IMDb > The King of Kings (1927)

The King of Kings (1927) More at IMDbPro »


Overview

User Rating:
7.8/10   591 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 3% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Cecil B. DeMille
Writer:
Jeanie Macpherson (story)
Contact:
View company contact information for The King of Kings on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
1928 (Austria) more
Genre:
Drama | History more
Tagline:
Most reverent and strikingly beautiful panorama of the tragedy of all ages--the world's greatest screen epic. A production acclaimed by world-famed scholars, press and public in this country and abroad, as the most ambitious presentation of the final years of the life of Jesus ever pictured on the screen. An epochal motion picture that will live forever in the hearts of mankind. more
Plot:
Mary Magdalene becomes angry when Judas, now a follower of Jesus, won't come to her feast. She goes to see Jesus and becomes repentant... more | add synopsis
NewsDesk:
King Of Kings Tops Jesus Film Poll
 (From WENN. 12 April 2009, 4:05 PM, PDT)

User Comments:
The Gospel According To Cecil more (30 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)
Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

Runtime:
USA:112 min (alternate version) | USA:155 min (premiere version)
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Color:
Black and White | Color (2-strip Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
1.33 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (RCA Photophone System) (1931 reissue) | Silent | Silent (RCA Photophone System)
Certification:
Australia:G | USA:Not Rated

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
This film features author Ayn Rand as one of the hundreds of people in a crowd. At a time when Rand was a struggling immigrant, DeMille gave her the job to help get her on her feet. more
Goofs:
Anachronisms: When the blind girl gets pulled through the window, she is wearing modern underwear. more
Quotes:
Mary Magdalene: Harness my zebras - gift of the Nubian King! This Carpenter shall learn that he cannot hold a man from Mary Magdalene! more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in The Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind (1988) (TV) more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
5 out of 5 people found the following comment useful.
The Gospel According To Cecil, 27 December 2007
8/10
Author: bkoganbing from Buffalo, New York

Cecil B. DeMille's film about Jesus was made during a period in his career when he left Paramount and organized his own studio. Unfortunately for DeMille his studio went belly up after the stock market crash of 1929. The King of Kings is unquestionably the greatest film he made during that period.

But in DeMille's cinema gospel he eschewed the traditional Christmas story to be found in those four other gospels. DeMille begins his movie with a real lavish party at the home of a noted women of the town Mary Magdalene played by Jacqueline Logan. It's DeMille showing revelry at its best and most alluring.

Logan asks why one of her favorites, Judas Iscariot hasn't been attending her clambakes recently. She hears he's been hanging around with this carpenter from Nazareth reputed to have performed some miracles and who doesn't approve of her lifestyle.

That's it for Ms. Magadalene; she's not about to let this hick take one of her favorites away. Off in a chariot pulled by Zebras she goes after this carpenter. She finds H.B. Warner as Jesus doing one of the miracles and becomes a follower herself.

After this the film becomes a reverential straightforward account as you would find in the Bible.

Reverence and revelry, the hallmark of a DeMille film is found in equal measure in The King of Kings. H.B. Warner does a fine job in the lead role, he makes a saintly Jesus. I do wonder what led DeMille to cast Warner, to think of him in the first place. Warner was 52 at the time playing a 30 something Jesus.

The King of Kings offers the movie fan to see father and son Rudolph and Joseph Schildkraut who play Caiaphas and Judas. Both contribute fine performances to the endeavor. Unlike later gospel based films, this one clearly has Caiaphas as the villain of the piece. He's described in the subtitles as a man concerned more with 'revenue than religion' which doesn't make him all that different from some folks I could mention today. The Schildkrauts however were Jewish and stars in the Yiddish Theater in Europe and America. They got good and slammed for their participation in The King of Kings by more than a few of their co-religionists.

Sharp eyed viewers will also note that the guy playing Simon of Cyrene who helps Jesus with his cross is none other than Hopalong Cassidy, William Boyd. Boyd was a DeMille discovery and had previously starred in another DeMille production, The Volga Boatman. This of course was years before he became the idol of the nation's children.

In his autobiography DeMille goes into some detail about how Jeremiah Milbank helped him with the financing of the DeMille Studio from which The King of Kings was produced. After the initial run, Milbank set up a foundation in which prints of The King of Kings were copied and made available to various Christian mission groups free for their work. It's one reason why this particular film is never in any danger of being lost.

DeMille was told on at least one occasion that this was his greatest picture because there is no greater subject. It's arguably one of his best from a technical standpoint. Still for the hundreds of millions of affiliated Christians on the planet, The King of Kings certainly occupies a special place.

Was the above comment useful to you?
more (30 total)

Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for The King of Kings (1927)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Additional color footage?? suferia
'color': is this new or was it enabled in original film? sherylshannon
Glass Magic Lantern Slides of 'King of Kings' jandrews42
more

Recommendations

If you enjoyed this title, our database also recommends:
- - - - -
The Greatest Story Ever Told The Passion of the Christ Ben-Hur The Holy Mountain Intolerance: Love's Struggle Throughout the Ages
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
Show more recommendations

Related Links

Full cast and crew Company credits External reviews
News articles IMDb Drama section IMDb USA section
Add this title to MyMovies

You may report errors and omissions on this page to the IMDb database managers. They will be examined and if approved will be included in a future update. Clicking the 'Update' button will take you through a step-by-step process.