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PlotSpoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.
The film opens (in medias res) with Jesus in the midst of an agonizing struggle about whether to go through with the crucifixion in the Garden of Gethsemane, on the Mount of Olives. He temporarily leaves to pray, and finds Peter, James, and John sleeping against a tree. Jesus wakes them and asks why they could not watch one hour with him. They respond with concern, asking whether they should summon the other Apostles. Jesus responds that he does not want them to see him in such a horrid condition and tells them to keep watching and to pray.
We return to Gethsemane and Jesus praying, where we see he is being tempted by Satan (portrayed here as an androgynous, albino-like figure[1]) to abandon the idea that one man can redeem the sins of the world. Jesus agonises over his coming death, but resists all temptation by calling on his Heavenly Father. Guards from the temple arrive with Judas so that he can identify Jesus. Jesus tells the guards calmly and unhesitatingly who he is. Judas then steps up and kisses him on the cheek, a signal to the guards that Jesus is the one they want. Jesus berates Judas for betraying the Son of Man with a kiss. As Jesus is being shackled up, Peter attacks one of the guards, Malchus, with his sword slicing off Malchus' ear. Jesus picks it up and holds it against the guard's head, while telling Peter to drop his sword. Peter does so, and we see the guard's face is healed. Malchus is stunned and the Apostles flee in terror. Jesus is then dragged away by the guards, leaving the previously injured Malchus kneeling there, amazed and deeply touched by what has just happened. Mary, the mother of Jesus, awakes from what seems to be a nightmare. Mary Magdelene is concerned and asks whether Mary is all right. Mary, instinctively knowing something is wrong, responds by quoting from the prayers of Passover, "Why is this night different than other nights?" Mary Magdalene responds, "Because once we were slaves and we are slaves no longer." Suddenly John bursts in, telling them both that Jesus has been arrested. As Jesus is being taken to the palace of Caiaphas, he is beaten with his chains and is repeatedly beaten about the face, leaving one eye swollen shut. Judas is sitting under a bridge when Jesus is thrown over it by the Temple guards. Judas looks on with agony and shame. A demon appears from out of the air and sends a terrified Judas running away. Image:Medium passion du christ1.jpg The film begins in media res at the Garden of Gethsemane. Above, Jesus Christ (James Caviezel) is pictured praying while Satan (Rosalinda Celentano) watches at a distance.
A horrified Peter attempts to flee, but is seized by several people who point out that he is a disciple of Jesus. Peter denies it each of the three times it is pointed out. As Jesus turns around and bores into him with his uninjured eye, Peter is overwhelmed with guilt and shame. When the Virgin Mary attempts to comfort him, Peter flees, crying that he is unworthy and bewailing what he has done. Judas goes to Caiaphas and pleads with him to release Jesus and take back the money. However, Caiaphas refuses to take it back, declaring that if Judas thinks he has betrayed innocent blood, it is his problem. Judas angrily throws the money on the Temple floor and runs off grief-stricken. As he sits by a fire, two children approach him and ask him what's wrong. When Judas curses them, they turn into demons. They chase Judas, tormenting him as he flees outside the city walls (Satan is visible among them). After they disappear, Judas finds a dead donkey being devoured by maggots. Overwhelmed with despair and unable to live with his shame, Judas takes the rope which was on the donkey and hangs himself from a tree. Meanwhile, the Temple priests bring Jesus to the court of Pontius Pilate, so that he may be crucified under Roman Law. Pilate angrily demands to know whether they always punish their prisoners before they are tried. After Caiaphas responds that Jesus has declared himself the Messiah, Pontius privately examines him. He offers Jesus a goblet of wine, but Jesus, having vowed to no longer drink the fruit of the vine at the Last Supper, politely declines. Pilate asks whether He is the King of the Jews. Jesus responds that his kingdom is not of this world and that if it were, His servants would never have allowed him to be handed over to his enemies. He further declares that all who hear the truth hear his voice. Pilate cynically