Mel Gibson's The Passion — Page 3

well, matt, i tend to think that the jury is still out on god's plan. i also think that a religion cannot be blamed for those that would twist it to suit their own purposes. they are human and they will. that's something that i pray every day, for the conversion of those who hide their own selfish ambitions behind the veil of religion, for the conversion of those who preach hatred and intolerance, and for the conversion of those who teach people to kill or be killed in the name of god. that's some of the many. i guess i inherited the prayer gene from my mom. maybe it does no good, but i don't believe that. i believe that just maybe god might hear me ask for it enough times and do it just to shut me up!

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Updated On: 2/23/04 at 10:08 PM

i just think auggie that more people want to see a film that shows the kinder gentler side of christ and that the violence while graphic is about sacrifice which is something that in this day and age we, for the most part, do not do.

face it folks we are all seeing this through our own prism on society. i don't think that it's fair to say, well, this is the movie mel should have made or that this the movie that would have been the braver choice. this is the movie that he did make. i think it's a timely movie and i believe that it will deliver a timely message.

the fact that the violence in it will draw more people into the theatre is to me a good thing. the more people who see it the better, the more chance it will have to effect in them the kind of change that i suggested in my previous post.

but let's face a problem that a lot of people have with the film and with mel. they want catholicism on their terms with no sacrifices and no sins and a relgion that accepts all and fogives all and asks nothing but a kind word and a smile for your fellow humans and animals. well, that's not catholicism. never has been and never will. the fact that mel represents one of the most conservative elements of catholicism poisons people even further on him and his film. the biggest problem is that the death of jesus points up sins and the fact that he died for humanity's sins. sin ain't real popular. especially with folks who are deemed sinners by the church. they sure as hell don't wanna sit through a movie that reminds them that sin is real and has consequences and that the son of god died for them.

a kinder gentler more artistic vision of jesus as the prince of peace might be easier to stomach but for my money, it would reach less people and thus not have the opportunity that this does for focussing people on jesus and his sacrifice and thus further on his life and his teachings. in the end, i think it will drive people to find out more about jesus, if only to discover for themselves what "really" happened. in doing so they will inevitably be exposed to the teachings that you wish them to find. the fact that they will have found them on their own will also make them more open to listening to them.

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no, my reference there was to those who would disbelieve the film account and go back to the gospels and source material to learn for themselves whether this account was factual or not. or to those who would take the film as a jumping off point to learn more about what led up to this sacrifice. or even those who take this film as a reason to learn more about the life of jesus in general.

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So we have a non Israeli Jesus who still has about thirty years of his life unknown or hidden, who was never married, never had children and performed great miracles. The only account of his life was passed down verbally for centuries in a language that was very much interprted incorrectly when The Bible was written. This verbal information came from followers who loved this man and either intentionally or inadvertantly, built him up to be a God. so, how accurate can this movie be? Any movie made by a strict Catholic will be heavily slanted toward propogating the myth.

I, for one, am a little leary of getting a point of view of Jesus from Mad Max. I also wonder, while Jesus guided the making of this movie, did he also guide the publicity? When the logo for the movie was recently plastered across a race car in the Indy 500, was that Christ's idea? Was Jesus in the pit handing off sprak plugs to the mechanics or did he just use his miraculous powers to tune up the car? I guess if he did, it wouldn't be much different than his reported miracle turned parlor trick of creating more wine at the wedding in Caanan.

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I'm not putting down anyone's faith. If people believe that this man did everything attributed to him, that's fine. I would never criticize or make fun of that. Nor would I argue the point with them or try to convince them otherwise. I don't know anymore tahn anyone else who or what Jesus was.
I do belive that the man existed, that the morals, values and lifestyle he led and tried to pass on were admirable and worthy of being followed by everyone. I just feel that there was a great deal of myth in the story of his life and that so much of his life is unaccounted for that anyone claiming to be making a movie that is historically accuarte and that is being led by the hand of God is terribly arrogant. The myth part is just my opinion just as it's my belief that there is more known about the man's life taht has never been revealed probably beacuse it would destroy the political and money making side of the Catholic church while possibly strengthening the spirtual.

My post was aimed at making fun of Gibson's ego and not at Catholic or Christian beliefs.

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could you explain that a little further, master, other than just tar and feathering me as an anti-semite? if you're going to slander me, i'd like ya to back it up.

