Biblical
The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of ...
epic film
Epic films are a style of filmmaking with large-scale, sweeping scope, and spectacle. The usage of the term has shifted over time, sometimes designating a film genre and at other times simply synonymous with big-budget filmmaking. Like epics in ...
about the life of
David
David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...
, the second King of the
Kingdom of Israel
The Kingdom of Israel may refer to any of the historical kingdoms of ancient Israel, including:
Fully independent (c. 564 years)
*Kingdom of Israel (united monarchy) (1047–931 BCE), the legendary kingdom established by the Israelites and uniting ...
James Costigan
James Costigan (March 31, 1926 – December 19, 2007) was an American television actor and Emmy Award-winning television screenwriter. His writing credits include the television movies '' Eleanor and Franklin'' and '' Love Among the Ruins''.
Ear ...
, and stars
Richard Gere
Richard Tiffany Gere ( ; born August 31, 1949) is an American actor. He began in films in the 1970s, playing a supporting role in '' Looking for Mr. Goodbar'' (1977) and a starring role in ''Days of Heaven'' (1978). He came to prominence with ...
in the title role. The
ensemble cast
In a dramatic production, an ensemble cast is one that is composed of multiple principal actors and performers who are typically assigned roughly equal amounts of screen time.Random House: ensemble acting Linked 2013-07-17
Structure
In contrast t ...
includes
Edward Woodward
Edward Albert Arthur Woodward, OBE (1 June 1930 – 16 November 2009) was an English actor and singer. After graduating from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, he began his career on stage. Throughout his career, he appeared in productions ...
Hurd Hatfield
William Rukard Hurd Hatfield (December 7, 1917 – December 26, 1998) was an American actor. He is best known for having played characters of handsome, narcissistic young men, most notably Dorian Gray in the film '' The Picture of Dorian Gray'' ...
Jean-Marc Barr
Jean-Marc Barr (born September 27, 1960) is a French-American film actor and director. He is best known for working on several films from Danish film director and frequent collaborator Lars von Trier since ''Europa'' (1991).
Early life and ed ...
, Christopher Malcolm, and Gina Bellman.
''King David'' was released by Paramount in the United States on March 29, 1985, while in other countries it was released in 1986 and 1987. Upon release, the film received mostly negative reviews for its screenplay writing, pace, some of the acting and the action sequences. However, Gere's performance and the
cinematography
Cinematography (from ancient Greek κίνημα, ''kìnema'' "movement" and γράφειν, ''gràphein'' "to write") is the art of motion picture (and more recently, electronic video camera) photography.
Cinematographers use a lens to focu ...
were praised. In addition to being a critical failure, the film was also a box-office failure, grossing $5.9 million worldwide against its $21 million production budget.
Where to Watch the show
*
Prime Video
Amazon Prime Video, also known simply as Prime Video, is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming and rental service of Amazon
Amazon most often refers to:
* Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology
...
Plot
The film follows the life of
David
David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...
, drawing mainly from biblical accounts, particularly the
Books of Samuel
The Book of Samuel (, ''Sefer Shmuel'') is a book in the Hebrew Bible, found as two books (1–2 Samuel) in the Old Testament. The book is part of the narrative history of Ancient Israel called the Deuteronomistic history, a series of books ( Jo ...
,
1 Chronicles
The Book of Chronicles ( he, דִּבְרֵי־הַיָּמִים ) is a book in the Hebrew Bible, found as two books (1–2 Chronicles) in the Christian Old Testament. Chronicles is the final book of the Hebrew Bible, concluding the third sect ...
, and the
Psalms
The Book of Psalms ( or ; he, תְּהִלִּים, , lit. "praises"), also known as the Psalms, or the Psalter, is the first book of the ("Writings"), the third section of the Tanakh, and a book of the Old Testament. The title is derived ...
of David.
