The Passion of the Christ
Posted on Sunday, March 21st, 2004 at 2:13.
My fifth attempt to see The Passion of the Christ, proved successful. Wow. Like whoa. I am not sure if I have words to follow this movie. It was truly an experience.
In addition to Aramaic, street Latin
, and Greek, I witness the first portion of the movie in Spanish as well. A female probably somewhat younger than me was translating the English subtitles into Spanish for a small group of people that I assumed her family. By the end of the first lashing of Jesus, she was sobbing and could not speak to translate. I don’t think she needed to after that point.
When I heard Satan was depicted in the movie, I was hesitant to see the character’s interaction with the story. It was masterful. Also masterful was the snake scene, the swarming of Judas, and the rain drop initiating the earthquake.
The casting of Jesus was excellent. For once, Jesus was not a pale, perfectly groomed, skin-and-bones man. Being that he was a Jew, he probably wasn’t pasty white and prone to sunburn. Being that he was a carpenter, he was probably buff and not too concerned with his physical appearance. Gibson was good to break with these iconic misrepresentations.
I did not find the movie anti-anyone. At the same time, I did not find the movie overly emphasizing the love that the crucifixion and resurrection represent. Unless one watches with an existing awareness of the Biblical story, I do not feel that The Passion of the Christ conveys much passion except for killing a man. I know the story. I have studied the story. I know the meaning behind the sense of higher purpose that Jesus conveyed in the movie. But without emphasizing the love thru his relationships, I feel that The Passion is a little less passionate about the love message of Jesus Christ than what I believe. Regardless, the movie is overall incredible and a significant commercial success… even if Satan did look like Gollum.