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Early negative reviews (Newsweek, New Yorker) of the film have titled it "The Goriest Story Ever Told" and "The Gospel According to the Marquis de Sade". Almost all of the reviewers mentioned that it was sheer insanity to bring children, which, considering that church groups are bringing their followers to the film by the busload "like a field trip to Chuck E Cheese", strikes me as odd. Apparently, one torture sequence goes on for almost 45 minutes. Yum! Can't wait!

Also heard about some of the Mel's little secret pop-up's in the film. When Judas hangs himself its MEL'S scream that we hear! The hands that pound the nail's into Jesus' hands are MEL'S HANDS! When Mary Magdalene falls to Christ's feet, its actually MEL'S FEET that she's kneeling at!!!

Many directors have made little cameo's in their own films (Hitchcock being the most famous, and most humorous). But what exactly does this little addition do for Mr. Gibson? What's it supposed to do for the viewer? I still stand behind my belief that this film came out of Mr. Gibson's ego, not his heart...and certainly not his brain.

Meanwhile, for the second time in a year, the religious right-wingers have bombarded 60 Minutes with letters and emails calling for the firing of Andy Rooney because they disagree with his opinion. Rooney (a humorist whom I usually cannot abide)apparently said that God told him to tell the viewers of 60 Minutes that Pat Robertson and Mel Gibson were "whackos". A joke, just a joke.
Of course, the previous time the conservative loudmouths flooded 60 Minutes with complaints was when Rooney spoke with unbelievable eloquance against the war in Iraq and the Bush administration in general. Guess he wasn't in a Free Speech Zone or something.

And Bush is worried about legalized butt****ing...

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I personally will not see this movie. Nothing about what I've read, seen or heard of it is attractive to me. But that's neither here nor there. What I see in this thread alone is what this film is doing even before it opens. Can't wait to see what happens afterwards. Boy, Gibson sure is an expert at Hollywood hype and the profits it can reap.

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This film's 15 minutes are already waning. Seeing the NY Post weigh in with a "Gore" headline (that didn't involve Al for once!), well, that did it for me. The Ash Wednesday opening day will likely be upstaged by Bush's assault on the U.S. Constitution. (Speaking of which, I wish gay people would stop buying the f--king NY Post, or any other rag that supports this regime. Read your Liz Smith and Cindy Adams on line!)

Everyone I've talked to reports how they must look away from the TV screen when they show that panning aerial shot of the blood-splattered crucifixion. Not a good sign -- the target audience's inability to watch the trailer.

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Updated On: 2/24/04 at 08:34 PM

I agree with that. They should also read Holy Blood, Holy Grail, a book that came out a few years back. It's where Dan Brown seems to have gotten his inspiration for The Da Vinci Code.

While The Da Vinci Code is a work of fiction based on a theory that has been widely researched, Holy Blood, Holy Grail, is non fiction book outlines taht theory and the sources, historical documents and ancient text that supports it. In reading this book, one might gain a new perspective on the story of Jesus Christ. Whether or not you belive the theory, it is still a fascinsting book especially for anyone interetsed in church history and the development of Catholic doctrin

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Per what Dolly reported, all the footage of shaken folks exiting in tears, shaking their heads, reaching for one another ... it all reminds me of December 1974 -- when THE EXCORCIST opened, and people couldn't get out of their seats. It looks like it's big box office, by the way. 15 million today.

Anyone read the NY Times editorial by Kenneth L. Woodward today? It ticked me off, with more of that "THIS is the real Jesus" stance. I especially hated... "... He does not teach that we all possess an inner divinity, as today's nouveau Gnostics believe. One cannot imagine this (Mel's, i.e. the "real" one) Jesus joining a New Age sunrise Easter service overlooking the Pacific.

Why not? No one knows the Jesus view of New Age, but wouldn't he be pleased his message reached MORE people? Personally, I don't think of Jesus as a smug, self-rigtheous man who'd turn down Easter invites; Easter celebrations are what it's all about, not blood and viscera on cobblestones. Whatever happened to "...when two or more are gathered in my name?" The hypocrisy of fundamentalism! They want you to open your heart to Jesus -- THEIR Jesus -- exactly as they determine, with a deep-seated fear of a punitive God and a firey hell--or hands off. He's THEIRS. And now, apparently, He's Mel's.

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Updated On: 2/25/04 at 08:11 PM

so if one woman in florida and one woman in nyc died of heart attacks while watching the film, what does that mean?!? people, even many on this board, are looking for any way to condemn this film without even seeing the movie.

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Updated On: 2/25/04 at 10:21 PM