retorts, "What is truth?" Pilate returns to the crowd, tells them that he finds no crime in Jesus and orders the priests to bring him before King Herod Antipas, because Jesus is a Nazarene, and thus one of Herod's subjects. Caiaphas angrily protests but grudgingly obeys. Herod is an effeminate bisexual, deeply impressed by reports of Jesus's miracles. When Jesus remains silent and will not respond to his pleas to work "a little miracle for me", Herod mocks him, laughing that Jesus is just "crazy." When the priests return him to Pilate, he is not pleased. He forces Caiaphas to choose between the release of a "notorious murderer" named Barabbas and clemency for Jesus. Caiaphas cries "Release Barabbas!" Image:Passion trial.jpg Pontius Pilate (Hristo Shopov) asks the crowd whom to release: Barabbas or Jesus? Pilate asks them what they feel a fair punishment would be, and the crowd, bribed by the Temple priests, scream out "Crucify him!" Pilate refuses, fearing that Jesus's followers will revolt and that the ensuing bloodshed will turn the Emperor against him. Instead, he orders Jesus to be flogged, hoping that the sight will make Caiaphas and the Sanhedrin reconsider their desire for the death penalty. Jesus is shackled to a broken pillar. Two Roman soldiers are to carry out the flagellation. They each pick up wooden switches and commence striking Jesus on the back. He is bruised, bloodied, and beaten, and sinks to his knees. Mary, Mary Magdelene, and John all watch, utterly shattered. To everyone's astonishment, Jesus wills himself back to his feet, even after the beating has exhausted the guards. They angrily put down the rods and each pick up a barbed scourge and continue. Jesus' flesh is further mutilated to the point where his left rib cage is visible. He seems on the brink of death before Abenader, the centurion who will later become St. Ctesiphon, angrily orders the flogging to cease, saying that they were not authorized to scourge him to death. The soldiers grudgingly put down their whips and release Jesus, having to drag him away because his agony is too great. The Virgin Mary and Mary Magdelene are presented with linen towels by Claudia Procles, Pilate's wife, who is just as crushed as they over what has just happened. They both go down to the courtyard and begin mopping the blood with the linen. Magdelene weeps as she remembers how Jesus saved her once from being stoned to death when she was still a sinner. Jesus is seen in a barn-like room, sitting against a wooden post. The two Roman soldiers who flogged him drive a crown of thorns into his scalp and spit on him. He is given a red soldier's cloak and mockingly treated with royal homage. "Hail, King of the Worms", laughs one of the guards as he bows. Jesus is then brought back to Pontius Pilate who is disgusted by how badly beaten Jesus is. He asks the rioting crowds if they are satisfied, but Caiaphas still demands that Jesus be crucified. Pilate disgustedly washes his hands of the whole affair and declares, "I am innocent of this man's blood." He orders Abenader to do as Caiaphas demands. We then see Jesus walking between two other criminals sentenced to the same fate He is. The two beside him are tied only to their cross' uprights -- Jesus must carry his own huge cross. Jesus embraces his cross, prompting mockery from one of the thieves. As He carries it through the streets, He is endlessly beaten and yelled at by the crowds and the Roman soldiers alike. Mary, Mary Magdelene, and St. John follow him. While struggling down a small alleyway, Jesus trips and falls with the cross. The cross crushes him, Mary runs to her son, flashing back to a time when he fell as a small child. As she reaches him she tries to comfort him, saying, "I'm here." Jesus looks at her, and wills himself to his feet to carry his cross, and, quoting the Book of Revelation 21: 5 declares "Behold, Mother, I make all things new." He rises to his feet and continues on his way. As Jesus keeps walking, He continues to fall under the weight of the heavy cross. The guards mock him and whip him each time. Abenader approaches again and, noting how weak Jesus has become, orders the soldiers to help Jesus carry the cross. Instead of doing this themselves, they find a man in the crowds, Simon of Cyrene, to help. He grudgingly agrees to help. As the two keep going, Jesus falls without the cross. Simon is shocked at the weight which he cannot carry by himself. A riot breaks out, with groups of people fighting to get a chance at beating Jesus. Guards fight them off, and as that happens, Veronica