly illustrated with film stills from favorite movies. "Lang has given his readers a fascinating history. It is engagingly told by someone who is at one and the same time generous of spirit, biblically faithful, and culturally attuned."--Robert K. Johnston, author of Reel Spirituality and coauthor of Finding God in the Movies J. Stephen Lang is the author of nearly thirty books, including the extremely successful Complete Book of Bible Trivia, which has sold over 600,000 copies.

About the Author

J. Stephen Lang is the author of nearly thirty books, including the extremely successful Complete Book of Bible Trivia, which has sold over 600,000 copies. He lives in Seminole, Florida.

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Baker Books (August 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0801068045
• ISBN-13: 978-0801068041
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,187,046 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

J. Stephen Lang's favorite game is Trivial Pursuit, and his favorite book is the Bible. Lang is a best-selling author whose titles include "Know the Bible in 30 Days," "The Complete Book of Bible Trivia," "1,001 Things You Always Wanted to Know About the Bible," "What the Good Book Didn't Say," "The Big Book of American Trivia", and "The Complete Book of Confederate Trivia." His "Bible I.Q." column ran for several years in Today's Christian magazine. Mr. Lang holds an M.A. from Wheaton College and lives in Seminole, Florida.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Insightful and Infornative Guide to Biblical Films, January 12, 2009

By 

John Howard Reid (Wyong, NSW Australia) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Bible on the Big Screen, The: A Guide from Silent Films to Today's Movies (Paperback)

Written in a delightfully breezy style that makes admirably light work at providing the interested reader with a great deal of information, this is a book I can thoroughly recommend from my twin viewpoints as both a well-known film critic (at least in England, France and Australia) and Bible scholar. True, the author does make some offhanded observations I don't agree with, although some are rather puzzling. For example, "evangelicals prefer the New International Version of the Bible." Not any of the many evangelicals I know. In fact, they are all dead against it. "The Greek word 'lestes' can mean a Zealot or revolutionary." No way! It means some-one who 'plunders' such as a robber or a brigand. "John's Gospel was written by John the Apostle 30 years after the Savior's death." Wrong on two counts. John's Gospel could not possibly have been written by John the Apostle, that is, John, the son of Zebedee. See my book Essential Bible Wisdom: GOOD NEWS by John, the Beloved Disciple, and John, the Elder. But these are piffling issues. In this case, it's the movies themselves that count, and here the author's observations are always pertinent, insightful, informative and correct.