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Why the SOLE is to be listened eventually for JUSTICE?
Christians marked Good Friday by partaking in the morning mass in churches and taking out processions to mark the crucification of Jesus Christ.Many non-Christians too participated in the mass services and prayed for universal peace and prosperity.
In New Delhi, special prayer services were held in which a large number of devotees attended the church rituals.
"We call it Good Friday, Good because on this day, Lord Jesus did a great deed. He sacrificed Himself for the humanity, for all of us," said Father Joseph, a parish priest in New Delhi.
In Kochi and Maharashtra, processions were also taken out at some places.
Pastor priests accompanied by other clergy members conducted the mass prayers. This is the day in the history, recorded as the day when Jesus Christ was crucified.
According to Christian theology, Good Friday, also called Holy Friday, Great Friday or Black Friday is a religious event observed primarily by Christians commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus and his death at Golgotha hill.
"Good Friday is the day when Lord Jesus was crucified. He laid down His life for the whole of humanity. Atrocities were being committed in the name of religion. People were being looted. Jesus told them that this was not a good thing. True religion lies in our hearts. And whoever serves humanity, serves God," said Jacob Martin, a participant in the procession in Mumbai.
Christians across Kerala, a small coastal state of South India, today observed Good Friday by partaking morning mass in churches.
At the St. Mary's Basilica, Ernakulam and St. Thomas Jacobite Church near Kochi devotees in large number attended the church rituals and later take out procession holding small cross around the church.
Chief priests accompanied by other clergy took charge of the day and helped devotees in following their adoration.
For Christians all over the world, Good Friday commemorates the act that brought salvation to all who believe in Him.
Good Friday is the culmination of the Lent for the Roman Catholics as well as the Holy Week which observed on Palm Sunday, and it takes place two days before the Easter Sunday that is being celebrated this year on April 12 throughout the world.
The request, to cover the rest of the 2009 fiscal year which ends on Sept. 30, comes on top of more than $822 billion that Congress has approved to fund the wars since September 2001, Obama said.
"We face a security situation in Afghanistan and Pakistan that demands urgent attention," he said in a letter to Nancy Pelosi, speaker of the House of Representatives, urging lawmakers to approve his request swiftly.
"The Taliban is resurgent and al Qaeda threatens America from its safe haven along the Afghan-Pakistan border."
Almost 95 percent of the funding would go to support military efforts to stabilize Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan, Obama said in the letter released by the White House.
The request also includes funding for other national security priorities of the administration, including assistance for anti-drug efforts in Mexico, security assistance in Lebanon and closing down the Guantanamo Bay prison.
Congress has already approved $65.9 billion for the wars in 2009 and some anti-war Democrats expressed reservations about the new request.
But Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Obama's policies on Iraq and Afghanistan enjoyed broad support on Capitol Hill.
"The alternative to the supplemental is a sudden and precipitous withdrawal ... from both places. And I don't know anybody who thinks that's a good idea," Gates said.
OBAMA PLANS END TO SUPPLEMENTALS
The administration of former President George W. Bush was widely criticized for using such supplemental requests to fund the wars. Both Democrats and Republicans said such urgent requests faced less scrutiny than the regular budget.
Obama has pledged to put an end to the practice and he said Thursday's request was "the last planned supplemental".
The White House said it had to submit another large supplemental request this time because the wars were only half-funded for the rest of the 2009 fiscal year.
"The honest budget and appropriations process that the president has talked about falls somewhat victim to the fact that this is the way that wars have been funded previously," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs told a news briefing.
Representative Jim McGovern, a Democrat, said he was very worried about by Obama's plan to send tens of thousands more troops to Afghanistan, and was not a guaranteed "yes" vote for the supplemental.
"I was against the war in Iraq from the very beginning, and I don't want us to make the same mistake the second time," McGovern told Reuters.
Steny Hoyer, the leader of the Democratic majority in the House of Representatives, indicated the request would be dealt with swiftly.
"Timely consideration of the supplemental is especially important to our men and women in uniform, who depend on it for the resources they need to do their jobs," he said.
"Congress looks forward to giving it that consideration in the weeks to come," Hoyer said in a statement.
Russian media have reported the deal is worth about $50 million and that Russia will buy three different types of drones from Israel's largest defence firm, state-owned Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI).
An Israeli defence source with knowledge of the deal told Reuters the Israel Aerospace Industries sale was the first drone sale to Russia by an Israeli firm. IAI officials declined to comment.
