‘Mary’: A Holiday Faith and Family Movie That Doesn’t Play It Safe

Mary (Noa Cohen) holds the baby Jesus, in "Mary." Netflix

TV-14 | 1h 52m | Drama, Thriller, History | 2024

Of the hundreds of documentaries and feature films about Jesus, only two dozen include his mother, the Virgin Mary, and even then she’s frequently regulated to the margins. Only two—the TV movie “Mary, Mother of Jesus” (1999) and “The Nativity Story” (2006)—featured Mary as the principal or lead character. The latter is very good, but the former leaves a lot to be desired.

Debuting Dec. 6 on Netflix, director D.J. Caruso took an ages-old genre (biblical epics) and infused it with a welcomed jolt of dramatic bite and daring storytelling. “Mary” takes a lot of chances. It stretches far beyond the genteel and ultrasafe boundaries usually associated with these kinds of interest-specific, faith-based movies.

Caruso isn’t a brilliant filmmaker, but he’s smart and does well within his particular wheelhouse. His résumé includes some very good, but not great, thrillers (“The Salton Sea,” Taking Lives,” “Disturbia,” “Shut In”). The bottom line here is, “Mary” adheres to the blueprint of some of the great thrillers of years past.

Director D.J. Caruso (L) with actors Noa Cohen and Ido Tako on the set of "Mary." Netflix

Jesus the Newborn

The biggest difference with “Mary” and everything that came before it is that Jesus appears only as a newborn for a very brief stretch. Caruso and screenwriter Timothy Michael Hayes make it abundantly clear from the get-go that “Mary” is about her. Although it includes events and participants lifted directly from the Bible and other sources, the movie contains information that will be new to many viewers.

Here’s an example. Do you know the names of Mary’s parents? I didn’t. They were Anne (Hilla Vidor) and Joachim (Ori Pfeffer). Both Vidor and Pfeffer are Israeli actors. Anne and Joachim’s daughter Mary is played by Noa Cohen and Mary’s husband Joseph is portrayed by Ido Tako, also Israeli actors. Other principal members of the cast with speaking roles also hail from the Middle East (Morocco and Egypt).

(L–R) Anne, who is Mary’s mother (Hilla Vidor), and Joachim, Mary’s father (Ori Pfeffer); (front) Mary (Noa Cohen) and Joseph (Ido Tako), in “Mary.” Netflix

Casting performers in a movie that’s set in the area where the movie takes place makes a lot of sense; it also adds a great deal of authenticity to the finished product. The required level of “suspension of disbelief” here is low, and as a whole, it makes the movie more believable.

Notable Exceptions

However, there are four characters not portrayed by Middle Eastern actors, but they are believable, if not exactly authentic. The Welsh-born Anthony Hopkins (as King Herod) and the Austrian actress Stephanie Nur (as Salome) play non-Middle Eastern characters. These are stretches, but not big ones.

Any movie that pits good against evil (which, if you think about it, is most movies) is worthwhile only if the villain is convincing, and Hopkins is more than up to the task. To put this in perspective, there’s also a fantasy Satan character in “Mary” (Australian actor Eamon Farren). The character is certainly imposing, but he can’t hold a candle to Hopkins.

To Farren’s credit, he, like Hopkins, doesn’t lean heavily into what is an obvious antagonist role. Both actors realize, as will most viewers, that displaying evil is most effective when it’s understated and played close to the vest. Going blustery and overblown doesn’t carry nearly the same level of menace and danger.

King Herod (Anthony Hopkins), in "Mary." Netflix

On a scale of 1 to 10, I’d give myself a rating of 5 when it comes to knowledge of the Bible. I recognized about half of what is depicted in “Mary.” When comparing my notes to other sources after watching the movie, I came to the conclusion that the filmmakers took very few, if any, artistic liberties with the content.

The exceptions to this are the scenes between Satan and Mary, and a handful of encounters involving the angel Gabriel (Dudley O'Shaughnessy) and other characters.

Firm Middle Ground

From artistic and storytelling perspectives, “Mary” stakes claim to a comfortable middle ground between all of the too-safe productions of the past and two others. “The Last Temptation of Christ” and “The Passion of the Christ” might have overcompensated with the inclusion of graphic nudity and violence. Neither is really suitable for mainstream audiences or family viewing.

Although produced by Aloe Entertainment, “Mary” is being streamed exclusively on Netflix, not a service associated with faith-based movies. It’s my belief that the folks running things at Netflix noticed how well films produced by Angel Studios have fared over the last few years and decided to get in on the action.

“Mary” is Netflix’s “test balloon,” if you will. If it’s well-received by its subscribers, the company will likely widen its reach in the faith and family genre.

The film is now streaming on Netflix.

‘Mary’ Director: D.J. Caruso Stars: Noa Cohen, Anthony Hopkins Running Time: 1 hour, 52 minutes MPAA Rating: TV-14 Release Date: Dec. 6, 2024 Rating: 4 stars out of 5

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