As we celebrate the Lord’s salvation through the Crucifixion and Resurrection this Holy Week, families may hope to think on and celebrate what God has done with a movie. We’ve gone ahead and compiled a list of those movies that focus on Jesus’ resurrection—each with its own unique features. Some of the movies follow the biblical text as accurately as possible. Others hope to share the gospel to kids or through unique genres of storytelling. Some are brutal. Others look at the evidence for Jesus’ resurrection. Whatever you’re hoping to watch, we hope this list helps enrich your Easter celebration.
The Gospel of John (PG-13)
Where else should we start than with Scripture itself? The Gospel of John from 2003doesn’t add much in the way of its own flair—it believes the straight-from-the-Bible story itself is enough. That’s why viewers who watch the movie will notice its dialogue sticks entirely to the Good News Bible’s translation of John’s Gospel account—including narration. That makes this movie an intrinsically faithful telling of the life, death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ, starting in John 1:1 and ending with John 21:25, including every verse written and their events depicted onscreen in three hours’ time.
The Passion of the Christ (R)
One may not marvel at the true beauty of the Resurrection without first understanding the weight of the Crucifixion—and no movie has depicted the Lord’s suffering with more terrible accuracy than The Passion of the Christ, the only R-rated movie on this list. Director Mel Gibson’s depiction of these events is brutal and heart-wrenching. It gets to the depth of God’s love for His people in showing just how much He is willing to suffer to redeem them from the very sins they’ve—we’ve—committed to nail Him to that tree to begin with. And while we see Jesus’ brutal flogging, crucifixion and death in terrible detail, the movie does not end here. It rather ends with the truth: Satan howling in defeat and Jesus walking out of the tomb.
The King of Kings (PG)
For those looking for a softer depiction of the Crucifixion for the little ones, The King of Kings may very well fill that need. In fact, the movie was made for kids. It’s based on Charles Dickens’ The Life of Our Lord, in which he recounts the life, death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ so that his children should know of Him. The gospel is clear: Repent of your sins and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved from the just wrath of God. And the movie does a stellar job of depicting Jesus’ saving work on the cross, showing our Lord sinking down into the depths with the outline of a cross behind Him as He saves a child from the same fate. The movie even won our 2026 Plugged In Movie Award for Best Christian Movie, making it a perfect fit for younger families.
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe (PG)
Many children grew up reading The Chronicles of Narnia without understanding the deep, Christian themes explicitly woven into its story—and those themes are nowhere greater than in C.S. Lewis’ original book for the series. For many, it was only after coming to a better understanding of the Christian faith that they were able to make the connection between Aslan and Jesus. The 2005 film The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, like the books, introduces a story that will entertain the whole family while pointing to the most important moment in history—all told through the fantastical world of Narnia in a story that our readers voted in as the best Christian movie of all time. And for those who want a little more insight into this one, we’ve spoken at length to the theology of The Chronicles of Narnia in both our Plugged In Rewinds and in our The Theology Of series.
JESUS (NR)
Well, some may find it unusual for Narnia to blend Christian and fantasy, so let’s blend another genre that typically isn’t associated with Christianity—the musical. Sight & Sound Theatres is rather well known among Christians for its Broadway-level productions of biblical stories, including those of David, Esther, Noah and more (all of which can be viewed on Sight & Sound’s website). Well, part of that more includes that of Jesus’ life, death and Resurrection. And for those who doubt that the Gospels could be turned into a musical, our very own reviewer Bob Hoose stated when he saw the production, “when moments of anguish and loss, and interludes of celebration and joy are put to well-orchestrated music, another curious thing happens: Cries turn to full-throated song and our hearts sing along.”
Risen (PG-13)
But perhaps you’d like a movie that thinks through how the doubtful ancient world may have reacted to rumors of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. Risen will fulfill that niche for you. The movie follows Roman tribune Clavius as he’s tasked by Pontius Pilate to investigate a situation—Jesus’ body is no longer in His tomb. And lest the world believe He rose from the dead, Clavius is to track the body down. His search leads him to speak with Jesus’ disciples and eventually deduce the truth: that Jesus really did rise from the dead. As Adam Holz writes in his review, “it tells the familiar, timeless story of Jesus’ death and resurrection from a fresh vantage point.” Of note, the movie also won our 2017 Plugged In Movie Award for Best Christian Movie.
The Case for Christ (PG)
Finally, we’d like to put forth a movie for those who, this Resurrection Sunday, might be struggling with the truth of that claim. They may find solace in The Case for Christ, which follows the true story of then-atheist Lee Strobel as he uses his investigative journalism skills to disprove the Resurrection. Lee instead sees scientific and historical evidence that slowly chip away at his adversity to the Christian story. And by the end, true to the real Lee Strobel’s journey, his investigation ends up bringing him to faith in the God he’d hoped to disprove. The Case for Christ comes as a double whammy for families, as the movie may provoke them to purchase Strobel’s book of the same name, which comes with plenty of compelling insights, too.
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