'Revival' Brings New Life to The Gospel

Directed by Danny Green and written by Holly Davis Carter and character-actor Harry Lennix, “Revival!” mixes the mediums of stage theatre and cinema to interpret the story of Jesus and his disciples in the final days of their work preceding his crucifixion from the Gospel of John as an R&B musical, headlined by artist Mali Music as Jesus, with a score by pianist ELEW and even featuring the musical talent of Chaka Khan.

Although the mix of R&B with hints of hip-hop may seem to be something of a nontraditional combination with such a well-known bible story, it’s clear that the minds behind it have a vision in mind of marrying old stories and timeless messages to more modern sensibilities akin to what “Jesus Christ Superstar” back in its day or what shows like “Hamilton” are now.

Lennix prefaces the film by leaning into the nature of the very text his work is adapting, presenting a work that aims to utilize conventions of stage and cinema to maximum effect but not locked down to either category in ways similar to the question of whether the miracles and mission of Jesus were carried out by that of a supernatural being in the flesh or whether he was simply a man capable of inspiring a faith amongst his followers that helped to guide them at their lowest.

Although the interpretation presented by the production itself leans towards the more fantastical by virtue of utilizing theatrical spectacle, the performances are very admirably grounded.

“Revival’s” biggest drawback is its struggle to strike a balance between the sensibilities of media it attempts to combine, which can lead to performance outshone by production and editing that can lose the thread of the story it’s telling and the framing that could work to its advantage but occasionally dips into incohesion.

The story follows Jesus in disguise during the days following his resurrection as he follows a traveling couple kind enough to help him when he’s thirsty, who regale him of the work he did with his disciples and allowing him something of a first-hand glimpse of the impact that his faith has had on those he sacrificed himself for. It’s a nice touch but a little punch up to the script along with editing the set pieces involving his disciples to be a bit more concise could have helped to drive home a more poignant impact. A tighter edit could really have done a lot to better highlight what the movie has to offer while potentially even attracting a larger crowd outside of its given Christian audience.

“Revival!” is not a feature without issues but the whole thing manages to keep itself together on the passion and energy of its production and a firm round of performances.

Mali Music’s Jesus is perhaps the best take away. His portrayal is very much that of a man susceptible to harms of the world both physically and spiritually. He can jest with those close to him, express disappointment when his expectations aren’t met, and even gets angry but without the pettier sense of judgment that one typically expects of reactions born of clashing perception.

His disciples all turn in solid performances, as well as the production, swinging for the fences in their interpretations of Jesus’s stories, running the gamut of traditional period pieces to fourth-wall leaning interpretations such as reaching out to the audience as though serving them after a Sunday sermon at Church. As mentioned regarding the editing, they don’t always work but they’re at least admirable to see play out as the movie continues to march forward with one rousing musical number after another.

Rough around the edges though it may be, “Revival!” is clearly a labor of love that would be best appreciated by its audience at a time more than perfect for it to be brought to the screen. Although scheduled for official VOD release on March 3, the movie may just be a perfect event to keep in mind for family gatherings as we near an Easter release as a fresh alternative to the umpteenth viewing of “The Ten Commandments.”