List Price: $19.98 Our Price: $14.99YOU SAVE $4.99!
Buy it
DVD The Passion of the Christ (Widescreen Edition)
After all the controversy and rigorous debate has subsided, Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ will remain a force to be reckoned with. In the final analysis, "Gibson's Folly" is an act of personal bravery and commitment on the part of its director, who self-financed this $25-30 million production to preserve his artistic goal of creating the Passion of Christ ("Passion" in this context meaning "suffering") as a quite literal, in-your-face interpretation of the final 12 hours in the life of Jesus, scripted almost directly from the gospels (and spoken in Aramaic and Latin with a relative minimum of subtitles) and presented as a relentless, 126-minute ordeal of torture and crucifixion. For Christians and non-Christians alike, this film does not "entertain," and it's not a film that one can "like" or "dislike" in any conventional sense. (It is also emphatically not a film for children or the weak of heart.) Rather, The Passion is a cinematic experience that serves an almost singular purpose: to show the scourging and death of Jesus Christ in such horrifically graphic detail (with Gibson's own hand pounding the nails in the cross) that even non-believers may feel a twinge of sorrow and culpability in witnessing the final moments of the Son of God, played by Jim Caviezel in a performance that's not so much acting as a willful act of submission, so intense that some will weep not only for Christ, but for Caviezel's unparalleled test of endurance.
Leave it to the intelligentsia to debate the film's alleged anti-Semitic slant; if one judges what is on the screen (so gloriously served by John Debney's score and Caleb Deschanel's cinematography), there is fuel for debate but no obvious malice aforethought; the Jews under Caiaphas are just as guilty as the barbaric Romans who carry out the execution, especially after Gibson excised (from the subtitles, if not the soundtrack) the film's most controversial line of dialogue. If one accepts that Gibson's intentions are sincere, The Passion can be accepted for what it is: a grueling, straightforward (some might say unimaginative) and extremely violent depiction of the Passion, guaranteed to render devout Christians speechless while it intensifies their faith. Non-believers are likely to take a more dispassionate view, and some may resort to ridicule. But one thing remains undebatable: with The Passion of the Christ, Gibson put his money where his mouth is. You can praise or damn him all you want, but you've got to admire his chutzpah. --Jeff Shannon
Review(s): DVD The Passion of the Christ (Widescreen Edition)
Not about "Passion" or about "Christ" (A waste of celluloid)
This is the worst movie NOT about Jesus ever made! Instead of making a film about Christ's life and/or his message, Mel Gibson makes a movie about what the "state" can do to another human being. If you are a twisted person who enjoys watching 2 hours of blood & torture, then you will love this gore-fest. The acting is average and there is an anti-semetic message simmering at the surface of this mess. The only interesting aspect of this film is the portrayal of Satan, who is an omnisexual hooded figure lurking in the background of several scenes. Other than that, there is nothing to recommend here. All of the actors speak in Aramaic which is distracting since one must read subtitles, but you're not missing much anyway. Instead, rent or buy "The Last Temptation of Christ", a moving, deeply spiritual film that convinced me that Jesus was indeed both God and man!
A TRUE MASTERPIECE !! SHOWS HOW STUPID NON BELIEVERS ARE
Mel Gibson created a masterpeice on the final hours of Christ.Yes its violent and bloody but thats the way it truly happened. He held back nothing. The emotion this film brings out is beyond words. Many here choose to bash religion which only shows there weak minds and empty hearts and souls. If you believe in nothing then you have nothing. Your hate consumes you and your life is nothing more than one complaint to the next. I pity you. This movie will move you in so many ways thats for sure. If it doesnt then you have no heart and are weak and in need of being pitied. "i am the truth. he that heareth my voice hears the truth" Jesus. amen WELL DONE MEL you created a vision for the ages. a movie that will inspire many for decades to come. BLESSED BE THE NAME OF THE LORD
A TRUE ACCOUNT OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST
Mediveal Passion Play Brought to the Screen
The Passion of the Christ is a film I doubt will ever be shown on television as an Easter Holidays Special. It interweaves high-level violence worse then you found in most horror films, the subtitling of two languages, and the brutal simplistic story of a medieval passion play. There is a single theme brought home again and again. Christ suffered for our sins.
When Mel Gibson first planned making the film, he didn't want to use subtitles. Through most of the film, you don't need them anyway to understand what is taking place. There is a visual language in the stylised costumes, and the acting.
Jesus Christ (James Caviezel) has a quiet distance from the world that shows without words he is the Son of God. Speaking, Caviezel detracts from this by delivering his lines with a wooden earnestness.
The film occurs during the last twelve hours of the life of Jesus. It isn't easy to understand the story. Gibson may think his audience will have read the New Testament. Or he didn't want this story to detract from the violence, at the heart of the film.
This violence begins when he is taken prisoner by the Jewish Temple Guards. To describe the violence he suffered here would be to detract from the graphic nature of it. Reading what happens to him, you won't be able to suspend your disbelief to believe he could have survived any of it.
The scourging of Jesus is made worse by Gibson's attention to detail. The Romans have to work themselves up to be able to do it. The sound made by the torture instruments striking into Jesus' flesh. Even when Gibson shies away from the scourging, you can still hear it. This will probably become one of the most memorable, and horrifying, sequences in cinematic history.
Between the scenes of Jesus' torment, we witness the other characters in the story. Judas Iscariot (Luca Lionello) receives his 30 pieces of silver for betraying Jesus. But he, and his money are cursed. In scenes of graphic ugliness, he is driven to madness and suicide.
