The Passion Of The Christ

[classical gas]

no nudity, i've heard

[rustinglass]

I don't really have high hopes for this. most of the people I have talked to that are have seen it and know my tastes tell me I won't like it. But i'm a big fan of two things. 1. jesus. 2. gore

shit, if you put it like that, this mat turn out to be my favourite film, I like jesus, gore, and monica bellucci

[puddnanners]

jeremy blackman...technically the film is sound, Gibson got a top notch cinematographer, set designer, costume designer, etc.  It's just that the what he shows is way to much, as unnecessary as you could imagine.  I am not too sure how to get specific without spoiling, but its just like when watching it, I got the point, but then was forced to keep getting the point over and over again until i didn't care, all while watching a bloody jesus.  Maybe I will end up being in the minority, but i just think that the film was really mishandled.

[Raikus]

Ebert's review here

[modage]

The movie is 126 minutes long, and I would guess that at least 100 of those minutes, maybe more, are concerned specifically and graphically with the details of the torture and death of Jesus. This is the most violent film I have ever seen.

wow.

[Ghostboy]

As a lapsed Catholic with a religious outlook very similar to Ebert's, I expect my opinion may fall in line with his. My sense of trepidation now comes from, as pudnanners points out, the potential deadly combination of excessiveness of the violence with the glossiness of the style -- which could result in unnecessary glorification of the violence, a la Michael Bay. But I'll be back in this thread this time tomorrow with an at least semi-concrete stance.

[Chest Rockwell]

This looks pretty good, to say the least. I've never seen Ebert so touched by a movie before.

[Jeremy Blackman]

This is what I was expecting to hear:

The MPAA's R rating is definitive proof that the organization either will never give the NC-17 rating for violence alone, or was intimidated by the subject matter. If it had been anyone other than Jesus up on that cross, I have a feeling that NC-17 would have been automatic.

[Pubrick]

this is what I was expecting to hear:

It is a film about an idea. An idea that it is necessary to fully comprehend the Passion if Christianity is to make any sense. Gibson has communicated his idea with a singleminded urgency. Many will disagree. Some will agree, but be horrified by the graphic treatment. I myself am no longer religious in the sense that a long-ago altar boy thought he should be, but I can respond to the power of belief whether I agree or not, and when I find it in a film, I must respect it.

[Finn]

Here's all the violence that happens in the movie:

