One Night with the King
Director: Michael O. Sajbel
Cast: Tiffany Dupont, Luke Goss, John Rhys-Davies, Tommy Lister Jr., Jonah Loton, Jyote Dogra, James Callis, Peter O’Toole
Inspired by the Biblical story of Queen Esther, One Night with the King follows the journey of a beautiful, young Jewish woman named Hadassah (Tiffany Dupont) who joins the harem of the powerful King Xerxes (Luke Goss) when he is searching for a new bride, and soon becomes his Queen. Simultaneously, Haman, a close adviser to the king, hatches a plan to exterminate the Jews forever. Hadassah, now called Queen Esther, must find the courage to rise and save her people from annihilation at the hands of her archenemy.
Love is a most powerful theme in this film and nowhere is love illustrated more beautifully than in Hadassah’s necklace and the way it connects her in love to the people closest to her: her parents, the King, and her people, the Jews.
When Hadassah is a child, her parents give her a precious gift: a beautiful crystal necklace which carries within it, the secret of the Jews. At first, Hadassah is confused by the stone ball, but her father shows her the necklace hidden within the ball, and when the candlelight shines through the crystal, it reveals the Star of David. When Esther is brought to the palace to be presented as a potential bride for the King, Hegai, the King’s guard, gives Esther this same necklace because he says that it would please the King and make Esther more beautiful than the other maidens with their extravagant finery.
When Esther is presented to the King, she is wearing the necklace and when he asks for the price of her love, she gives him the necklace, saying that it is her most treasured possession…indeed, it is her past, her present and her future. He realizes she is giving him her heart and when he goes to war, he gives her back the necklace, telling Esther to keep their necklace safe for him, because he always comes back for what he loves. I felt like he was saying he loved her and was entrusting her with his heart.
Another way that Esther’s love for the King is illustrated is through the Biblical account of Jacob. When Esther is asked to read for the king, she tells him the story of how Jacob fell in love with the beautiful maiden, Rachel, and vowed to work for seven years to win her hand. In truth, Jacob had to work for fourteen years to achieve the bride-price because his Uncle Laban tricked him by sending his older daughter, Leah, in Rachel’s place. When Queen Esther is telling the King the secret of her identity- that she is Hadassah, a child of God and a Jew - she finishes the story of Jacob, telling the King that Jacob had twelve sons and like Esther, he also had a new identity: Israel.
When the necklace is lost, the King’s love for his young Queen is shaken, however, Queen Esther’s greatest act of love comes, in the end, when Mordecai returns the lost necklace to the Queen and asks her to go before the King and plead mercy for her people, the Jews. As she rises to meet the King on the stairs, Queen Esther is wearing the necklace. When she asks the King and Haman to attend a special feast, she has prepared for them, so the King can hear her petition, she shows the King the stars hidden within the crystal to prove that she is a Jew and asks the King if he can see the stars. When Haman attacks Esther, the King saves his beloved Queen and tells Esther that he saw the stars in the necklace.
I have always enjoyed the story of Queen Esther and her courage and faith as she protects her people. This film is a stunning re-telling of this beautiful Queen’s story. The casting is flawless, particularly for Tiffany Dupont who is a beautiful Queen Esther and Luke Goss who brings the power and noble presence of King Xerxes to life onscreen. I would highly recommend this film.
© 2021 Keriane Kellogg
Director: Michael O. Sajbel
Cast: Tiffany Dupont, Luke Goss, John Rhys-Davies, Tommy Lister Jr., Jonah Loton, Jyote Dogra, James Callis, Peter O’Toole
Inspired by the Biblical story of Queen Esther, One Night with the King follows the journey of a beautiful, young Jewish woman named Hadassah (Tiffany Dupont) who joins the harem of the powerful King Xerxes (Luke Goss) when he is searching for a new bride, and soon becomes his Queen. Simultaneously, Haman, a close adviser to the king, hatches a plan to exterminate the Jews forever. Hadassah, now called Queen Esther, must find the courage to rise and save her people from annihilation at the hands of her archenemy.
Love is a most powerful theme in this film and nowhere is love illustrated more beautifully than in Hadassah’s necklace and the way it connects her in love to the people closest to her: her parents, the King, and her people, the Jews.
When Hadassah is a child, her parents give her a precious gift: a beautiful crystal necklace which carries within it, the secret of the Jews. At first, Hadassah is confused by the stone ball, but her father shows her the necklace hidden within the ball, and when the candlelight shines through the crystal, it reveals the Star of David. When Esther is brought to the palace to be presented as a potential bride for the King, Hegai, the King’s guard, gives Esther this same necklace because he says that it would please the King and make Esther more beautiful than the other maidens with their extravagant finery.
When Esther is presented to the King, she is wearing the necklace and when he asks for the price of her love, she gives him the necklace, saying that it is her most treasured possession…indeed, it is her past, her present and her future. He realizes she is giving him her heart and when he goes to war, he gives her back the necklace, telling Esther to keep their necklace safe for him, because he always comes back for what he loves. I felt like he was saying he loved her and was entrusting her with his heart.
Another way that Esther’s love for the King is illustrated is through the Biblical account of Jacob. When Esther is asked to read for the king, she tells him the story of how Jacob fell in love with the beautiful maiden, Rachel, and vowed to work for seven years to win her hand. In truth, Jacob had to work for fourteen years to achieve the bride-price because his Uncle Laban tricked him by sending his older daughter, Leah, in Rachel’s place. When Queen Esther is telling the King the secret of her identity- that she is Hadassah, a child of God and a Jew - she finishes the story of Jacob, telling the King that Jacob had twelve sons and like Esther, he also had a new identity: Israel.
When the necklace is lost, the King’s love for his young Queen is shaken, however, Queen Esther’s greatest act of love comes, in the end, when Mordecai returns the lost necklace to the Queen and asks her to go before the King and plead mercy for her people, the Jews. As she rises to meet the King on the stairs, Queen Esther is wearing the necklace. When she asks the King and Haman to attend a special feast, she has prepared for them, so the King can hear her petition, she shows the King the stars hidden within the crystal to prove that she is a Jew and asks the King if he can see the stars. When Haman attacks Esther, the King saves his beloved Queen and tells Esther that he saw the stars in the necklace.
I have always enjoyed the story of Queen Esther and her courage and faith as she protects her people. This film is a stunning re-telling of this beautiful Queen’s story. The casting is flawless, particularly for Tiffany Dupont who is a beautiful Queen Esther and Luke Goss who brings the power and noble presence of King Xerxes to life onscreen. I would highly recommend this film.
© 2021 Keriane Kellogg