The violent Christian film "The Passion of the Christ" debuted to the public on February 25, 2004, which is also Ash Wednesday (the first day of Lent). As we all know, "The Passion" received much attention because it was co-written, co-produced, and directed by the popular actor, Mel Gibson.
Many film critics were disturbed by the extreme violence Gibson portrayed in Jesus' crucifixion and strongly recommended that parents don't take their children to watch.
According to christianitytoday.com, Gibson has been recorded saying, "I think that my first duty is to be as faithful as possible in telling the story so that it doesn't contradict the scriptures. Now, so long as it didn't do that, I felt that I had a pretty wide berth for artistic interpretation, and to fill in some of the space with logic, with imagination, with various other readings."
I was in the 8th grade when "The Passion" was released. My church was offering to pay for the movie tickets for any member that wanted to attend a showing. I remember my friends and I debated on rather or not to go because of the fear of not being able to handle the violence; but in the end we decided we could not pass up the opportunity. I remember crying constantly throughout the majority of the film. When it came time to nail Jesus to the cross my best friend and I actually left the theatre and stepped out into the hallway.
Gibson definitely portrayed the death of Jesus in a gruesome way, but he did it truthfully and by the book [the Bible]. When reading the story of the crucifixion in the Bible it is easy to overlook what all Jesus Christ had to bare, but seeing it on big screen, clearly in front of you, it hits you on a much deeper level. In the movie you will see images that will never leave your memory.
Gibson is now being strongly criticized for his actions since the release of "The Passion." Since 2004, Gibson was caught in a DUI scandal with police and has recently divorced his wife and had a child out of wedlock.
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