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Reviews
The Passion of the Christ (2004)
A well made, bloody film
Having just recently viewed Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ", I felt the need to comment. Let me first say that it is an extremely well made film by a very competent filmmaker, with an excellent cast and apparently an excellent crew, judging by the film produced by them.
The film begins at Jesus's self-exploration at Gethsemane and storms ahead from there, growing continually more violent, and graphically so, until the inescapable conclusion. The actor playing Jesus does an excellent job in all of his scenes, with a wide emotional range from happy to deeply sad to beaten down to confident. The added realism of Aramaic as the spoken language throughout most of the film lends a certain credibility to all of the events portrayed, as well as the excellently blended special effects, few though they may be.
However, in spite of it being so well made and so apparently accurate to the history from which it has sprung, I have to question some of the choices Gibson made throughout the film, particular in the level of graphic violence portrayed. I found the film to be very good, however, I couldn't necessarily say that I enjoyed watching it. The film makes the viewer uncomfortable almost to the point where it is unbearable, until at last the roller coaster ride is over. I completely understand why Gibson should have chosen this route, particularly consider his past works like Braveheart, and the fact that very few movies have explored that particular aspect of Jesus's last days in that level of detail. However, it could perhaps have been something better left unexplored.
As it stands, I would not watch the film again, but I am glad that I've seen it, if only to satisfy my curiosity.
Viewers with weak hearts or weak stomachs, this film is probably one to pass by.
How I Play Golf, by Bobby Jones No. 10: 'Trouble Shots' (1931)
A Basic Lesson in a variety of golf shots
This short, old film is basically a lesson in how to hit various shots in golf that are from a wide range of common trouble zones. The plot is that someone challenges a famous excellent golfer to a game, with a catch: the pro makes the poor player's tee shots, and vice versa, and then they play from there with the other person's tee shots. This leaves the pro in a large number of poor situations, which he explains how to escape and still do well on the hole. Not for non-golf fans.