Russia's five-day war with neighbouring Georgia last August exposed a Soviet-style army with obsolete equipment and a lack of spy drones and high-precision bombs, analysts said.
An industry source in Israel said Russian generals were impressed with the drones Georgia had bought from the Jewish state and approached the Israelis shortly after the war.
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has said that budget cuts this year in the wake of the financial crisis will not affect planned purchases of new weapons for the armed forces.
Israel's Haaretz daily said on Friday that the deal for the drones went ahead only after Israel received clear signals from Russia that it had no intention of selling S-300 anti-aircraft missile systems to Iran.
Asked if the sale was connected to the S-300, the defence source agreed there was a link, but gave no further details.
CIA closes secret prisons for terrorism suspects!
Washington, April 10 (DPA) The US will no longer hold terrorism suspects in secret prisons and plans to shut down any facilities still in operation, CIA Director Leon Panetta has said, marking the latest reversal of terrorism policy by the new administration.
President Barack Obama has already ordered the eventual closure of the controversial prison camp in Guantanamo Bay in Cuba, and repealed some of the harsh interrogation tactics used under president George W. Bush.
The Central Intelligence Agency's (CIA) secret prisons in foreign countries came under sharp condemnation from human-rights groups for treatment of Al Qaeda terrorist suspects. A report leaked last month from the International Committee of the Red Cross said the CIA's interrogations amounted to torture.
'CIA no longer operates detention facilities or black sites and has proposed a plan to decommission the remaining sites,' Panetta said Thursday in a letter to staff that was released on the CIA's website.
Panetta said the CIA still reserved the right to hold suspects for a brief period before handing them over to military authorities.
Bush in 2006 first acknowledged the existence of the secret prisons, which were used to hold high-profile suspects including Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of the attacks on Sep 11, 2001.
The prisons' existence caused problems for some governments in Europe and Asia who allegedly were aware of the facilities. A European Union report in 2007 singled out Poland and Romania for allowing CIA prisons on their soil from 2002-05, but both denied any knowledge.
Panetta said that the CIA had already stopped all of the so-called 'enhanced interrogation' practices in place during the Bush administration.
'CIA will continue to honour the law as we defend the United States, as we have done since the beginning of this programme,' Panetta said.
In the first week of his presidency in January, Obama issued executive orders to close Guantanamo within a year and to ensure that the US 'does not torture'.
London, April 9 (DPA) Twelve people, including 10 Pakistanis, were arrested on suspicion of having links with Al Qaeda terrorist network in a series of raids in northwest England, the police said Wednesday.
The swoop was believed to have been brought forward due to a security blunder, after Britain's most senior counter-terrorism chief, Bob Quick, was filmed clutching highly sensitive documents as he arrived in Downing Street to brief the government.
Among a large bundle of papers under his arm was a white document clearly marked 'secret' and carrying an outline briefing on an ongoing counter-terrorism operation.
Few details were released but reports said those arrested included two students who were surrounded by armed police at John Moores University in Liverpool.
Ten of the men were reportedly from Pakistan and in Britain on student visas.
Quick, who is head of Scotland Yard's specialist operations wing, had apologised to his superior, Scotland Yard chief Paul Stephenson, for 'leaving the document on show,' the Press Association reported.
Fri, Apr 10 05:50 PM
Industrial production may be in a slump but not investor sentiment. The return of foreign institutional investors (FIIs) into the Indian markets and an improving global financial environment have been the key factors behind a stocks rally that has seen the benchmark Sensex climb 32 per cent - or 2,643 points - in the past one month.
It gained 7.6 per cent in the current week ahead of Good Friday to close at a six-month high of 10,803. That spirit contrasts some ground realities.
The Index of Industrial Production (IIP) has contracted on the year, while GDP growth projections have been lowered, with a matching shrinkage in expectations of corporate profitability. But then, there is also a "no news is good news" mood on the external front and positive announcements at the G-20 summit of elite economies.
"Overall, risk aversion has eased and investors are moving from secure assets to riskier assets," said Aseem Dhru, chief executive officer, HDFC Securities. While market discounted all the bad news on economic and corporate front, FIIs emerged as strong buyers with net equity purchases of Rs 4,042 crore since March 9.
"FII purchase in a beaten down market over the last one year has built in a positive investor sentiment," said Divyesh Shah, CEO, Indiabulls Securities. Experts, nevertheless, remain cautious, "I expect sensex to rally between 9,000 and 11,000,' said Dhru.
"Some profit booking is expected," added Shah. However, they see clarity emerging within three months.