approaches Jesus with a cloth and a pitcher of water. Jesus uses the cloth to wipe his bloodied face. However, as he goes to take a drink, a soldier walks over and kicks the cup over, and drives Veronica away. As the procession continues the viewer sees that Veronica's Veil has been imprinted with the image of his face. While the soldiers continue to beat Jesus with whips, Simon angrily threatens to not help with the cross if they do not cease their beatings. They scornfully call him "Jew", but they oblige. The procession continues, headed for Golgotha, or "The Place of the Skull." Once there, Simon is ordered to leave. As he is driven away, he looks into Jesus's one open eye with love and pity. We see Mary, Mary Magdelene and John again. They all watch as Jesus is stretched onto the cross. They nail both of his hands, dislocating his right arm in order to make his hand reach the pre-drilled hole for the nail. In the midst of his agony, Jesus prays for mercy for all the sinners of the world, crying "Forgive them, Father. They know not what they do..." They then bind and nail his feet. They flip the cross over on Jesus' front side, however, Jesus is elevated off the ground. After pounding the tips of the nails down, the guards then flip the cross back over and raise it. As the cross is raised, we are taken to a flashback of the Last Supper, considered by Christians to be the first Eucharist. We watch as Jesus elevates the Host. On the cross, he is mocked by Caiaphas and the Temple priests, and by the thief to his right, who tells him to save them all if he is truly the Son of God. Jesus prays, "Father forgive them, they know not what they do." The thief on his right tells Caiaphas, "Listen, He prays for you." The Good Thief then tells Jesus his punishment is just, and that Jesus would be justified in condemning him, but he says, "Lord, remember me when I come into your Kingdom." Jesus tells the thief "On this day, you will be with me in paradise." As the other thief cackles with laughter over this, a crow comes from the sky and plucks at his face. Image:P8passion.jpg Jesus on the cross Jesus grows weaker; simultaneously, the skies are turning darker. Mary and John approach Jesus on his cross. Jesus declares, "I thirst!" A sympathetic Roman soldier named Cassius, later to become St. Longinus, puts a sponge on a spear and soaks it in, according to the Bible, vinegar (although whether this is water or vinegar is not specified in the film). Jesus tastes it and then turns his head aside. The Virgin Mary pleads with Jesus to let her die with him. Jesus then tells Mary that John will now take care of her, and tells John that Mary is now his mother. Jesus then cries out in Aramaic, quoting the twenty-second Psalm, "My God! My God! Why have you forsaken me?" ("Eli, eli, lamai sabactani?") Jesus then looks down upon them, saying, "It is completed." Mary Magdelene weeps. Jesus then looks upward and gasps "Father, into your hands I commend my spirit." The pupil of his one open eye dilates, and he exhales his last breath. God then cries a tear that creates a violent earthquake. All the spectators of the crucifixion flee, and the soldiers are ordered to break the criminals' legs, in order to hasten their deaths. The Roman soldier Cassius breaks the legs of the thieves to Jesus' sides, but when he comes to break Jesus' legs, there is another tremble from the Earth. He tells Abenader that Jesus is already dead. Abenader orders him to make sure. Cassius then drives a lance into Jesus's side. Blood and water pour from the wound as Cassius falls to his knees. It is at this moment that everyone, Romans and Jews alike, realize they have indeed killed the Son of God. Meanwhile, back at the temple, the earthquake has shattered it in half and the Holy of Holies is revealed. Caiaphas, stricken with horror and shock, begins to weep. In the depths of Hell, Satan screams in impotent rage, knowing that his power has been broken forever. That night, Jesus is removed from the cross. Mary embraces the body of her beloved son in a manner reminiscent of Michelangelo's Pieta, kissing him one last time. The Virgin Mary stares blankly ahead, her eyes a mirror of her broken heart. We are then shown the interior of his tomb three days later, on Easter Sunday. We hear a rock rolling and as the morning light slowly streams into the interior, we see Jesus resurrected and his scourging wounds healed. He opens his eyes and stands up, and we see the hole in his hand from the nail. He walks out of his tomb to triumphant music. Spoilers end here.