In 1000 B.C.,
King Saul
Saul (; he, , ; , ; ) was, according to the Hebrew Bible, the first monarch of the United Kingdom of Israel. His reign, traditionally placed in the late 11th century BCE, supposedly marked the transition of Israel and Judah from a scattered tri ...
of
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
breaks his covenant with God after failing to destroy the
Amalek
Amalek (; he, עֲמָלֵק, , ar, عماليق ) was a nation described in the Hebrew Bible as a staunch enemy of the Israelites. The name "Amalek" can refer to the nation's founder, a grandson of Esau; his descendants, the Amalekites; or th ...
ites. The prophet
Samuel
Samuel ''Šəmūʾēl'', Tiberian: ''Šămūʾēl''; ar, شموئيل or صموئيل '; el, Σαμουήλ ''Samouḗl''; la, Samūēl is a figure who, in the narratives of the Hebrew Bible, plays a key role in the transition from the bib ...
declares Israel will need a new king, and anoints David, the youngest son of Jesse. David initially rejects the prophecy, asking that God tell him directly.
In the midst of a costly war with the
Philistines
The Philistines ( he, פְּלִשְׁתִּים, Pəlīštīm; Koine Greek ( LXX): Φυλιστιείμ, romanized: ''Phulistieím'') were an ancient people who lived on the south coast of Canaan from the 12th century BC until 604 BC, whe ...
, Saul summons the young David, per Samuel's dying instructions. When the Philistine army challenges the
Israelites
The Israelites (; , , ) were a group of Semitic-speaking tribes in the ancient Near East who, during the Iron Age, inhabited a part of Canaan.
The earliest recorded evidence of a people by the name of Israel appears in the Merneptah Stele o ...
to fight their champion, a giant named
Goliath
Goliath ( ) ''Goləyāṯ''; ar, جُليات ''Ǧulyāt'' (Christian term) or (Quranic term). is a character in the Book of Samuel, described as a Philistine giant defeated by the young David in single combat. The story signified King Sau ...
, the unassuming David volunteers and handily kills him with a rock and sling, winning the respect of his countrymen and the fear of their enemies. David becomes a champion warrior in Saul's army and eventually marries the King's daughter
Michal
Michal (; he, מיכל , gr, Μιχάλ) was, according to the first Book of Samuel, a princess of the United Kingdom of Israel; the younger daughter of King Saul, she was the first wife of David (), who later became king, first of Judah, ...
. But when Saul sees the growing adoration of his people toward David, he fears the young man will usurp him. He orders David be brought to him, but Saul's son
Jonathan
Jonathan may refer to:
*Jonathan (name), a masculine given name
Media
* ''Jonathan'' (1970 film), a German film directed by Hans W. Geißendörfer
* ''Jonathan'' (2016 film), a German film directed by Piotr J. Lewandowski
* ''Jonathan'' (2018 ...
help David escape.
David seeks refuge with the
High Priest
The term "high priest" usually refers either to an individual who holds the office of ruler-priest, or to one who is the head of a religious caste.
Ancient Egypt
In ancient Egypt, a high priest was the chief priest of any of the many gods rev ...
Ahimelech
Ahimelech ( ''ʾĂḥīmeleḵ'', "my brother is king"/"brother of a king"), the son of Ahitub and father of Abiathar (), but described as the son of Abiathar in and in four places in 1 Chronicles."Ahimelech", ''Encyclopedia Biblica'' He desce ...
, who teaches him the word of God and shows him the
Ark of the Covenant
The Ark of the Covenant,; Ge'ez: also known as the Ark of the Testimony or the Ark of God, is an alleged artifact believed to be the most sacred relic of the Israelites, which is described as a wooden chest, covered in pure gold, with an ...
, which David is shocked to learn is hidden in a cave. Saul and his army catch up and Ahimelech helps David escape, but is killed by Saul for harboring a fugitive. David spends the next several years as a
nomad
A nomad is a member of a community without fixed habitation who regularly moves to and from the same areas. Such groups include hunter-gatherers, pastoral nomads (owning livestock), tinkers and trader nomads. In the twentieth century, the po ...
, developing a loyal following, marrying three wives, and rearing two sons.
