The Passion

Here is the infamous movie trailer for Mel Gibson's upcoming film, The Passion. The film will recount the last few hours of Jesus' life, with dialog being in two prevalent tongues of the day: Latin and Aramaic. Caution: The trailer is about 22 MB. You will have a better chance if you have a direct Internet connection.

Yes, it looks magnificent. I hadn't blogged on this before, and while I am looking forward to the movie's release, and while I also think that rightful criticism should wait until the film is out, I nevertheless think that those who have asked questions as to the possible anti-semitic tones in the script haven't been treated fairly by those who see them as somehow attacking the film. From what I have seen, a script was released, people saw it, and based on that and other things, they felt it important to ask some good questions regarding the nature of some of the elements in the script. From what I see, this amounts to nothing more than honest inquiry, which we as Christians should welcome in order to ensure that a film about Christ, albeit his last few hours, is as honestly and factually portrayed as possible. I disagree with those who feel that asking questions somehow constitutes an attack, even if those questions are challenging. If the story in the film is legitimately told, it should be strong enough to stand up to challenging questions, which we should have no problem asking. A sort of advocatus diaboli, if you will. I have seen very little honest answers given and a lot more hateful drivel than I care to see from Christians regarding the matter.

I can judge a film based on its plot, cinematography, music, and character development when it is released. But if a script is put in front of me (however that happens), and if what I read prompts me to ask some questions as to what will be in the final release, why should my questions be met with hostility and not with charity?