StyleIn a departure from previous films depicting the life of Jesus, the dialogue is spoken entirely in Aramaic, Latin and Hebrew. After a lengthy internal debate, Gibson finally decided to include subtitles, except for one controversial line of crowd dialogue: "His blood be upon us" (see blood curse and Matthew 27:25) and a few bits of soldiers' dialogue. The scourging and crucifixion sequences are exceptionally violent and graphic, earning the movie an R-rating in the United States. These scenes required Jim Caviezel, who portrays Jesus, to endure seven hours of makeup sessions daily, in addition to actually being flogged when the actors portraying Roman flagellants hit him accidentally during the filming of the scourging scene. Reportedly, Gibson called the makeup crew over to examine the whip wounds for more accurate duplication. In New Zealand, the Society for the Protection of Community Standards, a group who have traditionally opposed and criticised violence in movies, came out in support of the Passion, requesting lower ratings [2]. Critics of the group said these requests, from a group that makes frequent submissions against movies to the OFLC, are highly hypocritical [3]. The Passion of the Christ ends on a hopeful note with the Resurrection. The scene shows the shroud that Jesus was buried in is empty, and the view pans over to Jesus. Except for the holes in his hands (and presumably his feet, though they are not shown), Jesus is completely healed. The final scene shows him walking from the tomb. In many areas attention was paid to historical detail, such as the traditional clothing of the period and Jewish dietary customs. Gibson's film was produced in Italy, on locations that were selected to evoke Caravaggio's paintings.[4] ProductionTraditionalist Catholic priest Stephen Somerville was on set during the entire filming.[citation needed] Jim Caviezel, the American actor playing Jesus, is, like Mel Gibson, a devout Catholic.[citation needed] Caviezel suffered numerous injuries and ailments during the production.[5]. He separated his shoulder while filming a scene in which Jesus falls and the cross lands on his back. The complex full-body makeup required the actor to be awake at 2 a.m. to undergo several hours of application of the appliances that would make it look like he had been viciously flayed. Caviezel also was struck by lightning during the shooting; upon rising from the hit without major damage, he reportedly said, "I guess He didn't like that take." Key production assistant Jan Michelini was allegedly struck by lightning twice and given the name Jan "Lightning Boy" Michelini in the film's closing credits. [6] and [7]. Cast and crewCast
Crew
Mel Gibson's roleMel Gibson played a crucial role in getting The Passion of the Christ made; he personally committed an estimated $40m to $50m of his own resources to finance and advertise the film. In addition to directing and co-producing the film, he also co-wrote the screenplay with Benedict Fitzgerald. Because of the subject, the graphic violence in the film, and, most of all, because the actors in the film spoke Aramaic, Gibson reportedly had difficulty finding a company to distribute it in the United States. In fact, the film was completed before a distributor, Newmarket Films, agreed to release it in the U.S. In Canada, Equinox Films was the distributor. Icon Films distributed it in the United Kingdom and Australia. In addition to the repeated accusations of anti-Semitism, Gibson’s Traditionalist Catholic beliefs were also a frequent target of attacks. The film was seen by many critics to be nothing less than a modern-day Passion play that propagates the Jews' guilt of deicide. However, Romanian-Jewish actress Maia Morgenstern, who plays the Blessed Virgin Mary in the film and who is also the daughter of a Holocaust survivor, rejects these criticisms. In an interview filmed for the PAX documentary about the making of the film, Morgenstern said that she had read the script with her father and they both found it "beautiful, very poetic, and very philosophical." Gibson's religious beliefs, which inspired the film, are those of Traditional Catholicism, which rejects most of the changes which followed in the wake of the Second Vatican Council. Gibson intended the movie to be faithful not to the New Testament alone, but rather to the New Testament as viewed through Catholic Tradition. Mel Gibson said (in The Passion: Photography from the Movie "The Passion of the Christ", ISBN 0-8423-7362-4): This is a movie about love, hope, faith, and forgiveness. He [Jesus] died for all mankind, suffered for all of us. It's time to get back to that basic message. The world has gone nuts. We could all use a little more love, faith, hope, and