FR MOVIE REVUE: THE PASSION OF CHRIST (post your comments here)

2/24/04 | FR MOVIE REVIEWERS

[Liz]

All the world is waiting for the powerful message in Mel Gibson's ground-breaking film, The Passion of Christ.

Post here your own personal reactions after seeing the film set to open tomorrow, Ash Wednesday. Passion has previewed in some areas.

Also post reviews and pertinent comments from your state and area's newspapers and publications.

[IDontLikeToPayTaxes]

Sorry.. but you and I did not see the same movie..(did you see it?)....Gibson was/ is an equal opportunity basher here...good jews, bad jews....good men, bad men....good romans, bad romans,... good women .... bad women...good christians...bad chris..tians....The man ( Gibson) showed NO BIAS....... and that is what makes this film so compeling..

Yes, I saw the movie tonight. The Jewish leadership are protrayed as being the "bad-guys." For the average movie watcher that doesnt have a lot of Biblical knowledge, they wouldn't know the whole story behind the movie. All they would see would be "those old guys with the long dark robes and long beads that want Jesus dead."

I'm certainly not saying that the movie is anti-Semitic at all. I'm simply saying I can understand how a Jewish person would think so.

[IDontLikeToPayTaxes]

One part that my sons and I discussed afterward was the part with the "baby." I have searched around and did find one interpretation. Anyone know more about that/opinions/where I could find more?

Yeah, that was a creepy scene. I think Mel was trying to show Satan mocking Jesus. I think it was the part when Mary came to Jesus when he was carrying the cross, and Satan shows up holding a demonic baby, mocking Jesus.

[Salvation]

"Baby"

Was it a flashback for Christ or for Mary?

[IDontLikeToPayTaxes]

Was it a flashback for Christ or for Mary?

No. Satan appears in the crowd when Jesus is carrying the cross. Satan is holding a ghost-white "baby" with a demonic face as if to mock the relationship between Jesus and Mary. That's my take on it.

Was that what you wanted to know?

[bonfire]

Have not read the thread, so here goes:

I took my teenage kids, 16,19, and another friend who is 16. We got home hours ago and we have been up talking about "faith", "love" etc, etc, etc. ever since. Our friend is struggling with all the above, especially since her dad walked out on her family a year ago. My daughter and I have been talking and crying with her all night.

This film will bring people to God. Believers, skeptics, doubters alike. For the skeptics and doubters it will WORRY them. They WANT what the believers HAVE. I am seeing this film "working" in a few short hours, here in my own home.

It is the beginning of a "conversation"... I now understand what the naysayers were so afraid of.

As others I'm sure have said, it's difficult to watch. My 16 yr old said she MADE herself watch every moment because she knew she HAD to. You don't want to watch. You want to yell STOP!!!!!!!! Your whole body is BEGGING you to shout: "STOP IT!!!!!" It's all you can do to stay seated. You have to force yourself to kill Jesus.

All of us felt the same thing: you are all alone in the theater. You don't even realize there is anyone next to you; be it your husband, children, friends. You are totally ALONE. You are suffering your own private hell. No one reaches out......no one clings to anyone else. You are clinging to yourself. Literaly.

No one says anything on the way out. There are no words. You have to sit in your car and try to remember your way home. You want to call someone, but who? And just what will you say?

This movie is like trying to explain childbirth to someone who has never been thru it. You simply cannot.

[xone]

Satan was undone in the Garden of Eden and knew it. Why do you think he wanted Jesus to quit? Why tempt him during his ministry?

[oldfart]

Easily the best movie I've seen in years. One thing that I noticed: Usually, as soon as the credits start to roll, everyone makes a break for the exits. After this movie, only a very few moved at all. People seemed to be too emotionally drained to summon the strength to stand and walk. It was at least ten minutes before the theater was cleared.

[bonfire]

I also noticed (realized from my own reaction) that everyone in the theater, even though they were with someone else, was totally ALONE. No one clinged, grabbed, hugged thier theater-mate. We were ALL ALONE. Did you experience that too?

[highpockets]

btt

[sonserae]

Don't judge the movie if you aren't willing to see it.

[sonserae]

You may not believe in Him now but there will come a time when every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord....but it may be at a time when it's too late for you.

[bonfire]

I stopped reading interviews, trailers, critics, etc. for weeks. I wanted to make my own assessment. I am not a Catholic, Baptist, fundie or Jew. I just wanted to see this film on it's own merit.

I went tonight. Maybe it's just Christians; but from our point of view there is no blame on any one group. Sitting in that theater tonight; we took the blame on ourselves. As a Christian, I felt every iniquity was MINE. From what I've read from people seeing this film; everyone comes out feeling the same.

It's a personal film no matter WHO you are, you know that YOU had a part in it. You are sitting there with hundreds of other people but yet........you are so alone in your misery. No matter what your beliefs are. You are WRITHING in your seat and blaming YOURSELF.

[sonserae]

Mel did research on crucifixions and how they were conducted.
Not everything is laid out in the Bible...but there are historical writings on how crucifixions were done. Concerning the Romans, I'm sure Mel did his research on that too. Ever hear of Roman baths? There was much decadence with the Romans...from having public killings to mass orgies to drunken parties...they were barbarian in many ways.

[Tex_GOP_Cruz]

Bonfire, #468: [E]veryone in the theater, even though they were with someone else, was totally ALONE.

I felt exactly that. I think I felt hot, but I couldn't remove my jacket, because I felt cold at the same time. I was moved to tears several times, which is rare for me. I would start suddenly, then stop almost as suddenly. And what I sensed is that different people were moved at different times in the movie. The different experiences were what made it private. Everyone's tears were his own, a reaction to something that led to introspection.

