Commentary: Movie industry is two-faced in its criticism of 'The Passion'

Ogden Standard Examiner ^ | 2/28/2004 | JIM BURTON

[luckystarmom]

We had Disney previews at ours. What a contrast between a Disney movie, and the Passion.

[kittymyrib]

You are correct. The world and Satan's followers will always hate Jesus and His followers, just as He warned us (John 15:18ff). This movie woke up a lot of us to the fact that Christ and His people are opposed by the leaders of public opinion in this country. Now we understand our situation better than before, which is good. We need to read the Scriptures more, pray more, and get ready for the persecutions that will come before Jesus comes back on Judgement Day. It is real. It is inevitable.
By the way, the crucifixion lasted much longer than that portrayed in the film, and the agony of Christ was much greater than that depicted, for the sins of all humanity for all time were being punished there. The love and grace that Jesus shows us there is what makes people who see The Passion cry, not the violence. We see through the eyes of faith...and through tears for our sins that put Him there.

[Cboldt]

"We're making you think," they said. "We're challenging your beliefs and examining your fears."

"We're making you think," 'we' said. "We're challenging your beliefs and examining your fears."

[Bommer]

The funniest hypocracy of all is when critics say that Gibson is" obsessed with violence in all his movies" Funny how Martin Scorsese could make Last Temptation of Christ and none of his "violent movies" were ever brought into question.

[Hildy]

No matter how many reviews I read about KILL BILL, which I had the misfortune of seeing, I can't, for the life of me, figure out ANYTHING that was good about it, let alone GENIUS as it's been referred to. I like Tarrantino. Pulp Fiction is one of my all time favorite movies, but Kill Bill is just plain STUPID.

[FoxPro]

Shouldnt we be upset at Italians for killing Jesus? What about antiitalianism?

[supercat]

We had Disney previews at ours. What a contrast between a Disney movie, and the Passion.

No trailers or other advertisements at the showing I saw (other than the slides which run when the lights are on between shows). Just the Karasotes Theatres into and directly into the movie.

[OmegaMan]

Uh... I think the hypocrisy works in the other direction as well. I think cultural conservatives who complain about 'violence in movies' are gonna look kinda silly from now on considering the fact that it's they who are taking 10, 11, 12,... year olds to see a movie where a man is tortured to death for two hours. I assure you, 'Hollywood' is gonna use this and throw it back in conservative critics faces the next time they complain about how violence in movies is harming children.

[INSENSITIVE GUY]

The movie industry IS NO LONGER A GREAT INSTITUTION but A NATIONAL DISGRACE!It is not only unpatriotic but a lair of traitors and it simply is NO LONGER RELEVANT to America.

[goldstategop]

Liberals believe that its okay to assault traditional values but heaven forfend if you cater to the huge population of religious believers by actually making a movie they will flock to see. Even if it means more money at the box office. Hollyweird is the one industry in America where ideology is more prized than customer service.

[Liz]

Hollywood has vastly profited from its anti-Christian agenda, producing films, TV and music that demeans Christians and trivializes their beliefs. Make no mistake. Hollywood's attack againt the Passion film has important ramifications.

Presidential front-runner John said he is "unsure" about "The Passion of the Christ" the film Christians are flocking to see, (Reuters News, "Democrat Kerry Urges Caution on 'Passion,' 26 February 2004, by Patricia Wilson). "I don't know," Kerry said when asked if he would see the Mel Gibson film.

As a presidential candidate, Kerry's comments are loaded with meaning for the future of the United States of America. More importantly, Kerry's ill-conceived remarks show that he will strengthen secularists power over Christian America. Kerry and Hollywood are against everything Christians stand for. They worship abortion, the homosexual agenda, and the stripping away of every Christian symbol in America. Kerry is kneeling in obeisance to Hollywood secularists knowing they are the architects of the death of American Christian culture.

Who's kidding who? Kerry is pandering to Hollywood secularists for campaign dollars. In return, Kerry assures them that, under a Kerry presidency, Hollywood will not lose its chokehold on American Christian culture.

Kerry ignores Christians at his peril. Kerry's comments and his positions on social issues must reach every Christian pastor, church, and group in America. These are the things Christian voters should talk about:

(1) Kerry's comments about The Passion movie have effectively disqualified him from holding the highest office in Christian America.

(2) Transparently anti-Christian candidates do not deserve Christian votes.

(3) Candidates carrying Bibles and going to church (the Clintons) but who vote against everything Christians believe in are not going to fool Christians again as they have in the past.

(4) Abortion, the institution of marriage, Christian symbols in American life are very important issues Christians want addressed.

(5) Let's be clear. The future of America depends on which candidate supports Christian issues. Kerry has demonstrated that he need not apply.

[goldstategop]

The problem is we read a sanitized version of the Bible. It was the Jews and then the Christians who triumphed over pagan Rome and end the bloody spectacle of crucifying thousands who wanted freedom. Jesus isn't the world's first revolutionary but he was the most prominent champion of the idea the man's rights come from God and not from the state. That is exactly the reason the Left hate's Mel Gibson's movie. Their opposition has nothing to do with the violence in it but rather with the notion that God gave each and every one of us grace and dignity and the birthright of freedom that no earthly power can traduce or take away. Today's liberals want Washington to be as all our powerful in our lives as Rome. We conservatives on the contrary believe in the proposition man is born free by the grace of God and answers not to the state but to the God who created him.

[BlueAngel]

Lawrence O'Donnell writes for the "West Wing". He figures he would lose his job if he doesn't tow the dim left-wing line.

[goldstategop]

My friend, we all know Christans are the enemies of goodness, of light, and of tolerance. We can't have a movie that sees anything good in them and in the founder of the Christian faith. That my friends, is the ultimate manifestation of intolerance - actually well that's the essence of Christianity. And now y'all understand how the Left sees Christians and their faith and why they work overtime to stamp out the last public vestige of it in America. They're not about to let a movie like The Passion set them back in this endeavor.

[dagoofyfoot]

Kerry's a freak!


How anybody can take this idiot seriously is beyond me.

[dpa5923]

Although they will definitely try to do so, anyone with any semblance of intelligence can understand the nonsense of that argument. Context is everything. Schindler’s List, on non-cable TV showed full frontal nudity. It was not gratuitous but essential to the story, just as the scenes in this movie are not gratuitous but essential to the story.

Most people can tell the difference between a Texas Chainsaw Massacre and The Passion, just as most can tell the difference between Showgirls and Schindler’s List.

[luckystarmom]

I would have preferred that. I actually would like to see the movie with just my church. Maybe, we'll be able to do that after the movie comes out on DVD.

[RaceBannon]

What people are not asking, is:

What did Hollywood say about movies about Jesus where Jesus was a drug addict?

Slept with women?

Totally innacurate depictions were ok, but an accurate one is the problem.

[FITZ]

It's hard to imagine the Hollywood crowd trying to find Bibles to check out the accuracy anyhow.

[GulliverSwift]

This article is quite correct about the hypocrisy. I just saw it today and it was not the most violent film I've seen. The liberals who are too closed-minded to understand is that The Passion is anti-violence.

The only things that really bothered me were the pathetic and bizarre Satan and that they took out where the Roman soldier said he thought Jesus was the son of God and the editing out of the "let his blood be upon us" line. While fanatics can use the line to justify wrong-doing, the professional offendees are forgetting the convenient fact that the main reason for anti-Semitism in Europe was that only Christians were prohibited from lending money (at least how they construed it at the time). Everyone hates their creditors and if the creditors are predominantly of one religion and ethnic group, unfortunately, that resentment will extend to the entire group.

Can someone tell me what was up with that baby thing?