AndyC
Global Moderator
B-Movie Kraken
Karma: 1402
Posts: 11156
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« Reply #16 on: April 13, 2004, 11:16:51 AM » |
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I know it's the passion and all, but starting the story with Jesus' arrest is a little bit like starting Titanic with the boat hitting the iceberg. It might be central to the story, but it's not the whole story. To fully appreciate Jesus' death, you need to see more of his life. To understand the events from a historical perspective, you need to see more of what was happening in Jerusalem at that time. And to understand people's motivations (or even care about them at all), they need a chance to develop as characters.
This movie was not meant for faithful Christians alone, so it can't make the assumption that the whole audience already knows the story.
In fact, as a Christian, I found it hard to connect with characters I've been familiar with for years.
The whole thing seems rooted in the belief that Jesus' significance is entirely in his death and resurrection. This is an outdated notion that pretty much equates Jesus with a sacrificial animal, paints all of us as unworthy sinners who must be bought out of Hell, and makes God out to be a stern disciplinarian who dishes out punishment, and can apparently be bought. Adding a devil further reinforces this idea, which is crap in my opinion.
To me, Jesus' life and teachings, and that he maintained his principles to the very end, are the really important parts of the story.
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