Jesus of Nazareth is chained to a tree stump and two guards begin to flog him with canes for an extended period of time (we see red slashes and welts appear on his skin). Then the guards use straps with hooks (cat-o-nine tails) on the ends and we see the man's skin tearing open: at one point the hooks are stuck in the man's side, the guard yanks and tears his skin away, blood splatters on the feet and faces of the guards, and the man is covered with blood. Also, his skin is open and bleeding everywhere, his face is slashed, and the guards roll him over and begin on his chest and stomach, the ground around him becomes puddles of blood, and the man trembles and moans with every strike. Jesus, trembling, bruised and very bloody, crawls onto a cross, his hand is lashed to one side, a spike is placed in his palm and it is nailed through his flesh: blood sprays, we hear crunching and see his fingers flopping with each blow of the mallet, and the other hand is lashed and stretched to the point of dislocating his shoulder (we hear a loud crunch and pop and he screams). Then the other hand is nailed into the wood in the same manner (we see blood dripping from the back of the cross when the stake is driven through). The man's feet are nailed onto a block of wood, the cross is turned over, the end of the stakes are pounded flat, the cross is turned back over (the man moans in agony with each move), the cross is lifted upright and it slides into a hole in the ground with a loud thud and jolt, blood pours from the man and he moans, and blood runs down the cross to the ground. Guards place a crown of thorns on a Jesus' head, press it into his flesh (blood streams down his forehead), then punch him several times and hit him in the head. A guard stabs Jesus in the side to see if he is dead and water sprays from the wound. A man on a cross is pecked at by a crow, it hits near his eye, on his forehead and head (we see bloody holes and he screams). Guards break the legs of two men hanging on crosses, we hear crunching with the blows of the mallets, hear the men scream, see their bloody legs and see the men die. Jesus is shown dead, and he is lowered from a cross (he is covered with blood and gaping wounds) and we see blood covered stakes and a crown of thorns. Guards surround Jesus in dark woods, they grab him, other men with him shove the guards, punches are exchanged, one man grabs a sword, slashes at guards, and slices the ear off one; we see blood dripping from the wound, blood covered flesh. and the ear is pressed back in place. The man with the sword is held against a tree by two guards, Jesus is tied with ropes and chains and led away. A man is punched repeatedly and whipped while being forced to walk in chains, he is knocked over a stone wall and is caught by the chains (he moans and suffers and we see his very bruised and bloody face) and pulled back up. Two men are lashed to crosses and are forced to carry them as they walk some distance, Jesus has a cross placed on his shoulder and he is whipped and shoved as he walks, and he stumbles and falls on several occasions; once the cross lands on top of him, he is whipped and kicked, people in crowds around him throw stones and jeer him, and blood drips from his hair. A woman kisses Jesus' feet and her face is covered with blood from his wounds. Judas suffers mental anguish from the guilt of betraying Jesus. A man punches Jesus in the face and he falls to the ground, people spit on the man and punch him repeatedly, a crowd of people close in on the man punching him and spitting on him ceaselessly. Jesus trembles, cries, appears to be in pain, he begs for help, something drips on his face (it could be blood), he collapses onto the ground, a snake slithers toward him, and he stomps on the snake with his sandaled foot. In a few scenes people in crowds chant and call for a man to be put to death by crucifixion. A man dies on a cross, his head falls limp and we hear his last breath. We see Jesus with an open hole in his hand (after the Resurrection, and there's no blood). The personification of Evil or Satan appears to people in different scenes: In one scene Judas imagines the faces of two boys changing to wrinkled snarling faces: one boy bites the Judas' hand (we see a bloody wound), the boys strike Judas and throws rocks at him, the boys and others chase him, he cowers and cries in agony from their taunts, he sees the carcass of a dead animal crawling with maggots, and he hangs himself from a tree (we hear a crunch when his neck breaks, see his feet swinging, then see him hanging from a distance). In another scene we hear growling and snarling, then see a very brief image of what looks like a blue-tinged face with very sharp teeth as it snaps at a man; in another scene we see a supernatural creature (presumably another instance of Evil or Satan) writhing and hear it screaming; in another scene a bug slithers back into the creature's nose, and a snake crawls out from beneath its feet. A man yells at guards who beat and kick Jesus, who is on the ground. A crowd of people shoves and begins to get aggressive, guards shove them and beat a few. A man (Barabbas) is held with a chain around his neck, he gasps and gags, and he has scars and dried blood on his face. A man burns his hand on hot metal. A guard kicks a cup of water out of the hands of a woman. A woman has a bruised and scratched face, presumably after having been stoned. People are frightened when they hear loud thunder, heavy winds blow, and an earthquake shakes the ground causing buildings to fall to rubble. A woman asks to die with her son. We see a few people grieving for Jesus, and a little girl weeps when she sees Jesus' condition. Guards laugh and seem to be enjoying torturing a man, several guards tease and taunt a man while torturing him, a group of guards play dice while waiting for three men on crosses to die. A man barges through a door and two women on the inside are frightened. A leopard on a leach growls and snarls.

[Ravi]

I can't wait to see the CAP Alert review of this.

[1976]

Germans should protest against the next film dealing with the Holocaust, as such a film could inspire a new wave of anti-germanism.

And I just farted.

[Jeremy Blackman]

I can't wait to see the CAP Alert review of this.

Here it is, my friend:

http://www.capalert.com/capreports/passionofthechrist.htm

I'm actually surprised by how reasonable this is...

Though this movie is a faithful depiction of the unimaginable terrors our Lord suffered for our sakes, it is a movie. It is entertainment. Violent entertainment. Thus the reason for the zero score in the Wanton Violence/Crime investigation area. It was not Jesus in the film. It was Jim Caviezel

...but is it really? Look at the ratings, especially the "offense to God" part... He still ignores context, even penalizing the movie for "wine drinking."

[Henry Hill]

i am not a religious person by any means. my parents made me go to church until i was like 15 then we stopped going. i believe there is a god, that is about all i need to get me through the day. its getting kind of irritating hearing all of these people bash mel gibson for this thing he has made. what about all the other "jesus" films out there i.e. The Greatest Story Ever Told, King of Kings, The Last Temptation of Christ, etc.  if people dont like it, then they dont need to see it. for people to say he never should of made this film and that he should be ashamed of himself is totally ridiculous. and as far as the violence goes...thats REALITY. mel gibson proved to be a master of his craft with Braveheart. based on that film alone i am excited about seeing this. i am going to see this film today. i cant wait. it is gonna be cool as hell, and most likely really, really well done. especially after watching ebert and roeper on sunday i am amped even more, because those guys loved it. now lets enjoy a fucking great film. who is with me?  

p.s. all the naysayers are just the devil in disguise.....

[RegularKarate]

mel gibson proved to be a master of his craft with Braveheart. :

WAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!