Many reviews praise Risen but I can't agree. Compared with the emotions Gibsons The Compassion of Christ stirred up in me this movie lacks it - I watched the movie totally unmoved. I remember an old movie with a similar approach to the story of Christ's resurrection - The Robe directed by Henry Koster and in the role of the tribune Marcellus Gallio the great Richard Burton. If I compare those two movies I will always prefer the flick from 1953. Whereas the transition of the tribune in The Robe showed the inner conflict of a Roman officer in changing his belief, his view on the world, the transition in Risen is not really compelling/convincing. The best part of the movie is a battle between Romans and Hebrew insurgents at the beginning. The production value of Risen is good, but really bad is the soundtrack - it sounds like sth made for a TV or DVD-directly-production. In short: Risen is not that bad, but I myself was a little bored watching. Someone else already noted in his/her review - some of those Jesus younger behaved in some scenes like stoned hippies, which I watched with a chuckle. Some of these scenes had a little of the flavor of Montys Life of Brian. I guess this reaction of me and/or that layer of comic was not really intended by the director because in a whole I would sum up the flick as belonging to those kinds of movies who tend to be propaganda for the Christian belief.
Review of Risen
