The origin story: Every superhero gets one. We’ve returned to Smallville with Superman. We’ve seen Batman begin. We’ve watched Peter Parker get bitten by a radioactive spider in not one but two blockbuster franchises. Now, the archetypal superhero, Jesus Christ himself, gets the origin-story treatment in “The Young Messiah.”
It’s a novel approach to a story that’s been told a million times before based on a novel, actually, by Anne Rice titled “Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt.” “The Young Messiah” envisions what life might have been like for Jesus (Adam Greaves-Neal) as a seven-year-old boy who’s just beginning to understand his powers. In many ways, he’s like a regular kid. He likes to run around and play tag. He gets bullied. And like all little boys who love their mommies, he enjoys snuggling with Mary (Sara Lazzaro) and hearing her tell stories.