This weekend we reach the climax of Holy Week as we meditate on the great sacrifice of Christ on Good Friday and rejoice in His resurrection on Easter Sunday. Sara has been sharing a rather extraordinary series of blogs dedicated to this important time in the church calendar. I hope you have had a chance to read and inwardly digest them. She’s done some great work!
Today I share with you my insight on two movies that are very fitting for this time of year — the two most controversial Easter movies of all time. They take polar opposite views of Christ’s life, especially the events leading up to Holy Week, with varying degrees of success.
I feel it necessary before I go any further to confirm that the views I share are mine only and not necessarily the views shared by Sara or any other contributor to the Holy Mess. I want to state that explicitly because my views on these movies are quite contrary to the general public opinion.
The films I have chosen to discuss caused great passion and debate upon their release, and I will do my best to present my opinions to you in a thoughtful and tactful manner. I realize that most of you will disagree with me, but I’m always open to discussion and would love to hear your views. Healthy debate is one of the great pleasures of life.
The 2 Most Controversial Easter Movies of All Time
THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST presented us with the pain of Christ’s sacrifice but not the ultimate victory. © 2004 Icon Productions − All right reserved.
THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST was the big phenomenon of 2004 – hard to believe it’s been 12 years already since it first arrived in theaters. It was expected to play well, as many religious epics have done in the past, but the record-breaking box office numbers for its opening and subsequent run in theaters was overwhelming to say the least. To my knowledge, it remains the highest grossing R-rated movie ever released in the United States. At the church I attended at the time, the pastor mentioned this movie in practically every sermon for months.
I am not a fan of THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST and realize that talking negatively about a movie revolving around Jesus is akin to spanking a puppy or calling a baby ugly. That being said, I have to remain true to my feelings and my own passion. It’s impossible not to be moved by the events portrayed in the film, but that is due to the inherent nature of what is being shown on the screen, not the success of the actual filmmaking itself. As a film, THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST is not particularly well made.
I have to honestly admit that I’ve only seen the film once when it was initially released, so obviously my memories are a bit blurry as to specifics. Like SCHINDLER’S LIST, it’s a movie that I saw once and never want to see again due to the painful experience.
I will discuss in detail the one egregious error I believe Mel Gibson made, an error that mars the movie indelibly. To present the horrors of the crucifixion without ending with the actual resurrection is a grievous mistake.
In doing so, I left the theater feeling the movie was more about the people who inflicted the pain and torture upon Christ than the story of Jesus Himself. Had I not been a Christian who knew the whole story of Holy Week, I would have been inconsolable. It feels like the first half of a mini-series that the filmmakers decided not to finish. If you are going to present such horrific events, you must recognize the meaning behind what He went through.
When I review movies, I try to restrict my feelings to what’s on the screen. However, I do not appreciate or support many of the views Mel Gibson has professed in interviews and his drunken rants, and that admittedly affects my reaction to movies in which he makes a contribution, be it on screen or behind the scenes.
In a nutshell, I completely understand why so many people love this movie, and I have to respect the filmmakers to a certain degree for having the courage to portray things in such a seemingly realistic manner. In the end, though, the movie is like running a marathon and throwing in the towel right before the finish line.
THE LAST TEMPTATION OF CHRIST is a brave and daring film – one of Martin Scorsese’s greatest achievements. © 1988 Universal Pictures − All right reserved.
THE LAST TEMPTATION OF CHRIST came out in 1988, a time for me when movies were becoming less a pastime and more an infatuation. I was becoming more and more aware of the power of this art form, and I had the insatiable desire for more filmmakers to use their talents to tell important and potentially world-changing stories, to realize the impact film can have when it strives to do more than fill the theater with teenagers and become the biggest money-maker of the year. Film is a business, but it is also art!
While it doesn’t seem to be discussed much nowadays, THE LAST TEMPTATION OF CHRIST was arguably the most controversial movie of the last few decades. People boycotted any movie theater that dared to screen it, threats were made against everyone involved in the production, protestors were shown on the news nightly. And none of them had even seen the movie!
The film was based on a novel by Nikos Kazantzakis which ruminated on the duality of Jesus as God and man and speculated what might have happened if Christ would have given in to the earthly temptations with which we as sinners struggle.
The key word is “speculated” – neither the novel nor the movie were professing any of this to be true. Had people put aside their misconceptions and accepted what the movie was trying to accomplish, they would have witnessed one of the more powerful films in recent memory.
The director of this movie is Martin Scorsese, who is widely considered to be possibly the greatest living American director at work today. Anyone who knows Scorsese’s background would also be able to confirm that he is a deeply religious man whose many films are filled with religious metaphors and details chronicling the difficulty of living a truly religious life.
Being a Christian ain’t always a cakewalk, there’s no doubt about it. I think many new Christians fall off the wagon so quickly because they think when they find God, everything is going to be a hunky dory hayride. We know that’s not the case – often times quite the opposite. We are blessed beyond measure, but we are also susceptible to the many trap doors Satan has prepared for us.
