My mind is clearer now

as a formerly christian, currently nonreligious archaeologist and broadway fan the 1973 Jesus Christ Superstar movie is so fucking weird because like. Andrew Lloyd Webber got a bunch of non-religious hippie musicians shipped to palestine to film a rock and roll easter musical on location. several of the actors had no experience and had never been on film before. only two of the locations were actually planned, some days the actors woke up and found out where they would be filming that day, sometimes a couple hours away. there are several scenes where the roman soldiers are carrying european uzis and mp40s. there's a scene where judas is running from israeli tanks. judas is effectively the narrator, and it is a rather sympathetic portrayal of him, showing him as desperate for jesus to understand that he is afraid that jesus is drawing attention to himself and thereby endangering him and the people around him. its an absolutely politically charged work from someone who generally doesn't create that type of work, and it has one of the most insanely fantastic soundtracks of any musical i've ever heard. when i went to the 25th anniversary showing and met ted neeley (the guy who played jesus) i asked him what it was like working on production he said 'all of us were high on so many fucking drugs we barely remember it but i had some really good lamb kebabs over there'. incredible.

Andrew Lloyd Webber was some kinda evil for putting a reprise of I Don't Know How to Love Him in Judas' Death

jesus christ superstar bravely asks the question: what if you and your homoerotic best friend in occupied judea built a radical leftist political movement together based on principles you hold dear but as the movement grows more followers join who seem less committed to its message and more interested in your homoerotic bestie as a charismatic leader, and then they even start saying some crazy shit about him being the son of god, and you try to ask him about it because surely he doesn't think that's true and he's weirdly noncommittal like "oh, yknow, if that's what they think who am i to tell them no, it brings more people to the movement anyways," and you're like i guess... but then this son of god stuff gets really serious and people are calling him a king too, and you're like this is gonna end badly if the romans catch wind of it, so you try to tell him to drop the son of god stuff but at this point he's so intensely beloved you can't even have a private conversation with him, and you start to think is he just drunk on his own power, because now he's barely staying on message and even actively contradicting your founding principles--not only that but he starts getting weirdly morbid, talking about his death coming soon and limited time on earth, etc. he seems unwell and frankly irresponsible, randomly lashing out in anger and filled with bitterness towards the followers he's cultivated, and towards you, too, and meanwhile your volatile homoerotic bestie is being hounded by tens of thousands of maniac zealots urging him towards open war with rome, and you're really the only one capable of stopping it, all you have to do is turn him in to the pharisees, but every time you think about it it makes you sweat because you could swear he already knows you're going to do it, he almost seems to want you to do it yet he hates you for it too, but someone needs to keep him from bringing the full might of rome down on the jews (again), so what if he hates you, is he even the person you thought he was anymore, regardless he could never love you the way you love him, and you need to do this, you have to do this, it's the only way. Would that be fucked up or what?

holy shit guys

i wish i could experience jesus christ superstar for the first time again because the feeling when i realized judas was singing a reprise of I Don’t Know How To Love Him??? unmatched, it killed me dead

congrats to jesus for “coming out” of the tomb 🏳️‍🌈✝️ #easter