The Passion of the Christ (DVD, 2004, Widescreen)

This film tells the story of the last 12 hours in the life of Jesus (Caviezel), on the day of his crucifixion in Jerusalem. This film's script is based upon several sources, including the diaries of St. Anne Catherine Emmerich (1774-1824) as collected in the book, "The Dolorous Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ", "The Mystical City of God" by St. Mary of Agreda, and the New Testament books of John, Luke, Mark and Matthew.

The film opens in the Garden of Olives (Gethsemane) where Jesus has gone to pray after the Last Supper. Jesus resists Satan's temptations. Betrayed by Judas Iscariot, Jesus is arrested and taken back to within the city walls of Jerusalem where the leaders of the Pharisees confront him with accusations of blasphemy and his trial results in a condemnation to death. Jesus is brought before Pilate, the Roman Governor of Palestine, who listens to the accusations leveled at him by the Pharisees. Realizing he is confronting a political conflict, Pilate defers to King Herod in the matter. Herod returns Jesus to Pilate who gives the crowd a choice between Jesus and the criminal Barrabas. The crowd chooses to have Barrabas set free and to condemn Jesus. Jesus is handed over to the Roman soldiers and flagellated. Unrecognizable now, he is brought back before Pilate, who presents him to the crowd as if to say "is this not enough?" It is not. Pilate washes his hands of the entire dilemma, ordering his men to do as the crowd wishes. Jesus is presented with the cross and is ordered to carry it through the streets of Jerusalem all the way up to Golgotha. On Golgotha, Jesus is nailed to the cross and undergoes his last temptation - the fear that he has been abandoned by his Father. He overcomes his fear, looks at Mary, his Holy Mother, and makes the pronouncement which only she can fully understand, "it is accomplished." He then dies: "into Thy hands I commend my Spirit."

I am at a lost as to why people claim this movie is so good, I can see why it did so well but not why people thought it was such a great movie. I think the reason why most people claim the movie was so brilliant is because it meant something to them and not because of its actually filming. The movie is overly violent with no purpose other than to shock the audience into apathy and creating a controversy that eventually lead to huge box office numbers. I am not a big religious person but I don't think Christ would want people glorifying his death but rather his life and his teachings. One does not need to see this gross and utterly pointless savagery. The best moments of the film are easily the peaceful scenes in between the savagery and blood letting. The film could have done like that entirely peaceful with the teachings of Christ and been just as powerful and maybe more loved. The movie does nothing more than draw on your own personal beliefs to affirm itself, it has nothing to offer itself except the savage beating and death of a man in an overly gratuitous manner. It simply doesn't stand alone the audience brought the story in with them, if you strip the audience of this knowledge before they saw the movie they would be disgusted by the movie and hate it. They do not even attempt to try telling any back story, rather relying on the audience to know it before hand so they can assault you with images of violence. Sure the movie is brilliantly shot, from a technical standpoint the movie is gorgeous but this movie is a mockery of everything Christ would have stood fo

Certain critics were troubled by the film's explicitly-detailed violence, and especially cautioned parents to avoid taking their children to the cinema. Although only one sentence in three of the Gospels mentions Jesus's flogging, and it is unmentioned in the fourth, The Passion of the Christ devotes ten minutes to the portrayal of the flogging. Film critic Roger Ebert, who rated the movie four-out-of-four stars, said in his review:

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.

Ebert also mentioned that the R-rated film merits the MPAA NC-17 rating in a "Movie Answer Man" response, adding that no level-minded parent should ever allow children to see it.[59]

A.O. Scott, in The New York Times, said, The Passion of the Christ is so relentlessly focused on the savagery of Jesus' final hours that this film seems to arise less from love than from wrath, and to succeed more in assaulting the spirit than in uplifting it."[60]

David Edelstein, Slate's film critic, dubbed the film "a two-hour-and-six-minute snuff movie — The Jesus Chainsaw Massacre — that thinks it's an act of faith", and further criticised Gibson for focusing on the brutality of Jesus' execution, instead of his religious teachings.[61]

During Diane Sawyer's interview of him, Gibson said:

I wanted it to be shocking; and I wanted it to be extreme ... So that they see the enormity [wrong choice of words] — the enormity of that sacrifice; to see that someone could endure that and still come back with love and forgiveness, even through extreme pain and suffering and ridicule. The actual crucifixion was more violent than what was shown on the film, but I thought no one would get anything out of i

THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST depicts the last 12 hours of the life of Jesus of Nazareth, beginning with his betrayal by Judas and ending with his crucifixion and subsequent resurrection.

Because only a hermit will not be aware of this film, you've either seen it or you haven't. If you're a Christian (and I am), it's almost required watching if for no other reason but to see how your Savior is portrayed on film. So assuming you're one of the very few who didn't see this film, mired briefly in phony controversy and wrong accusations of anti-semitism, I will review it as if you haven't seen it.

You already know the story. You also already know the sad, if not bittersweet ending. But you have never seen a more spectacular film depicting the life of Jesus Christ. The most distinctive thing about this masterwork is the feeling it imparts of actually being there -- at once, unsettling and emotional.

More than a cinematic experience, I came away from this film with my then young daughter, having spent an inordinate amount of time openly weeping. Obviously, this film will have more impact and meaning to people of faith than random atheists, because you come away with a genuine feel for what these days would have been like if you had been there.

The flogging and crucifixion of Jesus was at once gripping and real beyond expectations. One special moment for me was when Jesus fell and His mother rushed to his side, recalling when he was small and fell as a child. Helping Him to his feet, He looked at her and said, "See, Mother? I make all things new." And I broke down and cried.

The movie is bigger than can be described here. It was a life-changing experience for me that I would heartily recommend to anyone who has even a passing interest in the life of Christ. Watch Mel Gibson's masterpiece.

You won't be sorry.

Mel Gibson did a gorgeous job of portraying Jesus Christ's life and tragic death in this soul-stirring movie. It is a bit gory but what else would a crucifixion be like? Blood, pain, and sorrow are the elements of such a Roman execution. I was moved to tears and reminded of my own sin and the deep, perfect forgiveness of God that surpasses all understanding. Two thumbs up for Mel's courage in producing such a shocking but much-needed film. Beautiful!