Kristo is a 1996 Filipino biblical drama film depicting the life of Jesus Christ.[1] Produced by Cine Suerte Productions, Fallout Studios and Oasis of Love Movement (by Fr. Sonny Ramirez, OP, host of the telemagazine Sharing in the City), Kristo stars Mat Ranillo III in the title role,[2] together with Rez Cortez (Judas Iscariot), Ruel Vernal (Peter), Michael Locsin (John), freelance model and then college student Charmaine Rivera (in her first and only film appearance as the Virgin Mary), Amy Austria (Mary Magdalene).
The film started on a prologue, "if the story of the New Testament replaced the setting from the Middle East to the Philippine Islands, what would the image and culture of the New Testament look like?"
The film starts with an open book presenting the Nativity of Jesus in the form of illustrations. Live action scenes or the flow of the story follows the next page 30 years after, beginning with the preaching of John the Baptist and the Baptism of Jesus in the River Jordan. Kristo cycles through the various episodes in Christ's ministry, his death, and resurrection, ending with his ascension and its illustrated version on the last page with a Biblical message, and upon closing the book, it found out that Jesus Christ is the one opening the book, reading about his life on Earth.
This was director Ben Yalung's second religious film after Divine Mercy: Sa Buhay ni Sister Faustina ("Divine Mercy: In the Life of Sister Faustina") starring former matinee idol and MTV VJ Donita Rose in March 1993.[4]
Ranillo eldest child, Krista, was not nicknamed after the film.[5]
^"Grand Opening Today!". Manila Standard. Kamahalan Publishing Corp. March 31, 1993. p. 18. Retrieved August 2, 2020. A door prize will be raffled during the premiere night
