Film Review: The Passion of the Christ (2004)

Films are supposed to be universal. In the beginning, during silent era, they were, because lack of language barriers meant that they could be understood by audiences in different countries, cultures or social classes. Later, that universality was maintained for commercial reasons, with Hollywood giving the most obvious example with its attempt to sell its product to the broadest audience possible. However, there are some instances when such universality can’t be achieved – films that will always mean different things to different people. One of such examples can be found in The Passion of the Christ, 2004 biblical drama directed by Mel Gibson, which is considered to be one of the most divisive films of 21st Century.

The plot, based on New Testament and The Dolorous Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ, 1833 book by German Catholic nun and mystic Anne Catherine Emmerich, is set in 1st Century AD Judea and depicts the last twelve hours in life of Jesus of Nazareth (played by Jim Caviezel). It begins in Garden of Gethsemane where Jesus prays with his disciples, before being tempted by Satan (played by Rosalinda Celentano). Soon afterwards he is betrayed by Judas Iscariot (played by Luca Lionello), arrested and brought to Sanhedrin where Jewish high priest Caiaphas (played by Mattia Sbraglia). After being condemned to death for blasphemy, Jesus is sent to Roman governor Pontius Pilate (played by Hristo Naumov Shopov) who is, at the urging of his wife Claudia Procles (played by Claudia Gerini), is reluctant to give punishment but later succumbs to the wishes of the crowd. Jesus is flogged and sentenced to death by crucifixion. Jesus carries his cross, being followed by his mother Mary (played by Maia Morgenstern) and Mary of Magdalene (played by Monica Bellucci), and arrives to Golgotha where he would be crucified.

Jesus has been depicted on big screen many times by many different film makers, ranging from Cecile B. DeMille to Martin Scorsese. The most memorable of such depictions were the very personal works, clearly inspired by their author’s deep religious beliefs. Mel Gibson wasn’t any different and The Passion of the Christ was very personal film, motivated by his own personal struggles and the way they reflected through his very own and very traditional interpretation of Catholicism. Hollywood, for one reason or another, had very little understanding for Gibson’s vision and, despite Gibson being one of the biggest stars at the time, he didn’t find a major studio willing to finance his project and had to pay for its production from his pocket, later having to rely to network of clergy, various churches and religious sectors of public for advertising and distribution. The gamble ultimately paid off, making The Passion of the Christ one of the most commercially successful films of its time, but the crucial element of this success was controversy.

Part of that controversy was created by Gibson’s decision to make his film both faithful to its religious source, while being as realistic and authentic portrayal of 1st Century Judea as possible. That, among other things, meant that Jim Caviezel, actor portraying Jesus, had to use contact lenses to make his eyes look brown and himself more like an average inhabitant of Palestine at the time. Gibson also decided to have all the dialogue in Latin and Aramaic, actual languages that were spoken at the time. But the most memorable element of realism was the gruesome reconstruction of the physical abuse Jesus received by his captors before his death. The abuse is depicted with great detail, using a lot of makeup, fake blood, prosthetics and even some CGI to make Jesus’ wounds look as horrific as possible. Gibson’s idea was to remind audience of the sacrifice Jesus made in order to redeem the world of the sin. Many critics would say that he went too far, and that those scenes are too uncomfortable and too shocking, making The Passion of the Christ resemble snuff film rather than serious religious drama. Some of those complaints were recognised even by Gibson, who in 2005 released new version of the film with five minutes of the most problematic scenes edited out. Even worse source of controversy, that arose even before film actually came to theatres, was alleged anti-Semitism, with many critics interpreting seemingly sympathetic portrayal of Pilate as the most human of all character as Gibson absolving Romans of the guilt for Jesus’ death and putting it all at the hands of Jews. Those accusations, that would gain further weight few years later after Gibson’s infamous drunken rant, fell on the fertile ground in the heated political atmosphere in months before 2004 US presidential election, in which mobilisation of evangelical Christians played important role, just as the increasingly bloody aftermath of Iraq invasion gave ample example how religious passions, if stirred enough on a page or at the screen, might inspire apocalyptic deeds in reality.

Those viewers who manage to ignore the controversy and attempt to approach The Passion of the Christ with some sort of the objectivity would find it to be a well-made film. Gibson has honed his directorial skills well in previous decade and he handles plot well, keeps good tempo and puts talents of cinematographer Caleb Deschanel to good use, especially in the scenes inspired by Caravaggio’s paintings. Same can be said of the cast led by Jim Caviezel who, as devout Catholic, had very personal reasons to take this project and deliver standout performance while playing Jesus. Hristo Naumov Shopov is very convincing in the role of Pilate, while Monica Bellucci looks a little bit too Hollywood-like for Mary Magdalene. Composer John Debney delivers serviceable, but not particularly memorable music score.

Those talents, however, can’t solve the film’s main problem. The Passion of the Christ is the film made by Christians for Christians and it is only that segment of the audience that can properly understand or, more importantly, emotionally connect with its content. Good example is provided by Roger Ebert, critic who, despite being social liberal and opposed to right-wing Gibson on many issues, praised the film on the account on his own Catholic background. Non-Christians are likely to appreciate Gibson’s skill, but unlikely to be particularly moved by his work, just as visit to museum with Classical art isn’t likely to convert people into worshippers of ancient Greek gods. Despite that, The Passion of the Christ is a remarkable piece of cinema that should admired despite its real of alleged faults or the faults of its author.

RATING: 6/10 (++)

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