There's big business in faith-based dramas right now, but minus a couple of exceptions they tend to stick to traditional interpretations of Biblical themes. That's certainly not the case for Last Days In the Desert, which stars Ewan McGregor in a very different kind of story centered on the Son of God.
Directed by Rodrigo Garcia (Albert Nobbs) and co-starring Tye Sheridan, Ayelet Zurer, and Ciaran Hinds, the story presents an imagined story (aren't they all, though?) of Jesus' forty days and forty nights wandering and fasting in the desert. There he becomes engaged in a psychological war with the Devil, who is also played by McGregor. Here's the official synopsis:
Last Days in the Desert follows Jesus (Ewan McGregor) in an imagined chapter from his forty days of fasting and praying in the desert. On his way out of the wilderness, he struggles with the Devil, also played by McGregor, over the fate of an ordinary family in crisis, setting for himself a dramatic test with distinctly human conflicts.
The film played at Sundance but buzz on it has been pretty quiet. However with Biblical films all the rage right now expect that to change. Last Days In the Desert opens May 13th.
