Every so often, a movie comes along that is so amazingly powerful, when viewed it can actually affect us as people and touch us our lives in changing ways.  I first saw this movie on opening day with a friend who was not especially religious in any way, but by the end of it, I could see her trying to hide the tears streaming down her face.  What can be said about this emotionally gripping piece of art that has not already been voiced by dozens of critics and reviewers, who have felt positively about it?  This is literally the kind of film that forces you to walk out of the theater a completely different person from when you walked in. 

     Over the last several decades, many movies have been made portraying the life, death, and supposed resurrection of Jesus Christ.  In each of these films, the director has tried to get the message across to the audience of just who Jesus claimed to be and how much suffering he willingly went through.  And not until now has a filmmaker been able to fully capture the brutality of it all.  This is probably the most emotionally distressful movie I have ever seen in my life, and despite its mastery, would strongly discourage allowing young children from seeing it, because of the shocking material. 

     Rather than spend the entire duration of the picture explaining Jesus’ entire life and ministry, The Passion focuses almost exclusively on the last twelve hours of his life, with various other portions of it shown through a series of small flashbacks.  All of us have heard the story of how 2,000 years ago a man named Jesus claimed to be the living Son of God and performed miracles. After turning down the opportunity to renounce his beliefs, he was tortured and crucified until death.  And, according to the Christian Bible, he was resurrected from the dead three days later, proving that he was who he said he was.  I, having been a born-again Christian since about the sixth grade, have become very familiar with the story of Jesus, but it never fully dawned on me exactly how much pain he had to go through until I saw this miraculous movie.

     The major difference between The Passion and most other Jesus-films is the brutal honesty director Mel Gibson intentionally chooses to show.  Instead of having the camera move off-screen just before the whip cracks down onto the bare back of Jesus, we are forced to view the intensely graphic and disturbing torture in full view.  Normally, this is not the sort of feature that contributes to a great picture.  However, the violence in this film is different than that of most others because it doesn’t just represent senseless beating and killing.  We know that everything Jesus is going through he is enduring willingly for a purpose.

     The only thing that could’ve served as improvement to The Passion of the Christ would be to include more about Jesus’ life and why he was willing to go through such a horrid death.  Many non-Christian viewers may be left with questions, so to make the movie more understandable I would encourage those who do not know much about the story to research it. 

     Whether or not you believe and acknowledge that Jesus truly was the messiah, there is no denying the amazing emotion and power displayed throughout this astounding piece of cinema.  It’s important to remember that almost everything in this movie is not just based on the gospels of the Bible, but verified historical facts.  I can honestly say that this is one of the best movies of all-time, and I doubt anything better will come along for quite some time.  I urge any teenager or adult to explore this fantastic motion picture, which surely destined to be hailed as a masterpiece in coming years.

-Daniel, Bucket Reviews (4.9.2004)