Knowing my fascination with Jesus, coupled with my staunch desire to dismiss or disprove nearly all things religious, it was only a matter of time before I got around to watching this documentary, which aired in early 2007 on the Discovery Channel. That said, I wasn't exactly chomping at the bit to see this film, if for no other reason than I'm not a big fan of the "solving great mysteries" documentaries that are little more than throwbacks to episodes of In Search Of. Usually these docs offer much in the way of conjecture, little by way of answers, and a whole bunch of facts stacked on the side of whatever outcome the producers are trying to put forth. For me, few things piss me off more than one of those documentaries that sets out to prove that UFOs and Bigfoot are fake, and then only talk to people who knowingly nod their heads while saying something to that affect. And that's why I was in no big hurry to watch this documentary.

The Lost Tomb of Jesus is built on the foundation of the belief that much of what appears in the Bible about the death of Jesus--as well as aspects of his life--are simply untrue. Working with that premise, this documentary is automatically not for everyone.

The film explains that in 1980, while an apartment complex was being built in Jerusalem, a bulldozer accidentally uncovered a tomb. Such occurrences were not rare in Jerusalem, and at the time, the discovery of this tomb didn't attract as much attention as many would think, even though one of the ten ossuaries (stone coffins) bore an inscription with the name Jesus, son of Joseph. For reasons that are only really explained in the bonus material, filmmaker Simcha Jacobovici became determined to find out if the ossuary that contained the remains of Jesus actually contained the remains of the Jesus.

With the aid of historical the theological experts, Jacobovici sets out to uncover the truth of who was buried in the ancient tomb. Most of the clues come from the names inscribed on the ossuaries, some of which would indicate that if this is indeed the grave of Jesus Christ, then the Bible left out some very important factors--like his wife and child. Although the answers are never definitive, Jacobovici is careful to stack the deck in his favor, so that whatever truth he wants to believe is the truth that is supported by his interview participants.

The biggest problem with The Lost Tomb of Jesus is that Jacobovici tries to make the film something it should not be, specially an exciting adventure film. Intercut with dramatic historical reenactments, Jacobovici goes to great lengths to present himself and his crew as some sort of cinematic soldiers of fortune--a bizarre cross between Indiana Jones and Michael Moore. Unfortunately, this is a failure. Neither the filmmaker or his crew ever comes close to being more interesting than the subject matter, and the attempt to make them exciting comes across like a joke. Remember Geraldo Rivera firing the machine gun in what was supposed to be the lost vault of Al Capone? This is not that bad, but it come close.

Where The Lost Tomb of Jesus succeeds is simply in its presentation of the seldom known facts about people like Jesus and Mary Magdalene, and the compelling mystery of who was actually buried in the tomb, which manages to outweigh all the other nonsense of this production. If this documentary had been content with being a bit more of a standard cable television doc, complete with dramatic reenactments, it would have likely made for a better movie than this silly attempt at being some sort of adventurous treasure hunt.

Video:
The Lost Tomb of Jesus is presented in 1.77:1 anamorphic widescreen.

Audio:
The Lost Tomb of Jesus is presented in 5.1 surround sound.

Extras:
The Lost Tomb of Jesus includes additional interview footage with several of the experts Jacobovici talked to in the making of this documentary. These interviews range from the fascinating to the dull, but it is interesting to note that all are more compelling than most of the footage of the filmmaker and his crew trying to be action heroes. There is also behind-the-scenes footage that only barely scratches at the amount of meticulous work that went into creating the historical reenactments.

Final Thoughts:
When it aired on the Discovery Channel, The Lost Tomb of Jesus was free. I couldn't imagine paying much more than that to see it. Renting it is fine, but buying it is a waste of money.