An Exclusive Interview with Mike Rich, Writer of The Nativity Story
by Rebecca Grace
November 6, 2006
(AgapePress) - - Known for family-friendly films such as Radio and The Rookie, screenwriter Mike Rich is taking a step of faith with The Nativity Story, an upcoming film set to release worldwide December 1. The Nativity Story is a biblical, historical and realistic depiction of the birth of Christ brought to the big screen by New Line Cinema. According to Tim Wildmon, president of the American Family Association, "The Nativity Story is an outstanding movie that gives greater meaning to the birth of Jesus."In a phone interview* with AgapePress, Rich shared his thoughts about the industry's sudden consideration of faith-based movies and answered questions about The Nativity Story and his reasons for writing it.
AgapePress: What inspired you to write The Nativity Story?
Mike Rich: It was on December 13 [2004] when Newsweek and Time Magazine both sent out their issues for that week, and they both had the same cover story on secrets of the Nativity. I always have approached scripts that I've written from a character standpoint. After reading those two articles, it struck me that that approach had never really been taken with this particular story. So I sat back and began doing research -- research that lasted for the better part of 11 months. It was shortly after Thanksgiving of last year [2005] that I really felt compelled to sit down and write this script.
AP: What was your purpose in writing this screenplay?
MR: I'm a Christian myself, and I really do trust in God's will to point me in the direction of what story matter to follow. This one just never left me after December of 2004, and to me it just felt like such an amazing opportunity; and if I didn't do it, I really felt that was going to be a waste - a wasted opportunity.
AP: Could the movie be an evangelistic tool?
MR: If we can get individuals to, perhaps, go back and take a look at the first three chapters of Matthew and the first four chapters of Luke, and if that inspires them to go on to the next few chapters, then that will be a great thing.
Mary, played by Keisha Castle-Hughes, and Joseph, played by Oscar Isaac, flee the wrath of King Herod by escaping to Egypt with Baby Jesus | |
AP: Why is this the right time to bring this type of movie to the big screen?MR: In the past few years, in a sense, the dialogue over Christmas has diminished slightly. And by that, I mean individuals talking with their families and friends about the focus of the holiday. I think that's been lost a little bit in the hectic nature of the holiday where we impose these deadlines upon ourselves that we have to get this done, and we have to get the shopping done, and we've got the office party to go to and this and that. We get to December 25, and we exhale and we go, "Whew, we made it through that."
When I started seeing the early cuts of the film, I thought to myself, this is one of these stories that [when] presented in this fashion will give families that opportunity to spend a couple of hours together during the holiday season. But more importantly, what I would love to see happen is that it [would] refresh that dialogue where parents talk to their children about the amazing courage and the amazing faith that was displayed by Mary and Joseph.
AP: Who is your target audience for this film?
MR: Because of the fact that the film does include the massacre of the innocent, one of the big questions we had to ask ourselves was: How far did we want to push that cinematically? Did we want to push it to a point where the film did not become accessible to younger children? The answer to that was "no." We wanted to make certain that even though we presented the story in a very genuine and very real fashion, that it was something that entire families could go to.
AP: What do you hope families walk away with after viewing The Nativity Story?
MR: I hope they walk away with just a renewed appreciation for the sacrifice that these two individuals -- Mary and Joseph -- were willing to endure. We've forgotten what the road [to Bethlehem] must have been like ... the conversations ... the fear. So I really hope individuals get a sense of that.
AP: You are known for your depth of character roles. How do they enhance one's understanding of The Nativity Story?
MR: We go through this ritual every December where we put these Nativity sets up on the table or on the fireplace mantle. They are these carved, sculpted figures and that's it. We don't get to see what's inside. But it was so exciting for me as a writer to really explore the characters of these individuals. [For example], with Mary [we wanted] to get a feel for the level of oppression that was going on during that time. There was a level of despair that really explains the longing that people had for a Messiah. I think just presenting that character and getting inside the hearts and the souls of these individuals makes that last moment -- the quintessential Nativity scene -- all the more powerful.
AP: Audiences can expect a number of speculative scenes in the film, so what is your response to people who will question these scenes?
MR: That was a necessity in writing this script. I am tremendously satisfied that we are consistent and faithful to the biblical accounts. I would hope that folks don't lose sight of the overall message, here, and the overall presentation, which is a really amazing look at this story.