Eventually, tired of living on the run, David faces up to Saul, first by sneaking into his camp and stealing his sword, then by confronting him the next day, showing that he spared his life and doesn’t want any more hostility. Saul is humbled, and declares his love for David as a surrogate son. David’s men, however, warn him that the peace will be short-lived and urge him to seek refuge with
Achish
Achish ( he, אָכִישׁ ''ʾāḵīš'', Philistine: 𐤀𐤊𐤉𐤔 *''ʾāḵayūš'', Akkadian: 𒄿𒅗𒌑𒋢 ''i-ka-ú-su'') is a name used in the Hebrew Bible for two Philistine rulers of Gath. It is perhaps only a general title of ...
, Lord of the Philistines. David offers his services as a
mercenary
A mercenary, sometimes also known as a soldier of fortune or hired gun, is a private individual, particularly a soldier, that joins a military conflict for personal profit, is otherwise an outsider to the conflict, and is not a member of any ...
in exchange for Achish’s protection, and on the condition that he not be made to fight Saul. Achish agrees on the condition that when David is king of Israel, he will relinquish all captured Philistine land. David vows to be a just ruler, and gives Achish his oath. Saul and Jonathan are eventually killed in battle, and David is crowned King of Israel.
As king, David displays vanity, egotism, and a disregard for his prophets’ instructions. He unveils plans to build a fanciful temple to house the Ark, which his prophet Nathan opposes on the grounds that it is contrary to God's preference for simplicity and humility. When Michal rebukes him, David falls for a woman named
Bathsheba
Bathsheba ( or ; he, בַּת־שֶׁבַע, ''Baṯ-šeḇaʿ'', Bat-Sheva or Batsheva, "daughter of Sheba" or "daughter of the oath") was the wife of Uriah the Hittite and later of David, according to the Hebrew Bible. She was the mother of ...
. She petitions him for her abuse at the hands of her husband Uriah and his refusal to give her a child. David arranges for Uriah to be killed in battle, and he and Bathsheba marry.
At the wedding reception, his son
Absalom
Absalom ( he, ''ʾAḇšālōm'', "father of peace") was the third son of David, King of Israel with Maacah, daughter of Talmai, King of Geshur.
2 Samuel 14:25 describes him as the handsomest man in the kingdom. Absalom eventually rebelle ...
kills his half-brother
Amnon
Amnon ( he, אַמְנוֹן ''’Amnōn'', "faithful") was, in the Hebrew Bible, the oldest son of King David and his second wife, Ahinoam of Jezreel. He was born in Hebron during his father's reign in Judah. He was the heir apparent to the th ...
after learning he raped their half-sister Tamar. David's laws deem that Absalom must be put to death, but the King insists he was avenging his sister, and banishes him from the kingdom instead.
David’s prophet Nathan eventually confronts him about Uriah’s death. Fearing God will have her put to death, David pleads with him. Nathan concedes, but tells him that his first-born child with Bathsheba will not live to adulthood. David prays for forgiveness, but their first child dies after seven days. His second-born, Solomon, survives, and is proclaimed by Nathan to be heir to the throne. However, David argues that since Absalom is his eldest son, he is therefore the rightful heir despite his exile.
During his three years of banishment, Absalom develops a following of his own. He campaigns to be made a judge, and fights against injustice on their behalf, against the King. David’s advisors warn that Absalom is a traitor, planning an insurrection against him, but David defends his son.
Elsewhere, Absalom is led to believe that his father has forsaken him, and will declare
Solomon
Solomon (; , ),, ; ar, سُلَيْمَان, ', , ; el, Σολομών, ; la, Salomon also called Jedidiah (Hebrew language, Hebrew: , Modern Hebrew, Modern: , Tiberian Hebrew, Tiberian: ''Yăḏīḏăyāh'', "beloved of Yahweh, Yah"), ...
as his heir. Absalom is advised to attack the kingdom, and organize an army. Against David’s wishes, his army rides to fight Absalom’s men and is ambushed. While trying to escape, Absalom is killed. David laments the death of his son, and Nathan chastises him for following his own emotions and disobeying God’s law. David is apathetic, but eventually follows the commands delivered by the prophets, and successfully drives the Philistines from Israel. He destroys the model of his Ark temple, the final symbol of his vanity, and goes on to rule his kingdom justly.
