Director Nicholas Ray's film version of the life of Jesus, is told in "KING OF KINGS."  Many will recall seeing the film's star Jeffrey Hunter, as Christopher Pike in the classic Star Trek television episode, "THE CAGE,"  before his depiction of Jesus here.  Casting such a good looking guy, and apparently going for a young audience, critics lambasted this production, referring to it as "I WAS A TEENAGE JESUS."

In truth, while the film could've benefited from tighter editing, there are some tremendous performances and Ray gives the film the same kind of "epic" atmosphere that producer Samuel Bronston gave to the more popular "EL CID."  Vivica Linfors and Rip Torn are quite good, but it's Robert Ryan who stands out the most, as John the Baptist.  While film historians often mention the sizeable extras in certain epics, "KING OF KINGS" stands out for the massive crowd scenes!  This was before CGI, and it's impressive to see thousands of extras in any particular scene.

WARNER BROS. has provided the correct 2.35:1 aspect ratio, with 16:9 enhancement. It's outstanding!  While there are some minor specks in a few scenes, obviously from the source material, the colors are bold and vibrant!  We've never seen a better presentation of the film, than what's been achieved here!  There's incredible depth in every scene. And, when a scene such as  "The Sermon on the Mount" sequence reveals thousands of extras, it's easy to recognize how great a job WARNER BROS has done in terms of resolution, with this transfer.

WARNER BROS. has also included a Dolby Digital 5.1 soundmix, which is more aggressive than we'd expected.  Surrounds and directional effects greatly enhance some key moments, and the musical score is boosted through all speakers.  There are no real .1(LFE) effects, but the mis offers enough creativity to please and surprise most listeners.  Dialogue is always intelligible and free from distortion.

WARNER BROS. has also included some fun extras for this release.  There are three newsreels, offering behind-the-scenes footage.  They're highly entertaining, although it's a little disappointing that all of the footage is black&white.  There is also some brief footage of the film's New York and Los Angeles premieres.