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Keisha Castle-Hughes, 16, as Mary -- the fearful yet obedient mother of the long-awaited Messiah |
AP: Why were the extra-biblical characters necessary?MR: I think certainly Mary's parents were necessary to showcase the family dynamic of the time. So many of the most powerful moments of the film are when she comes back from Elizabeth's after spending three months there, and she's three months pregnant. To be able to have her parents there [and to see their natural response to the situation] is just an area of the story [where] it's very simple to read between the lines of the gospel accounts and see those moments that certainly existed [and] to explore them in the depth that we did in this particular screenplay and movie. Again, I just think it gives a level of depth to the story that we just haven't considered before.
AP: When viewing a rough cut of the film, I questioned the sequence of some of the events -- i.e., the coming of the shepherds and the Magi, the escape to Egypt. Would you comment on the timeline in the film?
MR: We'll start with the Magi. We understood from the very start if we put the Magi on the same night as the shepherds' arrival and the same night as the birth that biblical purists were going to object to that. So, one of the first questions we asked was, "Okay, do we want to go with Matthew and the Magi, or do we want to go with Luke and the shepherds? And do we devote ourselves to one over the other?" We realized very early, if we wrote The Nativity Story and we didn't have Magi, or if we wrote The Nativity Story and we didn't have the shepherds, you would have a huge majority of the audience saying, "Where are the shepherds? Where are the Magi?" So I decided we needed to blend the two narratives, which has been done time and time again.
AP: I also noticed that the dream warning given to the Magi not to return to Herod was omitted. Why?
MR: We felt that the more of those [angelic visitations] that we had, it would take away from the impact of the most important visitation, which was Gabriel's visitation to Mary. And we didn't want to do that, so we looked for areas in which we could remove that aspect of it. We have a dream warning that's coming to Joseph, as well. So we just felt that we wanted to reduce those as much as we could to make sure that we reserved as much power for the one that we felt very strongly about.
AP: What biblical and historical scholars did you consult about the script?
MR: Father Bill Rutherford is an individual that I touched base with. Raymond Brown's book, The Birth of the Messiah, was another 850-pager that we waded through. Once the script was done, [it] went out to historians and theologians -- be they ecumenical, be they Jewish, Catholic, it didn't matter. We wanted to put it out, and we said, "Hey, let us know if there are red flags here. Let us know if we've got traditions wrong [or] if there is anything here that is just really of concern."
AP: I heard that Anne Graham Lotz was one of the people you contacted for input. Is that correct?
MR: Yes, Anne Graham Lotz. Frank Wright from National Religious Broadcasters was [one], as well. Anne was great because we actually brought her out to the set in Italy. To get her endorsement was really just amazing.
AP: Tell me what it was like working with the cast and crew.
MR: Everyone had this amazing reverence for the story that was being told. From Catherine Hardwicke, the director, to Wyck Godfrey and Marty Bowen, the two producers, I think we all recognized the responsibility that we had taking this story to the screen, and it's something that we all took very seriously.
AP: Have you received any criticism from skeptics accusing you of following in the footsteps of The Passion as an attempt to make money? If so, what is your response to them?
MR: I haven't heard it personally, but there's no way to avoid it. I think there's going to be individuals out there who certainly feel that way. All I can hope for in that regard is that they see the movie and realize that the final product was very heartfelt and very well thought out. That it was treated with respect, and this was not a cavalier decision to move forward.
Having said that, I think that there is no questioning that The Passion knocked down a wall. I will be the first to say had I come up with this idea three years ago and taken it to Hollywood, would it have received the same response that it did a year ago? Of course not! But it does now.
Hollywood is an industry [and] whatever film was going to be the next one after The Passion of the Christ would have been in line for a little bit of that concern. So we're the next one in line, and there are more stories out there that Hollywood is now taking a very serious look at pursuing. So I think what's happening is we're entering another era in which these films are going to become more prevalent.
AP: How has your life been changed through this film project?
MR: It is one thing when you write a story like The Rookie and afterwards folks say, "That movie moved me. There were emotional moments in it that I really appreciated." That's one thing. [But] when you present a story onscreen with the core biblical substance [that] could change individuals' lives, it's an overwhelming feeling. I tell you there are some scenes in there that are very powerful! We're really thrilled.
* Without changing the meaning, Rich's comments were condensed for cohesiveness
Rebecca Grace, a regular contributor to AgapePress, is staff writer for AFA Journal, a monthly publication of the American Family Association.