Liz, #404: "The story is universal and is meant to mirror humanity."
PleaseNoMore, #399: "I also noticed that no one looked anyone in the eye. Each person was internalizing what they had just experienced."
SoDak, #424: "Neither of us could even talk about it afterwards...I'm amazed, numb, sorrowful, and kind of elated."

Liz, the word "mirror" says a lot because the experience of the Gospel as depicted in the movie is so personal. Maybe that's why so many are describing being unable to carry a conversation afterwards. People feel stunned, numb, maybe even physically sick. But underlying it is the sense of "elation" or hopefulness. Some have said the movie ends too abruptly. I think that's what Gibson intended. We don't need to see the extended reactions of all the characters (we sympathize with the "good" and "bad" both) because ultimately the viewer's personal reaction is the one that endures. An inability to internalize is what prevents some from experiencing the fullness of the message.

[Zeroisanumber]

OK, Here comes the flame war.

I thought it was crap.

Or rather, it was a passion play that lacked the revelation about grace and the new covenant that a biopic of the last days of Jesus Christ really requires. This wasn't the story of a man who redeems humanity by offering himself up as the sacrifical lamb of a new age, it was the story of a man who was jerked aound by mob rule and an indifferent government and ended up being tortured and crucified. But it didn't matter because this Jesus of Nazereth knew that he was the Son of God, and thus risked nothing and gain nothing for his fellow man by his death. Why Lord? Oh why did he have to take his cues from Luke?

What Gibson tried to do was make a "straight from the gospel" blow-by-blow account of the Passion of Christ, what he's managed is an uncomfortable spectacle of torture followed by a heavy handed "Oh CRAP! He really WAS the Son of God!" revelation for all of his tormentors.

What DID I like:

I liked the fact that it was in Aramaic, and that the costuming, make-up, sets, and actors looked and sounded authentic (with a few notable exceptions to follow). I thought that the Anti-Semitism buzz was overblown by a nervous Jewry and the PC side of the media. I don't blame the former("Christ Killer" being one of the favorite anti-Jew slurs amongst the cro-magnon set), but the latter should have known better.

What I didn't like:

There's a lot to not like about this picture, but I'll stick to a few quick points that were glaringly obvious. My biggest beef was most obvious in the King Herrod scene, and to a lesser extent the rest of the movie. Herrod was portrayed as a bumbling sybarite; someone who couldn't even sober up and get his wig on straight when judging a case that has his whole community in an uproar. Historically, the Herrod in the film was known as "Herrod the Builder", an efficient tyrant who built and managed many large public works in his kingdom. While I'm sure he enjoyed a good party, he wasn't the type to keep a court full of drunks and fools. To a lesser extent, this criticism can also be applied to Pontius Pilate, who was recalled to Rome for his brutality and lack of a subtle, careful hand with a volitile population.

Also, the nails through the hands thing...I know that it's on the traditional crucifix, but if you actually did that the person on the cross would come loose. It feels sloppy, especially when you consider how much easier it would have been to cg a nail through the wrist.

I could go on, but this post is already alarmingly long and it's geting late. If you've seen this movie already, then you have my apologies. If not, then do yourself a favor and find a copy of "The Last Temptation of Jesus Christ".

[Tex_GOP_Cruz]

Did you hear that one Roman say "let's make music" before they started beating Jesus?

The amateur Latin scholar in me heard something to that effect, too. There were other colloquialisms in the soldiers' mockings, though I can't recall any right now. While the movie was overwhelming to me, one of my "escape hatches" was to listen to the sounds themselves. A few other random things I couldn't help but notice: 1. Pilate's educated Latin (think of his exchanges with Claudia, which could have been easily translated in a Latin class) was distinct from the cruder, less carefully enunciated Latin of the torturers. 2. The pronunciations were not "classical" but "vulgar" as was appropriate. 3. Jesus' Latin had something of a Semitic accent, to make it clear that it was not his native tongue. 4. Pilate's Aramaic seemed similarly accented. 5. The soldiers only spoke Latin amongst themselves, and the religious leaders did not speak Latin to the Roman officials.

[Liz]

Nice review......the McAwful allusion is priceless. LOL.

[Liz]

The attacks on the film by the leftist mainstream critics are predictable. Christ tells us there is such a thing as right and wrong. Leftists don't want to hear about "wrong", because they'd have to change a large percentage of their lifestyle. It struck me as I was watching this that leftists are the Romans of our day. They are the ones who see themselves as superior. They are the intelligentsia. They are the ones who, when their lifestyle is threatened, are quick to attack Jesus, attempting to drive Him out of public life in any way possible, ridicule His followers, and generally eliminate Him from society as we know it. I keep waiting for the first one to stand up and say "Truly He was the Son of God".

Very powerful testimony. Cannot be repeated often enough.

[Liz]

I thought Maia Morganstern ---the Romanian actress--in the role of Mary was an incomparable player. She was able to convey so much emotion without even raising an eyebrow. She didn't look like the Mary seen in most religious paintings, but she looked perfect for the part.

I'll forgive Mel for the "Pieta staging." When I first saw it, I was stunned by its beauty. It had to be included.

[Liz]

.....I think the portrayal of Satan's role was excellent, and captured the nature of evil rather well......

Mel has said he was inspired by one of the greatest books on ths subject: The Screwtape Letters by CS Lewis.

Excellent plot devices were employed to reinforce the many mutations of evil.

....The classic ugliness of the satanic image after Judas betrays Jesus.

....The soft, enticing voice of the androgynous being tempting Christ in the Garden we then see with a maggot emerging from its nostril.

....The scene with evil moving effortlessly among the crowd.

....And the scene with the "baby" caressing its "mother" was truly unnerving.