forgiveness. It was me that put him on the cross. It was my sins [who put him there]. Thus Gibson took a cameo role in the film: it is literally his hands that nail Jesus to the cross (seen in close-up only). But, arguably, the strongest criticism directed at Mel Gibson was due to his refusal to denounce the beliefs of his father, Hutton Gibson. The elder Gibson is extremely outspoken against the post-Vatican II Roman Catholic Church, even writing a scathing criticism of the late Pope John Paul II (Karol Józef Wojtyła,) whom the elder Gibson called "Garrulous Karolus the Qur'an Kisser." Hutton Gibson has labeled the Second Vatican Council a plot launched by the Jews and the Masons to take over the Roman Catholic Church. Friends close to both Gibsons say that although Mel Gibson loves his father dearly and abides by the biblical dictum "honor thy father and mother", they disagree on a number of subjects. One called Hutton Gibson "an old man with strange views." Even ABC's newsanchor Diane Sawyer was sternly rebuked by Mel Gibson during the airing of a special about The Passion of the Christ when she brought up some of Hutton Gibson’s statements, ostensibly to give Mel the opportunity to say "I don't agree with my father on that." Instead, he said "He's my father... I love him... gotta leave it alone, Diane. [You] gotta leave it alone." Many saw this as a missed opportunity for Mel Gibson; Gibson's supporters contend that Sawyer was asking a loaded question and got the response she was expecting. Title changesOn October 17, 2003, Gibson's film production company announced the title of the film had been changed from The Passion to The Passion of Christ, because the title The Passion had already been trademarked by a different motion picture. This was then further amended to The Passion of the Christ. The following week Gibson announced a distribution arrangement had been reached with the independent Newmarket Films. PromotionGibson departed considerably from the usual formula for marketing a film: a small TV campaign, no press junkets, etc. [8] The film was, however, heavily promoted by many church groups, both within their organizations and to the general public, in some cases giving away free tickets. The controversy in the media prior to release over the film's alleged anti-Semitism also helped raise its profile. Some evangelical Christians considered the release of the movie to be a crucial moment for evangelism. Marta Poling-Goldenne, Minister for Outreach of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Grand Canyon Synod said in a 2004 email to pastors: Seize this mission moment, friends! God is providing "the best outreach opportunity in the last 2,000 years" for us to witness about the gospel story to people for whom it may be very unfamiliar or unknown. Rabbi Skobac from the group Jews for Judaism said: For the 75 million evangelical Christians the film is the greatest thing they've had in 2,000 years to convert people to their faith... Some bloggers claim that the film's promotional campaign has used blog spam [9] [10], mainly on LiveJournal, in an attempt to increase the Google ranking of the film's web page. With the film's successful marketing strategy, Walt Disney Pictures reportedly took a similar approach with their film adaptation of The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe with its Christian overtones and symbolism as written by C. S. Lewis. Statistics
Commercial successAfter months of controversy that led to more pre-release sales than any film in history, the movie opened in the United States on February 25, 2004 (Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent). It earned $25 million per day in its first five days of release and in short order became the highest-grossing R-rated film ever made. In spite of the criticism , the movie grossed US $611,899,420 worldwide ($370,782,930 in the US alone) and is currently is the eleventh highest-grossing film and the highest-grossing R-rated film of all time.[11] Despite this, the film went without any significant recognition by the major American film award celebrations, although it was nominated for Best Original Score (music), Best Cinematography, and Best Makeup at the 77th Academy Awards. Home videoOn August 31, 2004 the movie was released on DVD and video tape in North America. As with the original release in theaters, the release of the movie on DVD and VHS also proved to be very popular. Early reports indicated that over 2.4 million copies of the film were sold by the middle of the day. The film was available on DVD with English and Spanish subtitles, and on VHS tape with English subtitles. Re-releaseAn edited version of the film was released on March 11, 2005 as The Passion Recut. Mel Gibson