Smoke
Done here.
I don't think you can blame Hollywood for this one. Mel Gibson co-wrote it, produced it, directed it, paid for it with his own money, and had it independently distributed.
-
Welcome to Religious Forums, a friendly forum to discuss all religions in a friendly surrounding.
Your voice is missing! You will need to register to get access to the following site features:- Reply to discussions and create your own threads.
- Our modern chat room. No add-ons or extensions required, just login and start chatting!
- Access to private conversations with other members.
We hope to see you as a part of our community soon!
What did you think of The Passion of the Christ?
- Thread starter tomspug
- Start date
Phasmid
Mr Invisible
I was struggling to hold back the tears through the whole thing... I would have just let them out had I not watched it at a friend's place. The part where Marry sees Jesus carrying the cross was heart-breaking.
I thought it was a powerful and disturbing film... but I'd like to watch it again, alone.
There was a program on the BBC over Easter called, "The Passion". It was a dramatisation of Jesus last few days. It took a different take on it to Mel... well, that's an understatement. It used modern English and tried to make it more understandable to people. It also tried to show that Ciaphus and the other Jewish leaders weren't bad guys and that they were trying to serve their people. Same with the Romans - they were trying to keep the peace for the emperor. Not sure how accurate it is, but you can google it and watch it on BBC iPlayer if interested.
I thought it was a powerful and disturbing film... but I'd like to watch it again, alone.
There was a program on the BBC over Easter called, "The Passion". It was a dramatisation of Jesus last few days. It took a different take on it to Mel... well, that's an understatement. It used modern English and tried to make it more understandable to people. It also tried to show that Ciaphus and the other Jewish leaders weren't bad guys and that they were trying to serve their people. Same with the Romans - they were trying to keep the peace for the emperor. Not sure how accurate it is, but you can google it and watch it on BBC iPlayer if interested.
Smoke
Done here.
I didn't mention that I was a Christian when I saw it. I thought then, as I think now, that it accomplished what it set out to do, but that what it set out to do was revolting. Obviously, I don't expect everybody to agree.
tomspug
Absorbant
That's not a good analogy. Christianity isn't a fiction or a form of entertainment. Wolverine's story doesn't embody anything. It's just a story, while the story of Christ's death not only concerns the audience, but it directed towards humanity as an audience. You could hardly compare that with a comic book character.
tomspug
Absorbant
Yeah. I think this is one of the major flaws of the film. Although I find it hard to really condemn the movie for anything because Mel succeeded so greatly at accomplishing what he set out to make with the film. But because of Mel's focus, the audience lacks context. There is very little context for Pilate's situation, although the film briefly explains his political predicament. However, there is no context given for the reasons that the Sanhedrin arrests him in secret.
On the other hand, I think that the film did an OK job at expressing the Pharisee's anguish over the idea that Jesus, a carpenter who contradicts their teachings (and who is greatly loved by their own people), could be the Messiah, when they expect him to be a great and lordly king who will make Israel the most powerful theocracy in the world. But again, they give little to no context of this.
In this respect, the film was really made for Christians, I guess. The film encourages you to read the Bible for yourself (I think it's focusing on John's version, since they focused on John's character as an observer in the movie and used a lot of John-only parts of the narrative). But you don't need to be a Christian to understand or appreciate the message.
One of my "problems" I have with the film, honestly, is the stuff from Catholic tradition that's not in the Bible at all. It's not a big deal, because I think that some of the scenes can be very moving, but the Shroud of Turin? C'mon... What did that add to the story at all? Not a big deal, but a little distracting for someone coming from the outside.
Magic Man
Reaper of Conversation
No matter how much you believe, the story of Jesus is just that, a story. Many stories are used to teach things and send messages, but they're still stories. The only people who believe that Jesus's story is anything more than a fictional account like that of Wolverine, are Christians, amazingly the same people I said the movie was directed towards. To you Christianity isn't fiction, but to 2/3 of the world's population it is. So, the only time Christ's story concerns the audience directly is when the audience is Christian.
And I already did compare that with a comic book character.
tomspug
Absorbant
News Flash: Jesus's crucifixion is historical fact. It's his resurrection that is disputed. Wolverine was made up by Stan Lee 50 years ago. Big difference.
Magic Man
Reaper of Conversation
Actually, it's not really historical fact. Let's just say that it is, though. What difference does that make? Let's go with another example: If someone made a movie about Muhamed (Sorry for the spelling), would that be directed at you? No, it would be directed at Muslims. He is as much historical fact as Jesus with a completely different spin.
The point is that, whether or not something really happened, different stories are known to be more interesting to certain groups. Stories about Jesus are always going to be more interesting to Christians, generally speaking, because, by default if you're Christian you're interested in Jesus's story. Just like if you read Wolverine's comic bood, you're going to be more interested in a movie about him. Just like if you're Muslim, you're going to be more interested in a movie about Muhammed.
tomspug
Absorbant
Okay, so now instead of using Wolverine, you're using Muhammed. There's still a major difference. Jesus didn't die for a specific group of people. Muhammed did. And I think you should do more homework on the historicity of Jesus. You know there's more evidence than the Bible, right?
I suppose it was well made but it was way too violent for my taste. I prefer movies like Jesus of Nazareth that also talk about Jesus' message.
I suppose it was to concentrate on Jesus' sacrifice, but what good is a sacrifice without a message?
I suppose it was to concentrate on Jesus' sacrifice, but what good is a sacrifice without a message?
Smoke
Done here.
Exactly. I like you more every day.
Of course, for many Christians, the sacrifice is really the main thing that's important about Jesus, and the only really important thing he came here to do. It seems to me that if that were true, it would have been easier and just as effective to let Herod kill him when he was a baby.
Magic Man
Reaper of Conversation
What is the point? Jesus has come to be a symbol of Christianity, right? Who is the most interested in Chritianity? If you don't say Christians, you're lying. Who, then is most interested in the biggest symbol of Christianity? Who then is most interested in a movie about the biggest symbol of Christianity? How do you not see this? I thought Wolverine would suffice, but you refused to see that for some reason, so I moved to someone else who, I thought, would surely break through your hazy view. They both still work as examples, but you refuse to see them.
Father Heathen
Veteran Member
Citation, please? Outside of the bible itself where is there solid historical evidence? Out of curiosity, have you seen this before?
...and yes, I did see The Passion.
Magic Man
Reaper of Conversation
cardero
Citizen Mod
I would have suggested Hercules or Superman (specifically The Death of Superman: Doomsday movie) for this analogy.
Magic Man
Reaper of Conversation
Yeah, I think I was trying for someone who didn't have a movie made about them yet (even though he was in the X-men movies). Thanks for the suggestion.
A
angellous_evangellous
Guest
Bah. This is much more constructive. If you're going to peddle a youtube video, it should at least be a good one.
Smoke
Done here.
Willie knows God!
Phasmid
Mr Invisible
I have an it seems a little too simplistic. The Bible is a fat collection of books... it seems like a lot of trouble to record stellar events and when to plant for harvest etc. Also the 'sun' and 'Set' part sounds like utter *******.
Manipulated
Pilgrim
The passion was to make money as usual.I doubt anyone is better off after watching someone die brutally.I want to know how Jesus lived not how he died.