Judas: A Psychological Portrait

By Sr. Rose Pacatte, FSP

With a stroke of programming luck on the part of ABC and the workings of divine providence, the U.S. audience will have the opportunity to see a unique version of the passion and death of Jesus soon after Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ has opened in theaters everywhere. The ABC film is Judas, and it premieres on television Monday , March 8, 9/8 central.  Judas is a psychological drama that explores Jesus' life and death from the perspective of Judas Iscariot, the disciple who betrayed him.

The appearance of these two films in the 2004 Lenten season offers film and television viewers an exceptional opportunity to explore the Gospels in depth. I have seen both the made-for-television Judas and Mel Gibson's feature-length motion picture The Passion of the Christ. The two productions are complimentary.

The Passion of the Christ focuses on the last twelve hours of Jesus' life, drawn largely from the Gospel narratives. Judas is much broader in scope, presenting an historical and religious context for the Jesus story from the perspective of the Gospel character that was the catalyst to the Good Friday event. Both productions are radically defined by Good Friday.

Both films depict the suffering and death of Jesus. But I prefer the Judas small-screen version of the passion because it respects the audience's ability to understand the passion and death of Jesus on an emotional level without the intense and relentless visual brutality that permeates the Gibson film.

Judas is a film twelve years in the making. When Paulist Productions founder, Rev. Ellwood "Bud" Kieser, CSP (1929-2000) pitched the story to ABC (with the backing of Paramount ), the script treatment was called Jesus And Company . It told the Jesus story from the perspectives of each apostle. ABC thought it to o complex , and the collaborative team settled on looking at Jesus from Judas' perspective - the most conflicted apostle and therefore the one who could provide the best material for a drama.

Judas was scripted by veteran television writer Tom Fontana ( Oz, Homicide: Life on the Street, St. Elsewhere ). According to executive producer, Reverend Frank Desiderio, CSP, and president of Paulist Productions, Judas is ideally suited to teenagers, though the audience that typically watches television movies is 18 - 35-year-old females. The dialogue is contemporary and fits the film's psychological examination that asks what motivated the act of betrayal by Judas.

Johnathon Schaech ( That Thing You Do!, Finding Graceland ) plays Judas with an innate sense of his inner conflict. Schaech says , " Judas represents this generation's need to question God a little bit more. The film helps you see that there is a need to be clear on who God is and the role God plays in our life." Canadian actor Jonathan Scarfe portrays Jesus as a man of joy who demonstrates kindness even to the man he knows will betray him.

Director Charles Robert Carner ( Crossfire Trial, Echo of Murder ) has thoughtfully chosen symbols for the film that relate to the characters and to the hostile political religious and social reality of the times he depicts.

The first symbol that appears in the film is the scorpion which carries a poisonous stinger at the tip of its tail. The scorpion is an instrument of suffering, and it is also something that incites others to action - an agitator. Judas Iscariot, as the betrayer, has come to be associated with all of these descriptions. The scorpion is a harbinger of the darkness to come.

A second important symbol in the film is the medallion that Judas' father gave to his son as he was dying. Judas wears the medallion around his neck.  On the medallion is "the Hebrew word for Adonai or Lord," explains "The medallion symbolizes the father and son's dedication to God. When Judas feels that he has failed both his father and Jesus, he tears it from his neck and throws it away."

The father-son relationship theme frames the story's structure and its theological premise. The relationship between Judas and Jesus does not develop into a strong bond because their worldviews, the decisions they make and their actions are shaped in part by the influence of their respective fathers. Jesus understands Judas' reality, but Judas cannot see beyond the narrow confines of his experience. Jesus performs miracles to help people, using his special powers to prove God's love. In contrast, Judas wants miracles for the purpose of gaining power. Jesus responds to the call of love; Judas agitates to overthrow the Roman occupation.

Pontius Pilate is played by Tim Matheson ( The West Wing; The Story of Us) and Caiaphas by Bob Gunton ( Patch Adams; Iron Jawed Angels ). Fiona Glascott plays Claudia, Pilate's wife. She has a key role in the way events unfold , but I thought her identity as a pivotal character lacked clarity.

Viewers will note that Jesus is blond and Judas dark. The filmmakers say the choice was about talent and not about looks, but at first glance it seems to be a fallback to a stereotypical juxtaposition of good vs. evil. However, I think that as the story moves on to its inevitable finale, Judas will be seen not so much as a man with a dark, evil heart but rather a troubled man who makes extreme choices he immediately regrets. His faith was not mature or strong enough to remember Jesus' words in the film, "It is never too late". Nor, does Judas wait for the Resurrection.

