The Book of Clarence

The Book of Clarence

Streetwise but down-on-his-luck, Clarence is struggling to find a better life for his family, while fighting to free himself of debt. Captivated by the power and glory of the rising Messiah and His apostles, he risks everything to carve his own path to a divine life, and ultimately discovers that the redemptive power of belief may be his only way out.

  • Released: 2023-09-22
  • Runtime: 135 minutes
  • Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Drama
  • Stars: LaKeith Stanfield, Omar Sy, Benedict Cumberbatch, Anna Diop, Caleb McLaughlin, James McAvoy, Teyana Taylor, David Oyelowo, Alfre Woodard, RJ Cyler, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Babs Olusanmokun, Eric Kofi Abrefa, Nicholas Pinnock, Chase W. Dillon, Micheal Ward, Tom Glynn-Carney, Tom Vaughan-Lawlor
  • Director: Jeymes Samuel
 Comments
  • therealjaysmoke - 3 July 2024
    What a Masterpiece of Brilliant Work
    Ok, ok, okay.... I'll be the first to admit that I am guilty of judging this book by it's cover. Judging from the trailer and what others were saying, I was completely put off and thought it was a mockery and blasphemous movie and made it a point not to even give it an oita of my time. The premise according to the trailer is that, dude claims to be the NEW Messiah, and goes around debunking the miracles of the true Messiah, Jesus. Gets a couple of followers, performs fake miracles and when he was about to be crucified, he miraculously walks on water. Like come on now? How does a false prophet even do that? So yeah, I said to myself, I won't watch it. But my gooooodness thank God I watched the movie. Because boy, was I completely wrong.

    This was a brilliant movie. Watching it made me get the full picture and I must give Jeymes Samuel his flowers. From the cinematography, which was at par with The Passion of Christ, to the special effects, and the cast...just perfect. But what truly blew me away is the progression of the movie. It was like watching two movies in one. One about Clarence and another about Jesus and the director did fantastically well blending the two and how it all came back full circle. It reminded me of how Paul got delivered, went from a stone cold killer to a stone cold believer and Lakeith Stanfield was just classic.

    Many complained about the all black cast and tone of the movie, I can understand that but then again, see this as a parody, which it is, don't take it too serious and you'll enjoy it. It's funny, it's intelligent, it's emotional and it's gibberish. What I was concerned about was the alleged 'unGodly' narrative but if you gonna tell the story of a drug dealer turned believer, you have to show some ungodly stuff right? At the end of the day, the end justifies the means and this movie has one of the best ending I've seen in a movie.

    I hope they do an actual Jesus movie starring Nicholas Pinnock as Jesus, it would be stellar.
  • info-90701 - 16 May 2024
    How interesting!
    This film is just outstanding on so many levels, and well worth the watch. It plays on so many parts of modern life, religion, loyalty, racism and on and on. In the vain of A Knight's Tale, this film supplies a modern take on an old, familiar story, including updated music and cultural references. It keeps things moving as you wonder what they will do next!

    The cast is outstanding on so many levels, each and every one of them. Lakeith is exceptional.

    Cumberbatch as the beggar is just hilarious, and the entire take on Jesus as a white man, which has always been incredibly absurd considering the part of the world he reportedly came from, is priceless! And what the actor does with it is hilarious. His final speech calling forth "fire and brimstone, or hopefully lava" should go down in history books as one of the greatest lines in film -- right up there with "Here's looking at you kid!"

    It is also appropriate that this black take on the plight of the abused in a society is the one the writer chose to put forth, considering how tied to madness black people have been for centuries. The over-the-top dramatization in the Passion of Christ style is exactly what the film needs for the multitude of messages it is putting forth. The utter barbaric behavior of the Romans tracks with centuries of behavior, and the madness of men who seek to do damage to others is well on display.

    All of the inside jokes like nobody pronouncing the two syllables in Clarence's name, and a ton of other jokes, even at some of the darkest moments, puts the delivery over the top. What is most interesting is how it dances from comedy, to high drama, and how it takes familiar parts of the story and turns them on their head.

    Most interesting is how they maintain what was probably more true, that Jesus was a healer, like John the Baptist, and like many legitimate faith healers today from all over the world who have the ability to heal with energy manipulation. And the fact that it ends in the way it does, is spectacular.

    I didn't think I would like this, but I loved it!