I'm at the point where just about all the churchin' I get is from an annual viewing of the classic rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar. Despite my general disillusionment with Christianity, one thing I'll tell you. Jesus is cool. Riddled with counter-culture imagery, echoing the outlandish suggestions Jesus himself made some 2000 years ago, the film adaptation shows Jesus' followers to be not unlike those following the Grateful Dead on tour or joining Ken Kesey to go Further with the Merry Pranksters. The apostles? The movie shows us all that they sure as hell were "on the bus" with Jesus.
This is all without even mentioning the songs, which, as expected in a Broadway adaptation, are no less than outstanding. The well-trodden story is buoyed by Andrew Lloyd Webber's score and Tim Rice's lyrics, who both have had tremendous staying power in musicals and songwriting in general. The portrayal of Judas and Jesus as more conflicted, sympathetic characters can grate on the more pious among us, preferring things to be more black and white, so to speak. In any case, give the below video a chance, and whether you're up to snuff on your New Testament, we can all agree that Carl Anderson and Ted Neely can belt.
Also embedded is King Herod's Song. Why? Partly because it features character actor Josh Mostel, whom you may know as the horny principal/The Revolting Blob from Billy Madison. But mostly because the whole scene is absolutely hilarious. I'll leave you on that note, and have a fantastic holiday.
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