Customer Reviews
Try the Italian Edition - By: DVD MANIAC, 12 Oct 2008 
I totally agree with the "5 stars for the movie but 1 star for the DVD product". In Italy (where the series is quite famous due to the Zeffirelli's touch) two versions have been released recently. Onein 2007, the complete & un-edited TV version & one 4-disc editionin 2008 by Mondo Home Entertainment with the addition of never-before-seen scenes plus interviews & other special features (based on descriptions, I have not aquired it yet). Language is Italian & English 2.0. If you want to look for it you need to type "Gesu' di Nazareth".
An epic and a classic...badly edited - By: Irish Reader, 11 Sep 2008 
Directed by Franco Zeffirelli & first televised by ITVin the 1970s, Jesus of Nazareth has become arguably the most popular screen adaptation of the greatest story ever told. When I was a child our national broadcaster RTE used to show this 6-hour epicin several parts, always back-timing the series to climax on Easter Sunday with the resurrection scene.
Never before had such a great swathe of accomplished actors been assembled for one single production. Robert Powell excels as Jesus. Michael York plays John the Baptist with passion & enthusiasm. Peter Ustinov is convincing as Herod the Great, as is Stacy Keach as Barabbas. There are also important roles for the likes of James Mason (Joseph of Arimathea), Laurence Olivier (Nicodemus), Rod Steiger (Pontius Pilate), Christopher Plummer (Herod Antipas) & the beautiful Olivia Hussey (Mary the mother of Jesus). The list goes on...
Sadly, there are some scenes cut & it has to lose TWO stars for such bad editing. The directing & production look a little dated after a third of century, but the acting is still superb. One of those videos I may only dig out every fourth of fifth Easter - but it's just nice to have itin the collection. A timeless classic! Pity about the abridgements.
Great Series - really poor DVD set - By: "Smith" Reader, 08 Aug 2007 In it's full form Jesus of Nazareth staring Robert Powell is just about the best TV series ever made - but this box set says it is the full unedited version.
No way - I brought this to replace my video set & then find out that this DVD set is missing three vital scenes of the series! Do not waste your money, find the full version!
Looks great, sounds odd - By: Jeremy Walton, 10 Apr 2007 I have strong memories of seeing this on television over Easter thirty years ago. Robert Powell's portrayal of Christ made a strong impression on me then, & I was pleased to be able to pick up the original DVD version of this film from Amazon a couple of years ago. This extended version is even better, containing (it seems) just about all of the original footage, which is all valuable. The photography, costumes, direction & settings are beautiful & memorable, but I'm less happy with the sound & the dialogue. Much of the latter has obviously been overdubbed (a small number of the actors were apparently not speaking English on the set), & the tone can be hopelessly jarringin places - so much so that I wondered if it might even have been better as a silent film. The parade of big stars that take on bit parts can be somewhat uneven as well; I thought Anthony Quinn dreadfully histrionic as Caiaphas, but liked Rod Steiger's thoughtful, worried Pilate a lot.
But maybe the problem is attempting to find a memorable way to portray stories that have long been familiar to much of the audience: just seeing the three kings convergingin a clearing under palm trees conjures up so many memories of school nativity plays, it's hard to imagine how they could ever come across as anything other than stylised. In the midst of all this, Robert Powell makes some good choicesin his portrayal of Jesus; the unblinking gaze, the voice & the infrequent fleeting amused expression all mean he's always the focus of any scene. And some of these are unforgettable; for example, the parable of the Prodigal Son, toldin Matthew's house as an appeal to Peter to love his neighbour as himself.
Missing scenes! - By: D. Mead, 21 Feb 2007 
I too was very disappointed to find missing episodes from this powerful film. It had been advertised as 'full, un-edited version' portraying the death of Jesus. This is simply not the case as the second disc simply ended, missing out the crucial end episodes. I am furious at the misleading information, especially as the DVD is not cheap.
