I have yet to decide whether I will contribute funds to this movie. I
doubt I will.

Your review is much like many others I have heard.
Basically Jesus getting his ***** beat for the better part of the movie.
While I have no problems with gratuitous cartoon violence. This reeks of
the xian persecution complex and religious masturbation. "LOOOOK WHAAAT
HHEEEE HAS DONE FOR MEEEE, LORDY LORD YOU MUST LOOOOVE MEE SOOO MUUUCH!"
*SLAP*

Gregory Gadow wrote:
I admit it: I went to see it yesterday. I've always been a sucker for
big budget movie openings, what can I say?

Unfortunately, this piece of pornography pulled in $23m in
its first week. It looks like Gibson will get his money
back.

It is two hours of unrelenting violence and gratuitous gore. It begins
with Jesus' arrest and, except in brief flashbacks, contains none of his
message of hope and none of the teachings that make Christianity
(potentially) worth learning about. It ends with Jesus' death and says
nothing at all about the resurection and how that belief is the
cornerstone of the Christian faith. With no context at all, the movie is
nothing more than a grotesque opportunity for sadists to play voyeur. It
is identical, in essence to a "beat him, rape him and brutally kill him"
snuff film of the very worst sort.

Well, it's true to the bi(b)le at least.

As a "tool for evangelism", I will happily bet lots of money that it
bites the fundies in the ***** big time.

In the build up, I was thinking less of evangelism than I
was of $cientology; remember the crappy book that became
"Battlefield: Earth"? It only became a bestseller because
cult members were told to go out and buy it. The "success"
of Gibson's farce is due to blind allegiance, not of any
quality in the product being sold.

It's too bad there isn't someone - other than Bill Gates -
who has the cash and the ability to make a movie that would
reveal the paucity of evidence for jeebus' existence.

In article <403E076C.EE41BD8A@serv.net>,
Gregory Gadow <techbear@serv.net> wrote:

I admit it: I went to see it yesterday. I've always been a sucker for
big budget movie openings, what can I say?

It is two hours of unrelenting violence and gratuitous gore. It begins
with Jesus' arrest and, except in brief flashbacks, contains none of his
message of hope and none of the teachings that make Christianity
(potentially) worth learning about. It ends with Jesus' death and says
nothing at all about the resurection and how that belief is the
cornerstone of the Christian faith. With no context at all, the movie is
nothing more than a grotesque opportunity for sadists to play voyeur. It
is identical, in essence to a "beat him, rape him and brutally kill him"
snuff film of the very worst sort.

As a "tool for evangelism", I will happily bet lots of money that it
bites the fundies in the ***** big time. A non-believer who sees it --
even a sympathetic non-believer such as myself -- will come out thinking
that Christians are sicker than he thought was possible. A non-believer
who does not have a grounding in Christian theology who sees it will
come out thinking that, if this is what they worship, there ain't no
way, no how, he will have anything to do with such freaks.

In my opinion, this movie should have gotten an X rating. Had it not
been a "religious" movie, it most certainly would have.

I can't see how people can say that his film was 'uplifting'. It worries
me that there are so many sickos around.

In article <403E076C.EE41BD8A@serv.net>, Gregory Gadow
<techbear@serv.net> wrote:

I admit it: I went to see it yesterday. I've always been a sucker for
big budget movie openings, what can I say?

It is two hours of unrelenting violence and gratuitous gore. It
begins with Jesus' arrest and, except in brief flashbacks, contains
none of his message of hope and none of the teachings that make
Christianity (potentially) worth learning about. It ends with Jesus'
death and says nothing at all about the resurection and how that
belief is the cornerstone of the Christian faith. With no context at
all, the movie is nothing more than a grotesque opportunity for
sadists to play voyeur. It is identical, in essence to a "beat him,
rape him and brutally kill him" snuff film of the very worst sort.

As a "tool for evangelism", I will happily bet lots of money that it
bites the fundies in the ***** big time. A non-believer who sees it --
even a sympathetic non-believer such as myself -- will come out
thinking that Christians are sicker than he thought was possible. A
non-believer who does not have a grounding in Christian theology who
sees it will come out thinking that, if this is what they worship,
there ain't no way, no how, he will have anything to do with such
freaks.

