media consumption

The Passion of the Christ

I'm not really sure what to think of this movie. The Passion of the Christ certainly isn't worse than many of the movies I've listed on this site, but I feel much more conflicted about this than anything else I've seen in the past year. This is likely due to the personal and controversial nature of the film itself. This uneasiness is, I guess, in the end, a Good Thing. It means this film has "reached me" by forcing me to think through the issues listed below. That doesn't mean this film is for everybody.

On the one hand, Mel Gibson's film is an artistic achievement: dialogue spoken entirely in Aramaic and Latin (although I'm not sure they had the Latin pronunciation 100% correct), impeccable costume design, solid acting, powerful use of flashbacks, John Debney's haunting soundtrack (sounded suspiciously like Peter Gabriel's soundtrack for the Last Temptation, but they may have just used the same source material), etc. Plus, the last twelve hours of Jesus' life make a powerful and gripping story that's sure to resonate with faithful Christians everywhere.

On the other hand, there were many aspects that seemed overdone. There's been a lot of talk about the brutality of the punishment Jesus is given; indeed, this is not a film for children or those with weak stomachs (it is R-rated). This film is similar to every traditional passion play I have ever seen, except that there is more of everything: the Roman guards are more vicious, the high priests more treacherous, the Jewish rabble more rabid, Pontius Pilate more conflicted, Herod more decadent, Mary more tortured, and Jesus more bloodied. This film was extreme in almost every way.

So anyway, my real complaint is that we are given very little insight into Jesus' life up to the point where he's captured in the Garden of Gethsemane. Sure, there's been no secret that this movie is explicitly about Jesus' suffering and crucifixion. But still. No one without a solid understanding of Christ's life could hope to get anything out of this movie. It preaches only to the converted. There is little or no context given in the film for why Jesus is suffering so horribly. In flashback scenes we are treated to very brief glimpses of the sermon on the mount, the last supper, Jesus washing his disciples' feet, Jesus preventing the stoning of Mary Magdalene. All of these scenes are brief and only recognizable to someone familiar with the Gospels. I waited for it, but in the stoning scene, I never heard the "cast the first stone" admonition.

Gibson's movie tells us nothing new. It's not an accurate historical representation: there's too much speculation that has been added. In some cases, the film doesn't even follow scripture (e.g., Magdalene in the stoning flashback). It's not educational: we learn nothing of Jesus besides his capacity for suffering. If you are not a believer or are conflicted about your beliefs, this movie will more than likely alienate you further.

What The Passion does and does well is strike an emotional chord with Christian believers. For some, this movie will evoke the bittersweet blend of sorrow and gratitude that accompany contemplation of the sacrifice of Christ. In that sense it is fitting to have had launched the film on Ash Wednesday so people can see it in the weeks leading up to Easter. If you're a Christian who can stomach the graphic violence, this may be a film worth seeing.

But don't say I didn't warn you.

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