After forty years, David anoints Solomon to be the next king. On his deathbed, David instructs his son to rule with his heart, before remembering Jonathan.
Cast
Production
Development
In July 1978
Michael Eisner
Michael Dammann Eisner (born March 7, 1942) is an American businessman and former chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of The Walt Disney Company from September 1984 to September 2005. Prior to Disney, Eisner was president of rival film s ...
of Paramount said he wanted the studio to make a Biblical film for release in 1981. This was a ''King David'' script. According to Andrew Birkin, who was one of the later writers, the studio were attracted to the story because of its parallels to ''
Star Wars
''Star Wars'' is an American epic space opera multimedia franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the eponymous 1977 film and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has been expanded into various film ...
'' with David as Luke Skywalker and Samuel as
Obi-Wan Kenobi
Obi-Wan Kenobi () is a fictional character in the ''Star Wars'' franchise. Within the original trilogy, Obi-Wan is a Jedi Master as a supporting character and is portrayed by English actor Alec Guinness. In the later-released prequel trilogy, ...
.
Jeffrey Katzenberg
Jeffrey Katzenberg (; born December 21, 1950) is an American filmmaker, animator, and media proprietor. He became well known for his tenure as chairman of Walt Disney Studios from 1984 to 1994. After departing Disney, he was a co-founder and C ...
of Paramount met Bruce Beresford at the
1980 Cannes Film Festival
The 33rd Cannes Film Festival was held between 9 and 23 May 1980. The Palme d'Or went to the '' All That Jazz'' by Bob Fosse and ''Kagemusha'' by Akira Kurosawa.
The festival opened with '' Fantastica'', directed by Gilles Carle and closed with ...
when the director was there with ''Breaker Morant''. He gave Beresford the script. Beresford "liked the story, didn't like the script" so bought in Andrew Birkin "who's come up with an outstanding screenplay."
Birkin felt David's story was more ideal for a ten-hour mini series and struggled to include key elements like Samuel. "I found the brutality of the Old Testament hard to take" said Birkin.
"I hadn't realized that God's commandments were set out so clearly -there's no pink pages. It was hard to make God a hero. It was also hard in 1984 to write a film about our late lamented Imperialists. This is not a ''Ten Commandments'' story of beleaguered people in exile. David was the
Cecil Rhodes
Cecil John Rhodes (5 July 1853 – 26 March 1902) was a British mining magnate and politician in southern Africa who served as Prime Minister of the Cape Colony from 1890 to 1896.
An ardent believer in British imperialism, Rhodes and his Bri ...
of Ancient Israel. It was hard to make a case for him, the kind who carved an empire according to the map devised by Abraham."
Beresford said, "The forces that impinged on David, the decisions he had to make, the relationships he had with people and with God and the way he felt about Him – it becomes fascinating when you follow everything that happened to David from his childhood to his death."
"What made David fascinating were his strengths and weaknesses", said Beresford.
Beresford watched a number of Biblical films and was most impressed by ''The Gospel According to St Matthew'' and ''Jesus of Nazareth''.
In June 1982 Beresford said he would make the film for Paramount, after he made ''Tender Mercies''. In February 1983 he said the budget would be $16 million and "it's got an absolutely wonderful script. I think we've gotten away from all of those old cliches of Hollywood biblical movies."
"What I want to do is make a different sort of Biblical film", he said. "The ones Hollywood made in the past were far too reverential. It was as if the moment they got hold of the Bible they became awestruck. The actors fell over themselves to be sententious and all those heavenly choirs and shafts of light... The only way is for actors to speak the lines normally not as if they were inverted commas."
"Religion has to come into ''King David'', because it was part of everybody's everyday life then", said Beresford. "People used to talk about God like we talk about going to a restaurant. They'd say: 'God did this. God did that.' But the emotional experiences in the film will be easily recognizable because they're so universal."