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The Passion of the Christ
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The Passion of the Christ
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references (ideally, using inline citations). Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (August 2008) |
| The Passion of the Christ | |
 | |
| Directed by | Mel Gibson |
|---|---|
| Produced by | Bruce Davey Mel Gibson Stephen McEveety |
| Written by | Benedict Fitzgerald Mel Gibson |
| Starring | James Caviezel Maia Morgenstern Monica Bellucci Hristo Naumov Shopov Mattia Sbragia Rosalinda Celentano |
| Music by | John Debney |
| Cinematography | Caleb Deschanel |
| Editing by | John Wright |
| Distributed by | Theatrical: United Kingdom, Australia: Icon Entertainment USA: Newmarket Films Canada:Equinox Films Taiwan, Argentina, Singapore, Brazil: 20th Century Fox Malta: KRS DVD:United Kingdom: MGM Home Entertainment Australia, Canada: Warner Home Video USA, Taiwan, Argentina, Brazil, Singapore: 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment |
| Release date(s) | USA February 25, 2004 |
| Running time | 126 minutes |
| Country | United States, Israel |
| Language | Aramaic Latin Hebrew |
| Budget | $30 million USD |
| Gross revenue | Domestic: $370,782,930[1] Worldwide: $611,899,420[1] |
The Passion of the Christ is a 2004 film co-written, co-produced and directed by Mel Gibson. It is based on accounts of the arrest, trial, torture, crucifixion, and resurrection of Jesus, events commonly known as "The Passion". The film was rated R by the MPAA for "sequences of graphic violence." The film’s dialogue is in Aramaic, Latin, and Hebrew, with subtitles. It is the highest grossing non-English language film and the most successful R-rated film in the United States.[2]
[edit] Plot
The film opens in Gethsemane in medias res as Jesus prays and is tempted by Satan, while his apostles, Peter, James, and John sleep. After receiving thirty pieces of silver, one of Jesus' other apostles, Judas Iscariot, approaches with the temple guard and betrays Jesus with a kiss. Peter cuts off the ear of Malchus, but Jesus heals the ear. The temple guard arrest Jesus and the apostles flee. John tells Mary and Mary Magdalene of the arrest, and Peter follows Jesus at a distance. Caiaphas holds a trial of Jesus over the objection of some of the other priests, who are expelled from the court. When questioned by Caiaphas whether he is the son of God, Jesus replies "I AM", which to Caiaphas justifies the charge of blasphemy, and Jesus is condemned to death. Three times Peter denies knowing Jesus, and the remorseful Judas returns the money. Tormented by demons, Judas flees the city and hangs himself with a rope from a dead donkey.
Caiaphas brings Jesus before Pontius Pilate to be condemned to death, but after questioning Jesus, Pilate sends him instead to the court of Herod Antipas, as Jesus is from Herod's ruling town of Nazareth. After Jesus is returned, Pilate offers the crowd that he will chastise Jesus and will be set free. Jesus is viciously scourged but the people still demand Jesus to be crucified. Though, Pilate gives the people an option of freeing Jesus or Barabbas. When Barabbas is chosen, Jesus is sentenced to be crucified. As Jesus carries the cross along the Via Dolorosa to Calvary, Veronica wipes Jesus's face with her veil. Simon of Cyrene is unwillingly pressed into carrying the cross for Jesus. Jesus is crucified, and after his death, a single drop of rain falls from the sky. Jesus is lowered from the cross to his mother Mary, who looks directly at the audience in this Pietà. The movie ends with Jesus's resurrection and exit from the tomb, with the holes in his hands from the nails visible as he walks.
[edit] Themes
In The Passion: Photography from the Movie "The Passion of the Christ", Gibson says "This is a movie about love, hope, faith, and forgiveness. He [Jesus] died for all mankind, suffered for all of us. It's time to get back to that basic message. The world has gone nuts. We could all use a little more love, faith, hope, and forgiveness."
He also explains one of his appearances in the film, the close-up of his hands nailing Jesus to the cross: "It was me that put Him on the cross. It was my sins [that put Him there]."
[edit] Source material
[edit] New Testament
According to director Mel Gibson, the primary source material for The Passion of the Christ is the four Gospel narratives of Christ's passion. The film also draws from other parts of the New Testament. The line spoken by Jesus, "Behold Mother, I make all things new," is taken from the Book of Revelation.[3]
[edit] Old Testament
The Passion of the Christ also references the Old Testament. The film begins with an epigraph from the Fourth Song of the Suffering Servant from Isaiah.[4] In the opening scene set in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus crushes a serpent's head in direct visual allusion to Genesis 3:15.[5] Throughout the film, Jesus quotes from the Psalms, beyond the instances recorded in the New Testament.
