Can't wait to get it!  What a great touching movie that is.  Even if you aren't a Christian or religious, it's pretty awesome to watch.

Good show. I will be picking up a copy.

IBTL

8/31?

I didn't catch it at the theater. Will not miss it this time.

I'll pick that up right after I buy "House of 1,000 Corpses"

It will be one of the top selling DVDs ever.  Churches are getting bulk pricing on these.  Face it, it's quite cheap to make these.  Only the very first one costs a ton of money.

I know I'll be grabbing me one!



ETA: Actually, I'm going to wait until they release the "directors" version, with all the extras, "How we made it" stuff, etc.

What is awesome about this is that the left tried so hard to shut this movie down.  It is the sixth highest grossing movie of all time so far, and that's without the huge DVD sales that will start racking up soon.  Awesome!!!!!

"THE PASSION": JESUS IN SUB-SPACE

I first encountered "traditionalist" Catholicism back in the 1970s.

As a teen, I went shopping for religions, or at least tried to sample
all the selections before retreating into generalized cynicism. One
evening I found myself listening to a lecture given by a man I'll call
Father Pierre, a fellow who seemed to believe in anything and
everything -- bleeding communion wafers, Our Lady of Fatima, splinters
of the True Cross, you name it. Everything, that is, except the legacy
of the Vatican II conference, which had tried to drag the Catholic
Church into the modern age. The modern age held no charms for Father
Pierre.

My attention drifted to the small aviary of young-ish ‘nuns' who
flitted about the handsome Father Pierre, tending to his every need.
"Oh, he's so spiritual this evening!" one cooed to the other.

"Yes, yes," replied her sister. "So spiritual. Filled with power and
spirit..."

These gals were gushing. In more ways than one. They practically left
snail trails on the carpet. (I was hardly surprised to discover, many
years later, that accusations of ‘impropriety' swirled around Father
Pierre.)

Nothing ushers you into cynicism faster than a youthful encounter with
the subterranean sexual underpinnings of extreme religiosity.

Watching Mel Gibson's well-crafted but unmoving "The Passion of the
Christ" reminded me of that long-ago evening. My initial fears that
evangelicals would find this film a potent recruiting device have
proven groundless. By exposing the psychopathology underlying his
version of traditionalist Christianity, Gibson has made the worst
possible argument for his faith.

"The Passion" strips Jesus of his message, ignores (for the most part)
both his humanity and his spirituality, and reduces him to a suffering
cipher. In Gibson's hands, Jesus becomes the central figure in a work
of blood-soaked homosexual pornography. This film is a two-hour-long
BDSM session, with Jesus playing "bottom" for a Jerusalem teeming with
ruthless gay Doms.

I do not object to the level of violence. I object, in part, to the
fact that violence is all this film has to offer, just as sex is all
that a sex film has to offer. First and foremost, I object to a
filmmaker so lacking in self-awareness that he cannot admit, either to
his audience or to himself, the true motives underlying his
obsessions.

BDSM explores primeval areas of sexuality and self-worth, and many who
feel drawn to the imagery of erotic torture can never acknowledge this
attraction on a conscious level. Mel Gibson, obviously, doesn't have
the courage to look into this mirror. However, as Father Pierre's
‘nuns' taught me, religion can offer an outlet for the repressed and
unacknowledged side of one's sexuality.

Those who've read about BDSM, or spoken to anyone involved with the
lifestyle, will recognize the flagellation scene in "Passion" for what
it is: A hyperbolized version of the sort of activity that thousands
of men and women experience in makeshift "dungeons" across the world,
sometimes even paying for the privilege. The punishment we see on
screen has little to do with actual Roman justice; forget about the
traditional 39 lashes administered by bored soldiers just doing their
jobs. The soldiers onscreen here relish their duties with a flagrantly
sexual glee.

In most BDSM scenes, the flogging slowly increases in intensity. The
session starts with the lighter instruments of torment, then proceeds
to the heavier, more sanguinary implements. When the "bottom" has
achieved an altered state of consciousness called "sub-space," the
"Top" turns him over to administer flagellation on the more sensitive
front side of his body. "The Passion" follows this time-honored
sequence, differing from offerings of fetish pornographers only in the
quantity of its bloodletting.

