More evidence, were it needed, of religion's amazing ability to spread love and understanding through the world.
Of course, the particular magic of this particular holy horror is its capacity to potentiate Christianity's inherent, sado-masochistic fascination. As this Fox piece notes: "... the real problem with 'The Passion' is that it is graphic beyond belief, and unrelenting. How anyone will be able to sit through this thing is the real mystery. There is blood, blood, everywhere. The violence toward Jesus is sadistic and grotesque. Basically, the entire second half of the film is spent watching Jesus endure physical torture never before seen in a movie. By the time it's done, actor James Caviezel's body is a map of bloody rivers and lakes with craters of flesh excised from his torso."
As Village Voice critic J. Hoberman says about this film: "X-ploitative though it may be, the spectacle of a man beaten and tortured to death seeks to be an object of contemplation. Serious questions are raised. Is there any other religion so rooted in the representation of human suffering? ... Sitting through the film's garishly staged suffering, one might well ponder the millions of people—victims of crusades, inquisitions, colonial conquests, the slave trade, political terror, and genocide—who have been tortured and killed in Christ's name."
A vile, demented movie? Sure, it's a vile, demented religion.
Carl
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