I’ve seen this story before, but with a lot less blood: and with a lot more reverence. I say a lot more reverence because all the Jesus movies that have come before focus on the message, and not the man. Cecil B. DeMille mixed sex and Mary Magdelene with the Word of God to sell "King of Kings." The remake in the 60’s, directed by Nicholas Ray, mixed the word of God with action by turning the petty criminal Barabbas into an anarchist. George Stevens used direct quotes from the Gospels to frame "The Greatest Story Ever Told." "The Passion of the Christ" is Mel Gibson’s blood and guts version of Jesus’ final hours.

There’s not much I can add that hasn’t already been dragged over the coals by others more knowledgeable about the Gospels and the teachings of Jesus Christ than myself. Opinion and criticisms of "The Passion of the Christ" reflect the biases and life experiences of the people who expresses them. My own reflections on the movie are no different. I went through twelve years of Catholic school and don’t remember any Jew bashing over Jesus’ crucifixion. Consequently, I can only look at "The Passion of the Christ" for what it is - a movie. Having said that, I was neither moved, offended, or awed by Mel Gibson’s cinematic version of the humiliation and torture of Jesus. Despite my indifference, which is more of a reaction to the hype and promotional skills of Gibson. I think "The Passion of the Christ" is a well made movie.

Jim Caviziel is nothing less than superb as Jesus. His suffering is so real that it is easy to incline the oft word phrase usually reserved for bloody horror spectacles - "I can’t believe it’s only a movie. Most of the supporting performances are serviceable with a cast of virtual unknowns. Monica Belluci ("The Cooler") is virtually unrecognizable as Mary Magdalene. What is totally surprising are the actors who played Satan and Pontius Pilate. Satan looked like Christopher Walken with an ashen gray face but is actually a female and Pontius Pilate - Hristo Naumov Shopv - looked like a clone of English actor Peter Firth. The only real complaint I have is that the flogging scenes had Roman soldiers that looked like they came out central casting for a Sergio Leone movie. Their Cheshire cat grins, salivating over Jesus’s pain took away from the realism that Mel Gibson and Jim Caviziel so painstakingly worked for.

The look and feel of "The Passion of the Christ" owes a tremendous debt to the cinematography of Caleb Deschnell. At times, it is other worldly and adds a lot more to the film that would otherwise not be there.

After all is said and done, and as good as "The Passion of the Christ" might be. I don’t believe it can hold a candle to Franco Zefferellis’ epic mini-series "Jesus of Nazareth" with Robert Powell as Jesus. So, if you want to reaffirm your faith, sitting in front of your TV set, this is the way to go.

Copyright 2004