The Roman flagrum, I've read, had small bits of metal or animal bone
embedded into the tails. That's not good enough for Gibson, who
provides huge meat hooks which dig deep into the flesh. What we see on
screen is not just the record of a "normal" BDSM scene; this is a born
masochist's vision of the ultimate in submission.

Before the first time they administer the whip or the cane, Tops are
admonished to keep all strikes between the shoulder blades, never
hitting the sensitive sides of the abdomen. Many sadists, however,
long for the forbidden, and the more extreme Tops dream about finding
a bottom who consents to being flogged anywhere, even in the
proscribed zones. Similarly, the most extreme bottoms take an odd
pride in their lack of limitations. Once we understand this sexual
dynamic, we can better understand why the flagellation in "Passion"
builds to a climactic shot in which the flagrum cuts deep into the
side of Jesus' flesh. The camera records this blow in clear,
pornographic detail. Jesus reacts with an agony tinged with ecstasy.

A few subs dreamily consider extending their suffering to its logical
conclusion -- the final submission. The Gospel story has spawned many
a necro-erotic vision; a few underground BDSM clubs have featured live
crucifixions. These extreme sexual fantasies, founded on guilts and
self-hatreds many share but few confess, may well be the hidden source
for orthodox Christianity's barbaric theology of blood substitution
and human sacrifice to appease a primitive deity.

When Gibson's lifeless Jesus receives the spear in the side, resulting
in a (Biblically justifiable) gusher of blood and liquid, a Roman
soldier gets sprayed in the face. Anyone one who has ever watched an
adult video will recognize this moment as the film's cum shot.

Having spent himself on Golgotha, Gibson cannot bother with the
entombment, the anointing, the garden encounter, the angels in the
tomb or the other details of the Resurrection. The empty tomb doesn't
arouse him. The Ascension bores him. Mary Magdalene? Pheh. She's so
vanilla.

Now we know why Gibson gave his film a title with an obvious double
meaning. Now we know the reason for his well-known discomfort with
homosexuality. Now we know why images of torture permeate so many of
his films.

Even Bill O'Reilly's recent television interview with the fidgety,
manic Gibson inadvertently revealed this film-maker's pathological
masochism. My cathode ray tube has hosted few images more obscene than
that of Mel Gibson whining about the sufferings and persecutions he
has undergone. In a world teeming with unfortunates beset by genuine
poverty and oppression, this widely-loved, world-famous
mega-millionaire has the audacity to claim HE is the one undergoing
"persecution" -- simply because some people dared to criticize his
movie. What stupefying audacity!

Gibson carried this audacity to further heights when he spoke of
loving his persecutors. In doing so, he displayed an obnoxious
condescension -- but he also let us glimpse a carefully occulted
truth. On a certain plane, he does indeed love his persecutors. Or
rather: He loves the idea of being persecuted.

Gibson has bragged about the fact that, on screen, his is the hand
that drives the first nail. We are told that he made this gesture to
emphasize his own sense of sin. Yes, Mel, we know. You've been a bad
boy. You've been a VERY bad boy.

-- Martin Cannon

(This text, if unaltered, can be reproduced anywhere.)

Hollywood liberals (and liberals in general) hate it. Therefore, though I am not a big fan of Mel Gibson, I paid him his money and saw it at the theater. I don't get all the religious fervor. The movie was 2 hours of whipping ass on Jesus. In spite of my religious upbringing and Christian faith, that's about all I got out of it.
Regardless, I hope Mel makes a gazillion dollars off of this. Let their be whailing and lamentations throughout Hollywoodland.

I might see it.

I saw it in the theatre. No need to see it again.

It's on my Netflix list!

I take pride in my faith, but the movie didn't do anything for me. Although it's important to understand how Jesus suffered and died for us, that's not why I choose to believe.. it's about His triumph over death and the promise of eternal life. I left the theatre depressed and a little nauseated, instead of encouraged and proud.

If I'm going to see that much blood in a movie, I'll take mine Resident Evil style, with HK's and boobs.

Quoted: Quoted: I saw it in the theatre. No need to see it again. Yup. But if it's cheap I may buy a copy to annoy a liberal and thank Mel for "The Patriot." Course he still kinda owes me for that "Signs" piece of fuckng shit.

+1

Honestly, I think Passion has one of two effects on people.

1) reinforces an already strongly held belief in Christianity
2) drives away everyone else with its gore and by totally missing Christ's message

and Signs was a pos.

.

