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The Passion of the Christ
Director: Mel Gibson (2004)
Distributor: Icon Distribution Inc. Certificate: 18
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Main Characters:
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This film realistically portrays the last twelve hours of Jesus’ life, from his betrayal by Judas in the Garden of Gethsemane, to his death on the cross at Golgotha. During those twelve hours he is interrogated by the High Priest Caiphas, brought before Pilate and King Herod, brutally whipped and scourged, forced to carry his cross, then nailed to the cross by his hands and feet to die in horrible agony.
Judas, full of grief, hangs himself. Peter denies Jesus three times. Mary, Jesus’ mother, grieves for her son. Satan torments him.
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As Jesus
dies, the sky turns grey and there is a great earthquake which destroys
the temple. The Roman guards look on in astonishment. Finally, we see
Jesus come back to life in his tomb. There are no wounds or bruises on
his body, but we still see the nail marks on his hands. |
THROUGH THE LENS OF CHRISTIAN FAITH
Key theme: Jesus willingly went through all that suffering for the human race
It amazes me that a brutal form of Roman execution is still marketed as a piece of “attractive” jewellery and worn by so many people who do not know what it signifies. Christians wearing crosses and crucifixes is one thing, but those who wear them just because they look “nice” are missing the point, as well as disrespecting all those hundreds of people who died in great agony on Roman crosses - not least of which, of course, was Jesus Christ, the Son of God himself. Do people wear electric chairs around their necks, or hangman’s gallows? I think not.
This film will go some way to reminding people just what the cross is all about. It is not “a nice geometric shape with a handsome person attached to it” to be casually worn around the neck. It is a horrifying, gruesome, inhumanly painful, degrading and humiliating way to die. Mel Gibson is to be applauded for showing Christ’s sacrifice in all its gory detail. This is not an easy film to watch (I am not surprised it has been given an “18” rating), but I would still recommend it to anyone who is of the age to see it.
Yes, the film shows Christ’s suffering in great detail, but it also places it in context. We see various flashback scenes of Jesus with his mother and disciples, including a scene with Jesus as a child. We also see that he knew he was going to die as part of God’s plan. This is reflected in the way that Christ endured his suffering. During his questioning by the High Priest, Pilate and King Herod, he maintained his dignity throughout and didn’t defend himself or beg for mercy. After being whipped to the ground in the Roman courtyard, he defiantly got back on his feet, to the amazement of everyone around. He even persisted in carrying the cross, even after the Romans had picked out someone else to do it for him.
He was in great agony, but he had a job to do – a role to fulfil – and he carried it out right to the end. Why? In the flashback scenes we see that he did it for love. He had to die, to endure all that suffering, for the sake of mankind.
Even if you don’t believe that Jesus was the Son of God, there is no doubt that he was a true historical figure whose life and death affected the whole of human history from that point on. Mel Gibson has shot the film in the Aramaic and Latin languages that were spoken at the time (although there are English subtitles). This cleverly gives the impression that what we are seeing is how it actually happened, as if Mel Gibson had gone back in time with some Hollywood movie cameras and shot the actual events.
I saw the film in Sheffield town centre, at an evening showing. After watching these famous first century events unfold before me on the big screen, I walked out at 11 o’clock at night to see people coming out of pubs and restaurants, buses driving past, and the general hustle and bustle of a late-night city centre. As I slowly walked to my bus stop I couldn’t help reflecting on what I’d just seen and how it still had relevance for all the life and busy-ness around me. Even if you see the film on video, I suggest that once it has finished you go outside for a walk and look at the world around you, 2,000 years on.
Did Jesus die for nothing? Or does his sacrifice and passion – “The Passion of the Christ” – still have meaning for us today?
Have your say on the discussion forum....
· Is it appropriate to show the crucifixion, and the events leading up to it, in such gory detail in a film?· A lot of Christians frown at going to see violent films with an “18” certificate, and yet they are flocking in their thousands to see this one. Are they hypocrites, or are they right to make an exception in this case?
· This film is about to make more money than “Star Wars”. We talk about living in a post-Christian society, yet what is it about this film that has touched a nerve in people and made it so successful?
· Was Mel Gibson accurate in his portrayal of the gospel story, or did he take too many liberties with it? Which scenes in the film are different to those we read in the Bible?
· Why did Jesus feel that he had to die on the cross? Was it all worth it?
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