Passion Review
I went into the movie thinking the "passion" referred to his death and agony, I left the movie thinking it meant his passion (love) for us. Don Imus asked Sen. Santorum if God might've found a less bloody way to say that but is there a more convincing way? That He would surrender himself to his creatures?
One of the most moving scenes was when Mary met Jesus while he was carrying His cross and he said, "See Mother, I make all things new." Suffering is now redemptive, enemies are to be loved. Also particularly memorable was Mary, always a step ahead of the curve, wiping up the blood of Jesus, aware of its preciousness. Effective too was a flashback of Jesus saying, "No servant is greater than his master. If they persecute me, they will persecute you" and just as he says this Caviezel looks into the camera - at us.
Gibson's take on Simon of Cyrene was interesting. Simon encourages Jesus by telling him "not much farther", and it is as if Jesus draws strength from Simon, an odd thought at first given the role-reversal of the human being encouraging the divine. Similarly, the body language of Jesus when the thief on the cross believes in him. But of course, Jesus was also fully human and this film really expores Jesus's full humanity even though there is a supernatural aspect to the suffering. Gibson seems to say Jesus took on superhuman physical suffering, enduring a blood loss that would render a human body unable to function, symbolic of His taking on an impossible burden of sin. This "impossibility" meant Jesus had to trust the Father in a new, even more extraordinary way, and Gibson suggests the Father provided invaluable relief in the form of Simon and the thief on the cross. I was also struck by the truth of the verse "the Spirit blows where it will" because even for Jesus the moments of Fatherly affirmation in His life (such as occurred at His baptism) happened when the Father willed it. On the cross, despite His feeling of forsakenness, the affirmation didn't come, perhaps so that we feel solidarity with Him when we feel forsaken.
I don't think the movie will be as evangelistic as I'd once thought. To give a personal example, my non-Christian brother-in-law has refused to ever see it. The movie has an aspect of "preaching to the choir", but the choir is always in need of preaching.
The USCCB reviewer thought there was too much emphasis on the "how" of the Crucifixion rather than the "why"...I wish the reviewer would've "said more words" and explained what more he wanted. I'm honestly curious. Atonement theories? Another review, from Todd McCarthy in Variety, particularly caught my attention: "If an age produces the renditions of classic stories that reflect those times, then The Passion of the Christ - which is violent, contentious, emotional, extreme and highly proficient - must be the Jesus movie for this era."
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