Quoted: Quoted: I take pride in my faith, If I'm going to see that much .. in a movie, I'll take mine .. with ..boobs. Can we say hypocrite.

Hardly.. in fact, I'm simply appreciating one of God's finest creations.. Milla

BTW, nice quoting, Michael Moore

Got mine today!

This "Neo-Pagan/New Age" guy plans on buying it Tuesday.  

Mel put 25 million into a movie that hollywood said wouldn't make it.
Nobody wanted to distribute it because it wouldn't make it.
Mel wasn't realy concerned if it would make. It was something he wanted to do.

Guess what, 600 million bux in ticket sales later (and video sales are just starting), I think it made it. And Hollywood is sucking-up to Mel now.
I'll bet he put over 500 million in his pocket and that wasn't even the intent.

What does that tell you of the power of this film...

I saw it in the theatre, and loved it. I wept through the entire thing, so I don't think I could bring myself to watch it again. It is a movie I would highly recommend. Even if you are not Christian or Religious, it gives you a good understanding about those around you who are Christian.

Clearly the writer of that "review" is into homoeriticism and homosexual torture.  No normal person would see that.

I saw this fine movie at the theater. It's a very powerful movie and it shows the pain and suffering our Savior went through to pay for our sins.

JESUS CHRIST!!!!!!!!!!!! I KNOW WHEN IT COMES OUT  

I haven't seen it yet but will have a DVD copy of it Tuesday!

BigDozer66

Quoted: The movie was 2 hours of whipping ass on Jesus. In spite of my religious upbringing and Christian faith, that's about all I got out of it.

I felt the same way.  I would rather watch "The Ten Commandments"  with Mr. Heston.  Gives me a more spiritual feeling.

Quoted: Quoted: The movie was 2 hours of whipping ass on Jesus. In spite of my religious upbringing and Christian faith, that's about all I got out of it. I felt the same way.  I would rather watch "The Ten Commandments"  with Mr. Heston.  Gives me a more spiritual feeling.

I'd like to get it so I can watch it and The Ten Commandments.  
............and Ben Hur, and The Gospel of Matthew (Bruce Marchiano), and King of Kings (Jeffrey Hunter), and..........

Hexagonal,

"THE PASSION": JESUS IN SUB-SPACE <snip,  this entire, POS, make me sick write up> -- Martin Cannon

Wasn't this Martin Cannon guy in the movie.  I think I saw him, pasty-faced in a black cloak moving through the crowds.  I'm certain it was him.  


Other than that, WOW!, what a movie.  

Isn't it almost $30?  I think that's a bit pricey...nothing like capitolizing on religious fanaticism...

Quoted: Isn't it almost $30?  I think that's a bit pricey...nothing like capitolizing on religious fanaticism...

It's $15.87 at Wal-Mart here.
Not that I plan on watching it...I hate sadistic movies and this seems like it might be the most sadistic ever made.

Quoted: I saw it in the theatre, and loved it. I wept through the entire thing, so I don't think I could bring myself to watch it again. It is a movie I would highly recommend. Even if you are not Christian or Religious, it gives you a good understanding about those around you who are Christian.

+100

This Agnostic cried like a Girl Scout who got cheated out of Cookie Money.

It was horrible, and fantastic all at once.

D.
AZEX

Quoted: "THE PASSION": JESUS IN SUB-SPACE ...[all I read was, "whaaa, whaaa, whaaaa, I'm a little bitch"]. ... You've been a VERY bad boy. -- Martin Cannon (This text, if unaltered, can be reproduced anywhere.)

Is this guy familiar with the psychological concept of "projection?"

Quoted: Quoted: "THE PASSION": JESUS IN SUB-SPACE ...[all I read was, "whaaa, whaaa, whaaaa, I'm a little bitch"]. ... You've been a VERY bad boy. -- Martin Cannon (This text, if unaltered, can be reproduced anywhere.) Is this guy familiar with the psychological concept of "projection?"

I agree, but I'd like to politely point out that I said it first.

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: "THE PASSION": JESUS IN SUB-SPACE ...[all I read was, "whaaa, whaaa, whaaaa, I'm a little bitch"]. ... You've been a VERY bad boy. -- Martin Cannon (This text, if unaltered, can be reproduced anywhere.) Is this guy familiar with the psychological concept of "projection?" I agree, but I'd like to politely point out that I said it first.

Indeed - I debated whether to quote you in agreement or quote the original "review."