[edit] Traditional iconography and stories
Many of the depictions in The Passion of the Christ deliberately mirror traditional representations of the Passion in art. For example, the fourteen Stations of the Cross are central to the depiction of the Via Dolorosa in The Passion of the Christ. All of the stations are portrayed except for the eighth station (Jesus meets the women of Jerusalem, a deleted scene on the DVD) and the fourteenth station (Jesus is laid in the tomb). Gibson was also visually inspired by the representation of Jesus on the Shroud of Turin.[6]
At the suggestion of actress Maia Morgenstern, the Passover Seder is quoted early in the film. Mary asks "Why is this night different than other nights?", and Mary Magdalene replies with the traditional response: "Because once we were slaves and we are slaves no longer".[7]
The conflation of Mary Magdalene with the adulteress saved from stoning by Jesus has some precedent in tradition but according to the director was done for dramatic reasons. The names of some of the characters in the film are traditional and extra-Scriptural, such as the thieves crucified alongside the Christ, Dismas and Gesmas (also Gestas).
[edit] Catholic devotional writings
Screenwriters Mel Gibson and Benedict Fitzgerald said that they read many accounts of Christ's passion for inspiration, including the devotional writings of Catholic mystics. A principal source is The Dolorous Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ[8] the meditations of the stigmatic, German nun Anne Catherine Emmerich (1774–1824), as told to the poet Clemens Brentano. Elements taken from Emmerich include the suspension of Jesus from a bridge after his arrest by the Temple guards, the wiping up of the blood of Jesus after his scourging, and the dislocation of Jesus’ shoulder so that his palm would reach the hole for the nail.[8] A second source mentioned was The Mystical City of God by Maria de Agreda (1602–1665), a 17th century Spanish nun.
[edit] Differences from traditional Passion story
Certain elements of The Passion of the Christ do not have precedent in earlier depictions of the Passion. In one example, Judas Iscariot is tormented by demons who appear as children to him. The film also gives focus to the fragile relationship of Tiberius Caesar with Pontius Pilate through Pilate's discussion with his wife about imperial orders to avert further Judean revolts. The movie clearly identifies Simon of Cyrene as Jewish, although the Synoptic Gospels provide only his name and place of origin. In the film, a Roman soldier derides Simon (who helps Jesus bear the cross) by derisively calling him Jew. In contrast, Simon is described as a pagan in The Dolorious Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ[8]
Other scenes unique to The Passion of the Christ include when the crucified thief who taunted Jesus has his eye pecked out by a crow. The flashback of the carpenter Jesus building an elevated, four-legged table for a Roman is also particular to this film. The scene of Satan carrying a Demon baby during Christ’s flogging has been construed as a perverse mockery of traditional depictions of the Madonna and Child. Mel Gibson described this scene as follows:
"...it's evil distorting what’s good. What is more tender and beautiful than a mother and a child? So the Devil takes that and distorts it just a little bit. Instead of a normal mother and child you have an androgynous figure holding a 40-year-old ‘baby’ with hair on his back. It is weird, it is shocking, it's almost too much – just like turning Jesus over to continue scourging him on his chest is shocking and almost too much, which is the exact moment when this appearance of the Devil and the baby takes place."[9]
[edit] Production
[edit] Script and language
Gibson originally announced that he would use two dead languages without subtitles and rely on "filmic storytelling." Because the story of the Passion is so well-known, Gibson felt the need to avoid vernacular languages in order to surprise audiences: "I think it's almost counterproductive to say some of these things in a modern language. It makes you want to stand up and shout out the next line, like when you hear 'To be or not to be' and you instinctively say to yourself, 'That is the question.' "[10] The script was written in English by Gibson and Benedict Fitzgerald, then translated by William Fulco, S.J. into Latin, reconstructed Aramaic, and Hebrew. Gibson chose to use Latin instead of Greek so that the audience could easily distinguish between the sound of Italianate Latin and Semitic Aramaic.[11] Fulco sometimes incorporated deliberate errors in pronunciations and word endings when the characters were speaking a language unfamiliar to them, and some of the crude language used by the Roman soldiers was not translated in the subtitles.[12] The pronunciation of Latin in the film is closer to ecclesiastical Latin than to more historically accurate classical Latin. (Clear instances of this can be heard when Pontius Pilate says "veritas" and "ecce".)
