Why 'Messiah'?
What (or who) does the title refer to?
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MovieChat Forums > Messiah (2001) Discussion > Why 'Messiah'?
You're not Christian, I'm guessing? Jesus Christ is/was in Christian faith the Messiah. The Messiah originates in Judaism and there, he's not the son of God, certainly not God himself, but rather a messenger on the part of God. In Christianity, however, he is all three. The series draws its inspiration from Christianity.
I used to have a , but damnit do I want a !share
Messiah also means 'The Chosen One' or 'The Anointed One'. So I suppose you could look at it as meaning that Red was the 'chosen one' because of his ability to track down killers.
shareIt's been a LONG time since I saw this, but surely circumstances from the KILLER's childhood - getting pronounced dead on Good Friday, then miraculously coming back to life three days later on Easter Monday - leaves him believing that HE is Jesus, come back to earth. In other words, that HE is "the Messiah". This seems to me to the the very spine of the plot. The story unfolds as a series of grisly murders is revealed, each depicting one of Jesus's circle of followers. The detectives trying to solve the case are trying to work out WHY anyone would want to do that. And the great irony is that the reason the killer was pronounced dead was... that he was run-over and left for dead by "Red", the detective who's now trying to solve this case. The killings are - in part - the self-imagined "Messiah" sending a kind of "message" to the detective. There... I've given half the plot away.. but without revealing the extra twist of who the "Messiah" turns out to be.
shareMessiah comes from the book of the same title and is a reference to Handel's orchestral piece (called Messiah) which Red's brother plays to him after confessing to Charlotte Logan's murder (this happens very early so is not a spoiler), given that the theme of betrayal runs constantly throughout the program it is a relevant title. It the book it is stated that Handel's Messiah is the only record that Red owns.
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Well I'm not saying I know for definite, I'm just saying its the reason that makes sense in my own mind...
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What (or who) does the title refer to?
The killer believed himself to be Jesus aka the Messiah.
If the killer's version of events are to be believed in the show, he was run down on Good Friday and died, but later revived. I guess that could mean he was either declared clinically dead for a brief period then resuscitated (not impossible), or he entered a coma for a time before waking later on. I suspect the latter as he mentions "rising" three days after the crash. This scenario obviously bares similarities to the story of Jesus Christ.
The whole killer-believing-he's-Jesus thing is further reinforced by the fact he dies in the shape of a crucifix. share