Adapted by first-time director Jonas McCord from Richard Ben Sapir's novel, The Body takes an intriguing premise and interminably squeezes the life out of it.
In Jerusalem, archaeologist Sharon Golban (Olivia Williams) has uncovered what seems to be the remains of Rabbi Yeshu Ben Yosef, aka Jesus Christ. A worried Vatican sends Jesuit priest Matt Gutierrez (Antonio Banderas) to suppress the findings, in the process facing not only shady authority and extremist figures, but also his own mounting theological doubts.
Unfortunately, any interesting polemics arising from such a discovery are negated as they try to repackage what should be a low-key arthouse flick into a multiplex-friendly drama. The writing is sloppy, the pace slow and the lack of spark between a bewildered Williams and a subdued Banderas is marked. What's the best thing to do with The Body? Bury it.