"There's spirituality in Judas," attests Schaech. "He believed in God, he was a religious man, but his political ideals did not mesh with his own beliefs. Judas also thought that he and Jesus had the same agenda. Both wanted to be free from the Roman occupation, but Jesus came from a place where love could transform reality, and that's what Judas had to learn. This is what Judas is about."

A documentary entitled Judas: Traitor or Friend was produced by Paulist Productions for The History Channel in 2001 and is available at www.historychannel.com.

Reflections on Christ's Passion and Death
(Available from your local Pauline Books & Media)

Characters of the Crucifixion, The by Joseph Fitchner, $4.95
Into Your Hands: Meditations and Prayers on the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ , edited by Norman J. Muckermann, CSSR, $9.95
Lenten Days, Lenten Grace: 40 Days with Jesus by Raymond Chapman, $9.95
Nails and the Cross: Entering Into the Mysteries of the Passion, The - by Geoffrey Rowell and Julien Chilcott-Monk
Sign of Contradiction: Way of the Cross by John Paul II, $11.95
Stations of the Cross for Teens: Meditations on the Death and Resurrection of Jesus by Gary Eyeberg, $3.95
Way of the Cross for Children, The - A.J. Flanagan, FSP, $2.95
Way of the Cross, The - written and illustrated by Carryl Houselander, $11.95

Interview with Johnathon Schaech "Judas"

By Sr. Rose Pacatte

Q. As a Catholic and an actor, what did playing the role of Judas mean to you?
JS : When I was offered this role I had nothing on my desk that I was interested in. This role convinced me that the Holy Spirit is working even when you don't think anything is out there. This role answered my prayers for the kind of work I wanted to do.

Q. How did playing the role of Judas change you?
JS: I grew in my faith; it made me a better man.

Q. What did you think of the character of Judas as expressed in the film?
JS: I think it was good to give him a heart and to show how all the choices of his life led up to the final one. I think the story shows how much people are so often misunderstood.

Q. What did you think of working with the director Charlie Carner?
JS: Charlie's passion for God really stands out. He would be directing a scene and be very moved by what was happening in the story. He also took the time to choose images that were metaphorical and symbolic on the screen like , the scorpions and the panther.

Q.   What or who was the biggest influence on your life as an actor?
My biggest influence was my acting coach , Roy London. He took me under his wing and taught me the art of acting. One day, after about three years of study, I was whining about something and he asked me: "In your heart and in your soul is there anything else you can do or want to be besides a story teller?" And I realized then that acting and writing would be my life.

Q. Where are the best stories today?
JS: The best stories today are in the temple - the movie theater. I think more people go to movies than go to church. Great movies made me who I am.

Q. OK then, what are the top three great movies that made you?
JS: Well, I have to distinguish between the ones I really like and the ones that really influenced me. The first one is Braveheart because it showed me how to have courage to go out into the world and be part of that world. Then Top Gun . I was sixteen when that one came out and it taught me about stepping up and giving yourself a second chance when something bad happens, like when Maverick's best friend Goose dies. Maverick also had to live up to his father's expectations. The film that really gets me every time though is The Green Mile - when Michael Clarke Duncan says, "I have suffered enough in this world and I need to be free." He took on the suffering of the world. He was a Christ-figure.

Q. What are your next projects?
JS: Right now I am writing and I have three projects: The first one is The Night Wind , that's the working title; it's a horror film. The thing about horror is that good and evil are the defined protagonists.  Then I am adapting book into film, Hour Before Dark, by Douglas Clegg. And my writing partner and I are also working on a screenplay based on a book by Stephen King, From a Buick 8. Stephen King always deals with faith and the mystery of life and accepting the idea that not everything in this world can be explained.

Q. If you could tell young people anything about life, what would you say?
JS: Believe in the Holy Spirit and the spirit inside you; to be a vessel to what is coming next; to catch the wave. To know yourself and know how everything is so connected through the spirit of God. To know that God is real, that God cares. That will give you the faith to accomplish everything you want in life.

Sr. Rose Pacatte, FSP is the director of the Pauline Center for Media Studies in Culver City, CA and the film/TV columnist for St. Anthony Messenger.