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After seeing the film today, I sat down and started writing a report of what I had seen and liked about the film. It turned into an interesting combination of favorite scenes and how the whole thing impacted me personally.
Spoilers for those who have not yet seen it...
I remember how weird it was to leave the theater after being in Middle-earth when seeing ROTK, and then going grocery shopping afterwards -- yet it doesn't begin to compare to the odd feeling I had today when going to buy eggs and vegetables after watching Jesus be crucified!
I must say, I thoroughly enjoyed the film. And I do mean enjoyed. It was emotionally intense, but I did not find it unbearably so. It was filmed and acted beautifully, and I loved having it be in Aramaic and Latin, with English sub-titles. We were even able to catch some words of Aramaic that resembled Urdu words, and I was able to follow the Latin rather easily, which was satisfying. The music was basolutely fantastic, and really added to the whole effect. Aside from any of the subject matter, it was a beautiful film!
The violent scenes were definitely violent; yet I did not find it so very severe that I felt I had to look away, or leave the room. I might have glanced aside once or twice, just in case! It was definitely unpleasant in spots, and I didn't like the violence, but it didn't "upset" me -- it just made me feel very, very solemn.
Every time the film began to be too much blood and violence to bear, the scene seemed to cut away to a flashback of Jesus preaching, or washing the disciples'
feet, or breaking bread at the Last Supper, in a way that tied in appropriately to what was currently being depicted about the long road to the cross. This not only gave a break and a chance to see Jesus looking "himself" before his suffering began, but it also gave opportunity to learn from the mouth of Jesus the teachings that tied the whole thing together and showed why it was he needed to go to the cross.
I felt the proper tone for the film was set from the opening, which began with a dark screen and the verse from Isaiah 53:5, that I shared in my last LJ entry:
But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was upon him,
and by his wounds we are healed....
I think the verse was actually a shortened version of that, but no matter.
I was very impressed with the Christian message of the film; it wasn't "clubbing people over the head", yet it wasn't hidden, or watered down to make it palatable. It was honest and straightforward, presented pretty clearly at intervals throughout the film, through quotes from Jesus' teaching. I like the fact that Jesus made it very clear that this was the road he was planning to take from the beginning, and that he was allowing all this to happen for a divine purpose. He was pursuing it, once he knew his Father would not take the burden from him.
One of my favorite parts was where the Apostle John is at the foot of the cross with Mary the mother of Jesus and Mary Magdalene, and Jesus is dying and blood is dripping everywhere (sorry, but this is a necessary point); there is a flashback at that point to Jesus breaking bread and drinking wine at the Last Supper and
saying "this is my blood which is shed for you, do this in remembrance of me..." And John is nodding, like he is getting it, the light is dawning and he sees the purpose behind it all. Cool!
I think I shed the most tears when Peter denied Jesus -- so sad, when he
realized he had betrayed him! He was brokenhearted, and though Mary tried to lay a hand on him to console him, he would have none of it. He ran away in tears -- I am glad I know that he is eventually forgiven by Jesus himself, or I would be very upset! I have always been very fond of Peter, because he is so human, so ordinary, and yet he was mightily used of God afterwards.
I wept at a few other parts, but never enough to have to get out a hanky -- you know, just the kind of weeping where tears roll down, and you get sniffy, but you can still see. One other really moving part was where Mary runs to Jesus when he falls under his cross, and it is combined with a memory of him as a small child falling.
Pontius Pilate was incredibly impressive! Very stern and in charge, yet sensitive and wanting to make a just decision, without putting his charge as governor at risk. He was very human.
I didn't see the film as being in any way against one religious group or another, especially since I felt the film so well emphasized that this was Jesus' choice to allow this suffering, according to the plan of the Father, and not really the choice of men. A number of the Romans were quite disgusting, enjoying the beating very much; and some of the chief priests were very determined to stop Jesus' heresy, as they saw it. But for as many as were hateful to him, in every group there were also as many who were genuinely touched by Jesus' suffering, slowly realizing that he was special.
The end was quite effective; the resurrection is shown in a very brief way, but it is very, very powerful, just absolutely stunning. You need to sit and listen to the music of the credits afterwards, just to get your thoughts back together.
In some ways, I didn't find the film to be as emotionally powerful throughout the whole film as I did ROTK, but it has a quiet power to it, that is very effective. I wouldn't mind seeing parts of it again, though perhaps not all of it. I'm very glad I went.
It would not be for everyone, I am certain. But I found it to be much less disturbing than I thought it would be. I am glad, because I don't want to be disturbed by it; I want to rejoice in what was done for me by Jesus' death, and I can still do that, because I saw a lot of joy in the film, in spite of sadness at what Jesus had to bear.
Well there you have it; I just wrote most of that off the top of my head,
so some of these impressions have surprised even me! But now that I have
written it, I feel like I have digested the whole experience. I said it wasn't as emotionally powerful as I thought it would be, but it was still very powerful -- it is powerful in that way that grows on you slowly, when you
know you've witnessed something incredible but it takes time to digest.
