King of Kings

One Man Against an Empire of Men

written by

Maël

_And he lifted up his eyes to his disciples and said, “Blessed are the poor, because yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are those who are hungry now, because you will be satisfied. Blessed are those who weep now, because you will laugh. Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you and revile you and spurn your name as evil on account of the Son of Man. Rejoice in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven. For their fathers used to do the same things to the prophets.”_ “We both seek the same thing: freedom! Only our methods differ.” “What is truth?” What is one man against an empire of men? What is one god against an empire of gods? Men are trampled under the pursuit of legacy and destiny. A line of Roman soldiers unleash a volley of javelins at priests on the hallowed steps of a temple, all in the name of Empire. Empire. An Empire of cruelty and laziness, extending its reach far beyond its means. In Judea, it’s the struggle against tyranny. The struggle that costs everything. False messiahs and corrupt kings and lazy prefects. A boy is born, prophesied to be something greater than any human: the son of God. Cursed to live an existence of worship and revilement. A lonely soul wandering the loneliest road imaginable towards his bitter fated end. A rock in a sea of faith. What is King of Kings but the humanization of Christ; the capture of how the people reacted to the push and pull of Pilate and Herod and Tiberius et al. The violence and anger of a people matched by the peace and love of their neighbors, all united in their struggle for recognition. Miklós Rózsa’s score is fucking legendary, marrying beautifully to the depth (and gratuitous split diopter shots) that Nicholas Ray injects into what could have been just another Biblical epic. “I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.”