THE LAST TEMPTATION OF CHRIST is not an easy movie to watch. There are scenes that are beyond powerful but also equally disturbing. Scorsese doesn’t shy away from images that a lesser filmmaker wouldn’t dream of approaching. He is fearless.
Oddly enough, I left this film, unlike THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST, with a sense of joy. Joy for the sheer brilliance of the filmmaking itself, but more importantly, joy for witnessing what could have happened had Jesus not loved each and every one of us they way He did – and does!
So I hope there’s a few of you out there who made it to the end of this blog without being totally disgusted with me. I would really love to hear your thoughts, whether you agree or disagree, and I would even be open to possibly consider revisiting these films so I can go into more detail.
Regardless, I hope you all have a wonderful holiday weekend, and please remember between egg hunts and re-runs of Peter Cottontail to take a few moments to really meditate on and appreciate what God has done for you and the significance of history’s greatest expression of love.
This was an interesting read, and definitely gives me a new perspective on these movies. Our church always showed The Passion of the Christ on Good Friday, but ended it with the audio of “Sunday’s coming …” It was really powerful when presented that way. I was 7 when the Last Temptation of Christ came out and I remember the controversy, but I have never seen it. On one hand I can see why people were outraged, but on the other hand we commit blasphemy and idolatry every day in our own lives. Its too bad people aren’t as outraged about their own sins.
I think that you should watch an interview with Jim Caviezel about the making of the Passion of the Christ. In it he talks about the things that he went through for the film and many other things that I did not know after the first time I saw it. Jim Caveziel is a very devout, good Christian man and literally put his ALL into the making of the movie. He quite literally almost died. While I absolutely agree that they should have had more about the Resurrection and there are times that they strayed slightly from the Biblical story; I think overall it was a well made movie. I also am not a huge fan of Mel Gibson but I think that he was called to make the movie but was not prepared to deal with the repercussions of how hollywood would react to him afterwards. Also, as to the violence of the movie…those things really did happen to Jesus and I think that it is good sometimes to see what He went through for us. Is it hard to watch? Absolutely! I think though that that was the point. So I just urge you to watch the interview with Jim Caveziel!!
Kristen, I shall definitely look for that interview. I love interviews and behind the scenes information and commentaries on movies. I tend to learn a lot about the movie themselves and what the filmmakers had in mind. I have no doubts Caviezel and the rest of the cast and crew had nothing but the best intentions in mind. I’m anxious to hear from him about the making of the movie! Thanks for the heads up!
Thanks for the comment Kristin! I remember hearing about some of that when the movie first came out. Jeff, if you dig up that interview, I would love to see a link. I could post it on my FB page.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1sVB0JBBMo
Thanks for the link!
It was very disheartening to read the views on the two completely different movies. I agree on The Passion that it could be very disturbing and my heart hurts each time I see it. But as the title of the movie says it is a depiction of the Passion – what He Endured for us so We Did Not Have To. The Resurrection is shown at the end, or rather the Empty Tomb. The Victory Over Death may be subtly shown but it us there.
As for the other, I did not nor do I want to see it. I consider it an art film. To compare the two as witnesses to the unsaved is like comparing apples and oranges, both are fruit but give your body different nutrients.
Thanks for the comment, Vanessa! I hear what you are saying about Passion. I am with Jeff on the ending, though. It really bothered me that the resurrection was an afterthought and that took away from the movie for me. I was left feeling like, “ummm…did the movie just end? Did I miss it?” I also felt like the violence was almost over the top at points. I know that is the point, to understand what Jesus went through for us, but at times I felt like it was just too much, like a horror film for dramatic effect. I do not agree with Jeff that it’s not well made. I thought it was very well made.
I haven’t seen Last Temptation so I can’t speak to it fairly. I definitely remember the controversy when it came out! I like how you are saying it’s more of an artistic film. I never considered that the two might be different types of movies.
Sara, I’m glad you pointed out the subject of the violence. I was actually afraid to put that in the review for fear of backlash, but since you mentioned it, I will share that I fully agree with you. At times it felt like I was watching one of those “torture porn” movies with non-stop violence. I realize Jesus went through this but to your comment “horror film for dramatic effect” hit the bullseye.
I sorta regret my comment about the film not being well made. In terms of the filmmaking itself, it is well made. It was a lazy general comment, made mainly in comparison to LAST TEMPTATION which I believe is filmmaking of the highest quality.
Vanessa, please don’t feel disheartened. My opinion is my opinion, and like I said in the review, I fully understand why so many people were profoundly moved by the PASSION experience. I suppose in hindsight I have higher expectations from someone who makes a religious film. I think the Easter story has been ingrained in most of our minds for so long that we tend to forget there are people out there who don’t know the full story of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. To fully concentrate on the death without going into at least a little detail about the resurrection is, I believe, a disservice to those watching the movie who don’t know God.
I also understand your trepidation about LAST TEMPTATION. The majority of those who talked against the movie admitted to not having seen it. We must remember, however, that even an “art film” can be a form of witness. I would most definitely not recommend LAST TEMPTATION to anyone new in their faith. And as I mentioned, the filmmakers are not claiming this to be fact. To see played out in detail the direction Christ could have gone makes me appreciate even more the sacrifices He made for you and me.