Thursday, February 26, 2004
THE PASSION OF THE ALAN
The cold is slightly better today. Thanks.
I'm going to give you my honest review of the movie, "The Passion of the Christ"...in light of belief #5 from yesterday's post, I think I'm more right than ever. I'll present my views in much the same way.
1. The violence is overstated.
I expected a lot of gore, but it wasn't that bad. It's interesting to hear the sudden concern from long-time movie reviewers (the pros, as it were) about the violence. I've seen violent movies before, and this isn't one of them...or as bad as some. Most of the offense might be because it's happening to a person a lot of us know, personally...it's a real historical figure (if you're a New Testament believer, that is). Some of the Christian reviewers, I bet, haven't been in a movie theatre much in the past - if at all - and they might find it more violent than they expected, but I didn't. I can't prove it, but I sensed that a fair number of people seeing this movie can't recall the last time they were IN a movie theatre.
2. It IS anti-semitic.
But it's the truth. Jews, in fact, DID shout "crucify him" according to the Bible. The Jewish leaders at the time were, in fact, jealous and fearful of Jesus. It ISN'T anti-semitic towards ALL Jews...just those who took part in convincing Pilate to crucify him. The scene where Pilate offers Jesus or Barrabas to the crowd was proof enough for me. I couldn't get over the look on the faces of the Jewish leaders when Pilate released the murderer instead of Jesus out of my mind. For a moment, I sensed that they "knew not what they did"...
3. It is beautiful.
The photography, realism, mood, acting...everything is nearly perfect. It's gorgeous to watch. A movie-goer simply interested in seeing well-done art, will leave happy from the experience of seeing this movie. For me, it ranks right up there with Lawrence of Arabia. It's especially surprising given the use of languages that haven't been heard in nearly 2-thousand years. Think of how difficult it was for Kevin Costner to pull off an English accent (which he didn't), and you'll understand how nearly impossible this was for the actors in the movie to do...to carry the feeling, inflections, and passion in a language you don't speak. Astounding.
4. The hype is a bit too much.
I was expecting a life-changing experience...I didn't come away from the movie with any other feeling other than appreciating a great film. I was expecting to be shocked, emotional...weeping (which is news the elite media seems to love reporting)...but none of that happened. I wasn't stone-silent...I wasn't introspective...none of that. I AM a little more curious and maybe could use a refresher course on the New Testament. That may be the danger the elite media see in this movie that I outlined yesterday. I will attempt to put the movie in the context of the Word, now. Who knows? I may become a better person...is that so bad?
5. This movie is a one-timer.
For other "big movies," I'm usually one of those people that wants to take a second trip down the aisle - so to speak. I may not do that with this movie. When news of the movie was building, I was excited only to the point of wanting to see what all the fuss was about. Unlike Lord of the Rings or something, I don't feel a need to go back and discover what I may have missed in seeing it the first time. The only reason I may want to return another time or two, would be to take my wife - and maybe so I could learn a bit more about the movie to include in my knowledge base...the knowledge base about THE MOVIE.
Well...that's all for now. Tomorrow, I take up the issue of the "new indecency standards" in the media...specifically, RADIO and Howard Stern and...(If I wasn't actually working for them)...a certain mega-media company.
The cold is slightly better today. Thanks.
I'm going to give you my honest review of the movie, "The Passion of the Christ"...in light of belief #5 from yesterday's post, I think I'm more right than ever. I'll present my views in much the same way.
1. The violence is overstated.
I expected a lot of gore, but it wasn't that bad. It's interesting to hear the sudden concern from long-time movie reviewers (the pros, as it were) about the violence. I've seen violent movies before, and this isn't one of them...or as bad as some. Most of the offense might be because it's happening to a person a lot of us know, personally...it's a real historical figure (if you're a New Testament believer, that is). Some of the Christian reviewers, I bet, haven't been in a movie theatre much in the past - if at all - and they might find it more violent than they expected, but I didn't. I can't prove it, but I sensed that a fair number of people seeing this movie can't recall the last time they were IN a movie theatre.
2. It IS anti-semitic.
But it's the truth. Jews, in fact, DID shout "crucify him" according to the Bible. The Jewish leaders at the time were, in fact, jealous and fearful of Jesus. It ISN'T anti-semitic towards ALL Jews...just those who took part in convincing Pilate to crucify him. The scene where Pilate offers Jesus or Barrabas to the crowd was proof enough for me. I couldn't get over the look on the faces of the Jewish leaders when Pilate released the murderer instead of Jesus out of my mind. For a moment, I sensed that they "knew not what they did"...
3. It is beautiful.
The photography, realism, mood, acting...everything is nearly perfect. It's gorgeous to watch. A movie-goer simply interested in seeing well-done art, will leave happy from the experience of seeing this movie. For me, it ranks right up there with Lawrence of Arabia. It's especially surprising given the use of languages that haven't been heard in nearly 2-thousand years. Think of how difficult it was for Kevin Costner to pull off an English accent (which he didn't), and you'll understand how nearly impossible this was for the actors in the movie to do...to carry the feeling, inflections, and passion in a language you don't speak. Astounding.
4. The hype is a bit too much.
I was expecting a life-changing experience...I didn't come away from the movie with any other feeling other than appreciating a great film. I was expecting to be shocked, emotional...weeping (which is news the elite media seems to love reporting)...but none of that happened. I wasn't stone-silent...I wasn't introspective...none of that. I AM a little more curious and maybe could use a refresher course on the New Testament. That may be the danger the elite media see in this movie that I outlined yesterday. I will attempt to put the movie in the context of the Word, now. Who knows? I may become a better person...is that so bad?
5. This movie is a one-timer.
For other "big movies," I'm usually one of those people that wants to take a second trip down the aisle - so to speak. I may not do that with this movie. When news of the movie was building, I was excited only to the point of wanting to see what all the fuss was about. Unlike Lord of the Rings or something, I don't feel a need to go back and discover what I may have missed in seeing it the first time. The only reason I may want to return another time or two, would be to take my wife - and maybe so I could learn a bit more about the movie to include in my knowledge base...the knowledge base about THE MOVIE.
Well...that's all for now. Tomorrow, I take up the issue of the "new indecency standards" in the media...specifically, RADIO and Howard Stern and...(If I wasn't actually working for them)...a certain mega-media company.
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