What’s “Game of Thrones” without sex, nihilism, or a 98-person cast? Maybe something like “Risen,” a new faith-based movie set in the days following Jesus’ death, which derives its dusty grittiness from maimings, fanciful threats, a mordant wit, and intricate plays for power. Add its small sets, sublime vistas, exquisite period costumes, and calculating antihero, and you’ve got a fairly ambitious picture tailor-made for that slice of the Christian audience accustomed to the tropes and beats of prestige cable dramas.
The pretty-close-to-good “Risen” is the first religious movie I’ve ever considered recommending to non-believers. Centered on the search for Jesus’ cadaver after his crucifixion, the film’s first half is a brisk, diverting, dryly funny procedural with a serious sociological quandary: To what lengths should one go to prevent devout fanatics from destabilizing an already troubled city? Roman official Clavius (Joseph Fiennes) is ordered to locate the missing body — rumored to be walking around, alive once more, per its owner’s prophecy — by Pontius Pilate (Peter Firth), who wants to ensure that the unhappy Jewish minority not make any trouble during the emperor’s imminent visit despite the recent public execution of one of its religious leaders.