Beresford wanted American actors rather than English ones to give the movie a more contemporary feel. The producer said he personally chose Richard Gere to play the lead. However a later report said Beresford wanted to use an unknown and Gere was forced upon him. "Bruce knew what the reaction would be toward Gere in the role", said the source. "He knew it would be ridiculous, but, once he'd signed on, he couldn't just walk off. He knew that if he did, he'd never work in Hollywood again."
The film was originally going to be shot in Israel. Eventually it was decided this was impractical as Israel did not have any buildings older than the Roman Empire. They considered Morocco and Tunisia before settling on Italy.
Filming
Filming started in May 1984 in England, by which time the budget was $23 million. Locations included
Matera
Matera (, ; Materano: ) is a city in the region of Basilicata, in Southern Italy.
As the capital of the province of Matera, its original settlement lies in two canyons carved by the Gravina River. This area, the Sassi di Matera, is a comp ...
and
Craco
Craco is a ghost town and '' comune'' in the province of Matera, in the southern Italian region of Basilicata. It was abandoned towards the end of the 20th century, due to faulty pipe work that was thought to have failed, causing the town to be ab ...
Campo Imperatore
Campo Imperatore ("Emperor's Field") is a mountain grassland or alpine meadow formed by a high basin shaped plateau located above Gran Sasso massif, the largest plateau of Apennine ridge. Known as "Little Tibet", it is located in Gran Sasso e ...
Oliena
Oliena (, less correctly ; sc, Ulìana ) is a commune in the province of Nuoro, Sardinia, Italy.
History
The territory of Oliena has been inhabited since the Palaeolithic Era until today.
The first proofs about the above-mentioned presences ...
) in
Sardinia
Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label= Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, aft ...
, Italy, and at
Pinewood Studios
Pinewood Studios is a British film and television studio located in the village of Iver Heath, England. It is approximately west of central London.
The studio has been the base for many productions over the years from large-scale films to t ...
in England.
It was a difficult shoot. Both Beresford and Gere came down with viruses. Extras went on strike for more pay. Many locations were remote. The script used was the ninth draft.
""Normally if you're making an ordinary movie and the weather turns bad you say: Oh well, we'll shoot tomorrow", said Beresford. "But if you've got 2,000 extras there and suddenly it starts snowing-as it did with us-it's useless saying: I can't shoot in this. You've got to because you can't get the people back again."
According to one report "Gere knew Beresford wanted him replaced, and that made for quite a bit of friction on the set. Beresford did what he wanted to do in the scenes where Gere doesn't appear, and Gere did what he wanted to do in his scenes. The film ended up as a multi-million dollar joke that everyone thinks is funny except the people who made it and the Paramount investors."
Beresford later said "The King David script was just never right. We started off on the wrong foot and then it turned into a catalogue of disaster. Really, I don't know how I got mixed up in such a mess – I felt like the captain of the Titanic heading toward a critical iceberg and I hit it. It was inevitable."
Reception
The film was not well received by the critics, with ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' calling it "not a good film". Review aggregate
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wan ...
gave the film a 'rotten' 8% rating. Richard Gere's performance in the film earned him a
Golden Raspberry Award
The Golden Raspberry Awards (also known as the Razzies and Razzie Awards) is a parody award show honoring the worst of cinematic under-achievements. Co-founded by UCLA film graduates and film industry veterans John J. B. Wilson and Mo Murphy ...
nomination for Worst Actor, which he lost to
Sylvester Stallone
Sylvester Enzio Stallone (; born Michael Sylvester Gardenzio Stallone, ) is an American actor and filmmaker. After his beginnings as a struggling actor for a number of years upon arriving to New York City in 1969 and later Hollywood in 1974, h ...
Beresford said ""The film cost $22 million and lost it all – and more. And the minute the movie died, I checked out a list of famous directors who also had works that bombed – to see if they ever got back on the right foot again."
Beresford's reaction
Years later, Bruce Beresford said of the film:
I think there are a few things in it that are interesting. But, I think there are so many things that are wrong. We never liked the script... we never really caught the friendship between David and Jonathan. There weren't enough scenes between them. And David, himself – I think Richard Gere was miscast. He is a wonderful actor but he is much better in contemporary pieces.