Thanks for reading and listening to my thoughts!
Spoilers for those who have not yet seen it...
I remember how weird it was to leave the theater after being in Middle-earth when seeing ROTK, and then going grocery shopping afterwards -- yet it doesn't begin to compare to the odd feeling I had today when going to buy eggs and vegetables after watching Jesus be crucified!
I must say, I thoroughly enjoyed the film. And I do mean enjoyed. It was emotionally intense, but I did not find it unbearably so. It was filmed and acted beautifully, and I loved having it be in Aramaic and Latin, with English sub-titles. We were even able to catch some words of Aramaic that resembled Urdu words, and I was able to follow the Latin rather easily, which was satisfying. The music was basolutely fantastic, and really added to the whole effect. Aside from any of the subject matter, it was a beautiful film!
The violent scenes were definitely violent; yet I did not find it so very severe that I felt I had to look away, or leave the room. I might have glanced aside once or twice, just in case! It was definitely unpleasant in spots, and I didn't like the violence, but it didn't "upset" me -- it just made me feel very, very solemn.
Every time the film began to be too much blood and violence to bear, the scene seemed to cut away to a flashback of Jesus preaching, or washing the disciples'
feet, or breaking bread at the Last Supper, in a way that tied in appropriately to what was currently being depicted about the long road to the cross. This not only gave a break and a chance to see Jesus looking "himself" before his suffering began, but it also gave opportunity to learn from the mouth of Jesus the teachings that tied the whole thing together and showed why it was he needed to go to the cross.
I felt the proper tone for the film was set from the opening, which began with a dark screen and the verse from Isaiah 53:5, that I shared in my last LJ entry:
But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was upon him,
and by his wounds we are healed....
I think the verse was actually a shortened version of that, but no matter.
I was very impressed with the Christian message of the film; it wasn't "clubbing people over the head", yet it wasn't hidden, or watered down to make it palatable. It was honest and straightforward, presented pretty clearly at intervals throughout the film, through quotes from Jesus' teaching. I like the fact that Jesus made it very clear that this was the road he was planning to take from the beginning, and that he was allowing all this to happen for a divine purpose. He was pursuing it, once he knew his Father would not take the burden from him.
One of my favorite parts was where the Apostle John is at the foot of the cross with Mary the mother of Jesus and Mary Magdalene, and Jesus is dying and blood is dripping everywhere (sorry, but this is a necessary point); there is a flashback at that point to Jesus breaking bread and drinking wine at the Last Supper and
saying "this is my blood which is shed for you, do this in remembrance of me..." And John is nodding, like he is getting it, the light is dawning and he sees the purpose behind it all. Cool!
I think I shed the most tears when Peter denied Jesus -- so sad, when he
realized he had betrayed him! He was brokenhearted, and though Mary tried to lay a hand on him to console him, he would have none of it. He ran away in tears -- I am glad I know that he is eventually forgiven by Jesus himself, or I would be very upset! I have always been very fond of Peter, because he is so human, so ordinary, and yet he was mightily used of God afterwards.
I wept at a few other parts, but never enough to have to get out a hanky -- you know, just the kind of weeping where tears roll down, and you get sniffy, but you can still see. One other really moving part was where Mary runs to Jesus when he falls under his cross, and it is combined with a memory of him as a small child falling.
Pontius Pilate was incredibly impressive! Very stern and in charge, yet sensitive and wanting to make a just decision, without putting his charge as governor at risk. He was very human.
I didn't see the film as being in any way against one religious group or another, especially since I felt the film so well emphasized that this was Jesus' choice to allow this suffering, according to the plan of the Father, and not really the choice of men. A number of the Romans were quite disgusting, enjoying the beating very much; and some of the chief priests were very determined to stop Jesus' heresy, as they saw it. But for as many as were hateful to him, in every group there were also as many who were genuinely touched by Jesus' suffering, slowly realizing that he was special.
The end was quite effective; the resurrection is shown in a very brief way, but it is very, very powerful, just absolutely stunning. You need to sit and listen to the music of the credits afterwards, just to get your thoughts back together.
In some ways, I didn't find the film to be as emotionally powerful throughout the whole film as I did ROTK, but it has a quiet power to it, that is very effective. I wouldn't mind seeing parts of it again, though perhaps not all of it. I'm very glad I went.
It would not be for everyone, I am certain. But I found it to be much less disturbing than I thought it would be. I am glad, because I don't want to be disturbed by it; I want to rejoice in what was done for me by Jesus' death, and I can still do that, because I saw a lot of joy in the film, in spite of sadness at what Jesus had to bear.
Well there you have it; I just wrote most of that off the top of my head,
so some of these impressions have surprised even me! But now that I have
written it, I feel like I have digested the whole experience. I said it wasn't as emotionally powerful as I thought it would be, but it was still very powerful -- it is powerful in that way that grows on you slowly, when you
know you've witnessed something incredible but it takes time to digest.
Thanks for reading and listening to my thoughts!