removed approximately five minutes of the most graphic footage in an effort to broaden the audience of the film. However, this version was not as successful (just 950 theaters in North America, averaging just 10 viewers per showing) and was quickly pulled from theaters. Even edited, the Motion Picture Association of America still deemed the film too violent to give a PG-13 rating, so Gibson released it without a rating, which limited it due to policies of some chains and independent theaters not to show unrated films. Others simply passed on The Passion Recut because the original version was already available on DVD and VHS. "Exhibitors can decide for themselves how they want to handle the situation," Berney said. "Some may choose to still treat it as an R and not let teens see it, unless accompanied by adults. Others may be willing to treat it as a PG-13. The film is still probably too intense for children, but Mel hoped to make it more available for teens." International box officeOutside of the US, however, the movie has had mixed success. Although as of January 3, 2005, it has the 25th highest all-time worldwide gross ($611.6 million) [12], its non-US ranking is 59th [13]. This is not the result of a lack of interest in countries without Christian majorities, as its success in many Christian majority countries has also been less than stellar. For example, it did not make the top-100 all time UK box office list as of January 18, 2005 [14] and its position as of October 31, 2004 stood at 132nd [15]. Similarly in Australia, as of March 2, 2005 it held the 116th position [16] or the 294th position in the adjusted list [17]. As of November 22, 2004, it was below the 140th position in the German all-time box office [18] and as of August 10, 2004, it was below the 121st position in the French all-time box office [19]. The figures suggest its position in both countries would be quite a bit lower then the lowest listed positions [20]. The movie was reported by the Christian Science Monitor [21] to have been a great success in Middle Eastern countries. For example, it was the top grossing movie for 3 consecutive weeks in Egypt [22], Lebanon [23] and Turkey [24] and also at least 2 consecutive weeks in United Arab Emirates [25]. It also broke the record for the top grossing opening week for a non-Egyptian movie in Egypt [26] and as of 21st February 2005 was number 11th in the all-time Egyptian box office for non-Egyptian movies [27]. The Definitive Edition DVDAlthough a strong seller, the original DVD release of The Passion of The Christ included virtually no special features (other than language selection), causing many to wonder when a "special edition" release of the DVD would come out. On January 30 2007, a two-disc Definitive Edition of The Passion of The Christ was released in the US and Canada, with various making-of featurettes, commentaries, deleted scenes, outtakes, as well as the 2005 re-cut version along with the original 2004 theatrical version. The Definitive Edition will be released in the United Kingdom and elsewhere on March 26, 2007 Source materialThere is no unique narration of the Passion in the Gospels. According to John, Jesus was arrested by Jewish aides of the Sanhedrin, but then was only questioned by Anas and Caiaphas (no trial), while according to the Synoptics, he was only arrested by the Jewish aides, and condemned by the Sanhedrin. Gibson intended the movie to be faithful to the New Testament, but did use elements culled from extra-biblical sources to flesh out the screenplay. Arguably, the most controversial of those was The Dolorous Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ from the meditations of the Augustinian nun Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich (1774-1824) as recorded in the journal of Clemens Brentano. Dictated to a writer by a stigmatic German nun of the Augustinian Order named Anne Catherine Emmerich, the book chronicled Emmerich's visions of Christ’s Passion, which sometimes depicted the Jews as even more vicious and bloodthirsty than the Romans who ruled Judaea at the time. The film also incorporates material from The Mystical City of God by Maria de Agreda(1602-1665) (a 17th century Spanish nun). Some scenes, however, are purely poetic license. Many critics contend that the habits worn by Maia Morgenstern and Monica Bellucci, who portrayed Mary Magdalene in the film, are similar to the habits worn by the nuns of the Augustinian Order, and were a tribute to Emmerich. Differences from the New TestamentMany religious scholars [28] state that the movie often departs from the New Testament in significant ways. Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.
Historicity
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