The two Marys, Jesus' mother (Maia Morgenstern) and the former prostitute Mary Magdalene (Monica Bellucci) are there to witness, and react to the suffering of Jesus. It is from them, we are meant to gauge how to feel about the events unfolding on the screen.
These events are of suffering and pain. The actual crucifixion is almost a relief after the scourging. By then Jesus is a half dead, blood-splattered ruin of a man. He dies on the cross along side two common criminals. To keep the interest of his audience, here Gibson adds Hollywood touches you won't find in any bible.
You also won't find any spirituality, or goodness here. The theme of this dark movie is the pain and suffering Jesus suffered on behalf of Christians. For them, it is a gorefest held in a good cause. It is this audience the film is intended for.
Related DVD's The Passion of the Christ (Widescreen Edition)
The lovably ugly green ogre returns with his green bride and furry, hooved friend in Shrek 2. The newlywed Shrek and Princess Fiona are invited to Fiona's former kingdom, Far Far Away, to have the marriage blessed by Fiona's parents--which Shrek thinks is a bad, bad idea, and he's proved right: The parents are horrified by their daughter's transformation into an ogress, a fairy godmother wants her son Prince Charming to win Fiona, and a feline assassin is hired to get Shrek out of the way. The computer animation is more detailed than ever, but it's the acting that make the comedy work--in addition to the return of Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, and Cameron Diaz, Shrek 2 features the flexible voices of Julie Andrews (Mary Poppins), John Cleese (Monty Python's Flying... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Cameron Diaz - Eddie Murphy Director(s): Andrew Adamson - Kelly Asbury DVD Release Date: Released the 05 November 2004 Usually ships in 24 hours
List Price: $19.99 Your Price: $14.99YOU SAVE $5!
Buy it
More than a few critics hailed Spider-Man 2 as "the best superhero movie ever," and there's no compelling reason to argue--thanks to a bigger budget, better special effects, and a dynamic, character-driven plot, it's a notch above Spider-Man in terms of emotional depth and rich comic-book sensibility. Ordinary People Oscar-winner Alvin Sargent received screenplay credit, and celebrated author and comic-book expert Michael Chabon worked on the story, but it's director Sam Raimi's affinity for the material that brings Spidey 2 to vivid life. When a fusion experiment goes terribly wrong, a brilliant physicist (Alfred Molina) is turned into Spidey's newest nemesis, the deranged, mechanically tentacled "Doctor Octopus," obsessed with completing his experiment and... More Info about this DVD Director(s): Sam Raimi DVD Release Date: Released the 30 November 2004 Usually ships in 24 hours
List Price: $14.94 Your Price: $9.99YOU SAVE $4.95!
Buy it
Some movie-loving wizards must have cast a magic spell on Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, because it's another grand slam for the Harry Potter franchise. Demonstrating remarkable versatility after the arthouse success of Y Tu Mamá También, director Alfonso Cuarón proves a perfect choice to guide Harry, Hermione, and Ron into treacherous puberty as the now 13-year-old students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry face a new and daunting challenge: Sirius Black (Gary Oldman) has escaped from Azkaban prison, and for reasons yet unknown (unless, of course, you've read J.K. Rowling's book, considered by many to be the best in the series), he's after Harry in a bid for revenge. This dark and dangerous mystery drives the action while Harry... More Info about this DVD Director(s): Alfonso Cuarón DVD Release Date: Released the 23 November 2004 Usually ships in 24 hours
List Price: $19.98 Your Price: $9.97YOU SAVE $10.01!
Buy it
After creating the last great traditionally animated film of the 20th century, The Iron Giant, filmmaker Brad Bird joined top-drawer studio Pixar to create this exciting, completely entertaining computer-animated film. Bird gives us a family of "supers," a brood of five with special powers desperately trying to fit in with the 9-to-5 suburban lifestyle. Of course, in a more innocent world, Bob and Helen Parr were superheroes, Mr. Incredible and Elastigirl. But blasted lawsuits and public disapproval forced them and other supers to go incognito, making it even tougher for their school-age kids, the shy Violet and the aptly named Dash. When a stranger named Mirage (voiced by Elizabeth Pena) secretly recruits Bob for a potential mission, the old glory days spin in his head, even if... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Holly Hunter - Samuel L. Jackson - Jason Lee - Craig T. Nelson DVD Release Date: Released the 15 March 2005 Usually ships in 24 hours
List Price: $29.99 Your Price: $19.99YOU SAVE $10!
Buy it
Like The Passion of the Christ, Luther is the story of a spiritual leader, German monk Martin Luther (Joseph Fiennes), in opposition to the religious orthodoxy of the time (in his case, the 1500s). His goal--to bring God to the people and to take money, fear, and shame out of the equation--made him a reformer to some, a heretic to others. Released around the same time as Mel Gibson's blockbuster, it failed to attract the same degree of attention--or controversy. Granted, it's a different film, but not radically so. Directed by Eric Till (Bonhoeffer: Agent of Grace), Luther isn't always easy to follow or as emotionally involving as it could be. That said, it's a fascinating story and Fiennes receives solid support from Alfred Molina (Frida), Bruno Ganz... More Info about this DVD Director(s): Eric Till DVD Release Date: Released the 30 November 2004 Usually ships in 24 hours
List Price: $14.98 Your Price: $10.99YOU SAVE $3.99!
Buy it
