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      • Gianni Amelio
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      • Giulio Base
      • Franco Battiato
      • Joy Behar
      • Marco Bellocchio
      • Alessandro Borghi
      • Raoul Bova
      • Mimmo Calopresti
      • Sergio Castellitto
      • Domenico Centamore
      • Valentina Cervi
      • Francesco Colella
      • Maria Grazia Cucinotta
      • Lucianna De Falco
      • Dom DeLuise
      • Christian De Sica
      • Andrea De Sica
      • Luigi Di Gianni
      • Pierfrancesco Diliberto
      • Luigi Diotaiuti
      • Vito Facciolla
      • Pierfrancesco Favino
      • Anna Ferruzzo
      • Ignazio Figus
      • Donatella Finocchiaro
      • Angela & Marianna Fontana
      • Mario Fratti
      • Mirko Frezza
      • Paolo Genovese
      • Claudia Gerini
      • Francesco Grillo
      • Sabrina Impacciatore
      • Enrique Irazoqui
      • Edoardo Leo
      • Enrico Lo Verso
      • Filippo Luna
      • Gabriele Mainetti
      • Pietro Marcello
      • Lucia Mascino
      • Valerio Mastandrea
      • Peter Miller
      • Francesco Munzi
      • Silvio Orlando
      • Ferzan Ozpetek
      • Andrea Pallaoro
      • Gianfranco Pannone
      • Francesco Patierno
      • Edgardo Pistone
      • Edoardo Ponti
      • Isabella Ragonese
      • Franco Rina, CinemadaMare
      • Raffaella Sacco
      • Maya Sansa
      • Talia Shire
      • Valeria Solarino
      • Paolo Sorrentino
      • Marco Tullio Giordana
      • Jasmine Trinca
      • Carlo Verdone
      • Fortunato Verduci
      • Burt Young
      • Gianni Zanasi
    • Streaming
    • Italy in Cinema
      • Calabrian Music in Film
      • Pasolini's Matera
      • Calabria As a Film Set
      • Explore Ancient Rome
      • Tour Pasolini's Rome
      • Pompeii revealed in Film
      • Carlo Levi's Lucania
      • Gaeta: City of Cinema
      • Calabrese Child Actor
      • Coppola Italian Hideaway
      • Destination Mount Vulture
      • Architecture of Matera
      • "Christ Stopped at Eboli"
      • "Return to Lucania"
      • Bollywood in Basilicata
      • Basilicata Goes High Tech
      • "My Country" Touts Molise
      • The Authentic Old Country
      • Documenting Naples
      • Sicilian Love
      • Frank Zappa in Sicily
      • The Sicilians
      • Palermo Pilgrimage
      • Basilicata in Cinema
      • Contemporary Matera
      • Seaside in Maratea
      • Basilicata Born and Bred
      • Dolce & Gabbana in Naples
      • In Rome with Mirko Frezza
      • Sardinian Set
      • Religious Rites in Italy
      • Mary Magdelene in Matera
      • Exorcisms in Palermo
      • Matera Stories
      • Inside a Milan Prison
      • Being Young In Basilicata
      • The Prince of Venusia
      • Inside Vatican City
      • On Location in Malta
      • Remembering Ustica
      • Indie Western in Matera
      • Racing Around Matera
      • Il Commissario Montalbano
      • "The Young Messiah"
      • "All Men Have a Price"
      • Filmmaking in Puglia
      • The Genius of Musmeci
      • "An Ideal Place"
      • The Carnevale of Satriano
      • Timeless Italy Series
      • Basilicata in 4K
      • Pasolini in Basilicata
      • Matera's Biblical Epic
      • Filmstudio, mon Amour
      • See Naples 100 Years Ago
      • Italy in Indian Cinema
      • Italy Offshore
      • A Beloved Dog in Sicily
      • Neapolitan Tenor on Films
      • "Flipo con La Basilicata"
      • Carlo Verdone's Rome Muse
      • A Sicily Rarely Seen
      • Puglia's Thriller
      • Dreaming Sardinia
      • An Italian in Space
      • Shadows of Garbatella
      • Matera in Reggae & Ska
      • An Actor's Sicilian Pride
      • On Location in Basilicata
      • Return to Aeolian Islands
      • Wenders' Palermo Shooting
      • A Lagoon in Tuscany
      • Cinecittà in Basilicata
      • A Neapolitan Legend
      • Winspeare's Apulia
      • Naples in New York
      • Rome's Island of Cinema
      • Rome's Sacro GRA
      • Rome's Eternal Legend
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A Conversation with an Icon

Enrique Irazoqui talks about his role as Jesus in Pasolini's 'The Gospel According to St. Matthew'

There have been countless interpretations and epic films made of stories from the Bible. Few have stood the test of time. One that has become a timeless recollection is Pier Paolo Pasolini's Il Vangolo Secondo Matteo (The Gospel According to St. Matthew). 


