Oh, For Art's Sake! (The Passion)

Anna Zetchus Raetz

[AnnaZ]

 

Defend my labor's cause,
good Giovanni, from all strictures:
I live in hell and paint its pictures.

 

        Michelangelo Buonarroti

[Burkeman1]

But due to the cacophony from both sides I now realize that I will not have seen it until I see it a second time, without their words ringing in my ears. And I strongly recommend the same to all.

True. A second viewing without all the controversy swirling around my head is a good idea.

[scan58]

Mel Gibson's Passion of The Christ may very well be, so far, the 21st Century's Sistine Chapel, but the viewers will need to look up to see it.

Beautiful, AnnaZ, just plain beautiful.

[AnnaZ]

I was inspired to cobble together/add unto my Passion posts from Thursday. Since you were catalysts for some of it, and in case this angle interests you, a ping. Please chime in.

[My2Cents]

Beautiful article.

[AnnaZ]

My Passion-ate response.

 

Hope all has been well.

 

Blessings,

~Anna

[nunya bidness]

Beautiful.

[stripes1776]

Written with great insight and sensitivity.

[AnnaZ]

I'm seeing it (again) tomorrow night to help post contra-Oscar numbers.

 

;^)

[Barnacle]

I saw the Passion last night. It is a masterpiece.

[WestTexasWend]

Brava! (and love your tagline)

[Cold Heat]

at the end of the day, it's between the individual and Jesus.

This is precicely what I came away with as a gift.

A fantastic review!

[Barnacle]

That tag line is a winner too.

[over3Owithabrain]

My wife and I both said right before the movie started that we were po'd that we even had to think about all the negative hype and charges against the film.

[Sloth]

Too violent? Not, unfortunately, compared to reality.

Good article! On the violence issue, the best comment I've seen was about the tremendous irony in how some of the articles bashing the movie use the term "excruciating" to describe it, without any apparent understanding of the word's etymology.

[incindiary]

Bravo!

I'm seeing it again tomorrow night too, btw. : )

email or call me! i've got great news!

[Cold Heat]

Good one!

[Nita Nupress]

Wonderful review, Anna. I definitely plan on seeing it again. Not to appear sacrilegious or anything, but I need to see it again because I made the mistake of drinking 3 cups of coffee and a Coke right before going. By the 2nd hour of the movie I was in downright pain. No WAY was I going to get up and miss something!

[Askel5]

Thanks for the flag, Anna. Well done.


=== See it in the Spirit, see it in the flesh, but for a moment at least see it simply as art.

Probably one of the most magnificent works of Christian art we've had in some time ... particularly given the rank ugliness of most churches, the desacralization of sanctuaries, and the "modern art" ritual deformation and vivisection of the human being.

Glad to hear you sound this note as well.



(And I too won't feel I've really seen it until I've seen it at least twice. One heads up even three or four viewings probably wouldn't have allowed me to notice: Jesus responds to Pilate in Latin. Nice touch, I thought.)

[armyboy]

I wish that I could see The Passion while it's in theaters. But I do plan on buying the DVD.