In my opinion, this movie should have gotten an X rating. Had it not
been a "religious" movie, it most certainly would have.

This was a thoroughly violent and disgusting movie that left me
feeling sick on many levels. First, there was the blatant
anti-Semitism. Gibson went overboard in trying to make the Jews look
like a deranged mob of bloodthirsty fanatics, even choosing actors
with exaggerated "Semitic" features and extras that were sometimes
hideously ugly, and having the head priest spit in Jesus' face.

The
film placed the blame for Jesus' death squarely in the hands of the
Jews, while Pontius Pilate was portrayed as a sensitive and reluctant
man of honor forced into punishing Jesus to appease an angry mob and
prevent a revolt.

Then there was the appalling violence, with what seemed like a solid
hour of torture with the camera focused on every excruciating detail
of Jesus being scourged until his skin hung off his ribs in tatters,
blood flying as he is punched and kicked, the crown of thorns being
pressed into his skull with blood dripping off the ends of the thorns,
and finally the crucifixion itself, with bug-squishing sound effects
and spurting blood as the nails are driven into his hands and feet.
Somehow, this perverted and sadistic display of human suffering is
supposed to be a spiritual experience leading many in the audience to
break into tears of joy and sorrow. I finally broke into tears myself,
when I thought of the millions of human beings throughout the
centuries who were actually tortured and murdered in such a hideous
fashion because of this barbaric and bloodthirsty myth.

Then I was listening to NPR this afternoon interviewing members of the
audience that had seen the film at a theatre in Albany. Many of these
people went into considerable detail about this or that aspect of the
torture they had just witnessed, and how it had had a very positive
and moving effect on them and deepened their faith. They talked about
being changed forever by this "powerful" film and how appropriate it
weas that this film had tried to depict the torture in such a
realistic fashion. No one thought the movie was too graphic or gory,
and they all seemed to derive tremendous satisfaction and pleasure
from watching their saviour getting butchered.

There is something seriously wrong in a society that sees a woman
flashing her boob on TV as an assault on decency and morality, but
thinks watching a guy getting ripped to shreds and nailed to a cross
while blood spurts everywhere is a "spiritual" experience the whole
family can enjoy.

We are still very much in the Dark Ages.

I heard some interviews of moviegoers last night, like an exit poll.
Obviously, these were Christians they had interviewed. Men admitted to
crying in the theatre. Most enjoyed it as a "soul fulfilling experience."

I guess the more pain the christ goes through, the more sin the christer
feels forgiven for.

Sick.

One day in alt.atheism, Also Sprach Gregory Gadow:

I admit it: I went to see it yesterday. I've always been a sucker for
big budget movie openings, what can I say?

It is two hours of unrelenting violence and gratuitous gore. It begins
with Jesus' arrest and, except in brief flashbacks, contains none of his
message of hope and none of the teachings that make Christianity
(potentially) worth learning about. It ends with Jesus' death and says
nothing at all about the resurection and how that belief is the
cornerstone of the Christian faith. With no context at all, the movie is
nothing more than a grotesque opportunity for sadists to play voyeur. It
is identical, in essence to a "beat him, rape him and brutally kill him"
snuff film of the very worst sort.

As a "tool for evangelism", I will happily bet lots of money that it
bites the fundies in the ***** big time. A non-believer who sees it --
even a sympathetic non-believer such as myself -- will come out thinking
that Christians are sicker than he thought was possible. A non-believer
who does not have a grounding in Christian theology who sees it will
come out thinking that, if this is what they worship, there ain't no
way, no how, he will have anything to do with such freaks.

In my opinion, this movie should have gotten an X rating. Had it not
been a "religious" movie, it most certainly would have.
--

I heard some interviews of moviegoers last night, like an exit poll.
Obviously, these were Christians they had interviewed. Men admitted to
crying in the theatre. Most enjoyed it as a "soul fulfilling experience."

I guess the more pain the christ goes through, the more sin the christer
feels forgiven for.

Sick.