Considered by the Vatican to be among the best film adaptations of one of the Gospels, Pasolini's 1964 film was shot in the ancient southern Italian city of Matera and captures the stone structures of the city, which date back to the Neolithic era. Pasolini cast his mother as Mary and many locals as extras. Spanish actor Enrique Irazoqui was cast in the role of Jesus. He was just 18-years-old when he landed the part. He had been in Rome at the time of casting. Acquaintances arranged a meeting between him and Pasolini. When Pasolini saw Irazoqui, he knew right away that he had found his Jesus.


I had the idea to feature this film as an Easter week streaming pick. Having been connected with Irazoqui on social media for some time, I thought I'd send him a message to ask permission to send a few questions about his experience working on this iconic film. He responded with the suggestion of doing a Skype call. Anyone who follows Italian Cinema Today probably has noticed that I am not fond of on-camera video presentations, but I could not turn down the opportunity to talk with one of my cinema heroes. I've been watching this film for at least 20 years and Irazoqui's interpretation of Jesus has remained my all-time favorite. His gentleness and angelic face embodies the image I've always had of Christ growing up and attending Catholic schools. I've always imagined him to be a soft-spoken, celestial figure. That is exactly how I see Irazoqui in this role. The first time he appears in the film, meeting St. John the Baptist, I feel, is one of the most beautiful scenes in cinema.


When I spoke with Irazoqui, our Skype connection wasn't great, and his video was quite pixelated. So I covered much of our interview with video. His audio was pretty clear until the end, so I decided to just write out the remainder of his answer. He also talked about Pasolini as a person and what it was like to know this immortal personality. I am going to make a separate video of his gracious and generous description and post it next week. For now, let's focus on his eternal role as Pasolini's Jesus.


Click here to watch our Skype interview  or read the copy below. 


What stands out in your memory of working on this film and shooting in the Sassi of Matera?

Matera became Jerusalem. We spent about a week to 10 days shooting there. In the Sassi of Matera, I experienced a bit of irony on the set because when we were filming, every 10 or 15 minutes of every day, seeing that I was dressed as Christ, wearing the clothes of Christ, certain men and women, when I was talking with the apostles, asked me if I could perform a miracle for them. I didn't know how to perform miracles. I said, "I am not Christ. I am an actor that is portraying Christ." They didn’t understand anything. They didn’t understand anything because the difference between an actor and that which I was portraying didn’t exist. After dinner, I went for a walk with St. John the Evangelist and I smoked. They became angry with me and said, “Christ, didn’t smoke!”


Why do you think this film from 1964 is still so popular today?

I don't know. I think that maybe, and I don’t know for sure,  it’s because of the Vatican. The Vatican said that there’s never been a Christ like mine portrayed in a film.


Do you have a special memory, something that you will always hold close to your heart?

Yes, certainly. Something exceptionally special, above all, is Elsa Morante. Elsa Morante is my first image from The Gospel According to St. Matthew. Then there is also Pasolini, Pier Paolo Pasolini.


How did this role change your life?

It changed my life in every sense.  For example, when letters of recommendation were needed to enter a university in Minneapolis, I made a phone call to Elsa Morante and she told me that she would take care of everything. So, I had letters of recommendation by (Jean-Paul)  Sartre, (Simone de) Beauvoir, (Elsa) Morante, (Alberto) Moravia, Pasolini, etc. I don't think there was another with those letters of recommendation. The University of Minnessota sent me a telegram: "Offer follows". This is an example. Making the film was an extraordinary influence in my life.


It's worth noting that to this day, Irazoqui is still very much adored in Basilicata for this role. The city of Matera made him an honorary citizen. The Gospel According to St. Matthew is available to Stream on Amazon, iTunes, Vudu and YouTube. 


Click here to watch my 2018 documentary Return to Lucania in which I talk about the  making of this film and others in Italy's Basilicata region. Click here to watch my 2019 Holy Thursday video, which features sacred architecture of the Sassi of Matera.

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