[edit] Filming
The movie was filmed in Italy, specifically in Matera and Craco (Basilicata) and Cinecittà Studios, Rome. Gibson consulted several theological advisors during filming, including Fr. Jonathan Morris, who would later go on to become a news analyst and contributor. During filming, assistant director Jan Michelini was struck twice by lightning. The second time this happened, the lightning bolt also hit James Caviezel.[13]
[edit] Post-production
[edit] Title change
Although Gibson wanted to call his film The Passion, on October 16, 2003 his spokesman announced that the title used in the United States would be The Passion of Christ because Miramax had already registered the title The Passion with the MPAA for the 1987 novel by Jeanette Winterson.[14] Later, the title was changed again to The Passion of the Christ for all markets.
[edit] Distribution and marketing
Gibson began production on his film without securing outside funding or distribution. In 2002 he explained why he could not get backing from the Hollywood studios: "This is a film about something that nobody wants to touch, shot in two dead languages. In Los Angeles they think I am insane, and maybe I am."[15] Gibson and his Icon Productions company provided the film's sole backing, spending about $30 million on production costs and an estimated $15 million on marketing.[16] After early accusations of anti-Semitism, it became difficult for Gibson to find an American distribution company. 20th Century Fox had a first-look deal with Icon and passed on the film in response to public protests.[17] In order to avoid the spectacle of other studios turning down the film and to avoid subjecting the distributor to the same intense public criticism he had received, Gibson decided to distribute the movie in the United States himself, with Newmarket Films.[18]
Gibson departed from the usual film marketing formula. He employed a small-scale television advertising campaign, with no press junkets.[19] Yet The Passion of the Christ was heavily promoted by many church groups, both within their organizations and to the general public, often giving away free tickets.[20]
[edit] Theatrical release
[edit] Domestic release
The movie opened in the United States on February 25, 2004 (Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent). It earned $83,848,082 in its opening weekend, ranking it 4th overall in domestic opening weekend earnings for 2004. It went on to earn $370,782,930 overall in the United States, ranking it 12th in all-time domestic earnings[21], and the highest-grossing R-rated film of all time in North America.[2]
[edit] International release
[edit] Government censorship
The movie was banned in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Bahrain.[22] In Malaysia, government censors initially banned it completely, but after Christian leaders protested, the restriction was lifted, but only for Christian audiences, allowing them to view the film in specially-designated theatres.[23] In Israel the film was not banned, despite the call from some ultra-Orthodox rabbis and left-leaning political parties to do so. However, it never received theatrical distribution because no Israeli distributor sought to market the movie.[24]
[edit] International box office
Despite the various controversies and refusals of certain governments to allow the film to be viewed in wide release, The Passion of the Christ earned $611,899,420 worldwide, ranking it #41 for all-time worldwide grosses[21], and #2 for an R rated movie, behind The Matrix Reloaded (a film it eclipsed by some $80 million domestically). The movie was also a large success in certain countries with large Muslim populations, [22] such as in Egypt, where it ranked 20th overall in its box office numbers for 2004.[25]
[edit] Theatrical re-release
An edited version titled The Passion Recut was released on March 11, 2005, with five minutes of the most explicit violence deleted to broaden the audience for the film. Gibson explained his reasoning for the new version of the film:
After the initial run in movie theaters, I received numerous letters from people all across the country. Many told me they wanted to share the experience with loved ones but were concerned that the harsher images of the film would be too intense for them to bear. In light of this I decided to re-edit The Passion of the Christ.[26]
Despite the attempt to tone down the content, the Motion Picture Association of America deemed the film too violent to rate PG-13, so Gibson released it as unrated.[26] The re-release did not end up being a commercial success, only showing for three weeks before its poor box office results caused it to be pulled from theaters.[27]
[edit] Home video
On August 31, 2004, the film was released on DVD, VHS, and later D-VHS in North America. As with the original theatrical release, the film's release on home video formats proved to be very popular. Early reports indicated that over 2.4 million copies of the film were sold by the middle of the day. The film was available on DVD with English and Spanish subtitles, and on VHS tape with English subtitles. On February 17, 2009, the film was released on Blu-ray in North America as a two-disc Definitive Edition set.
Although the original DVD release of The Passion of The Christ sold well, it contained no extra materials other than soundtrack language selections. The no-frills edition provoked speculation about when a special edition would be released. On January 30, 2007, a two-disc Definitive Edition of The Passion of The Christ was released in the American markets, and March 26 elsewhere. It contains several documentaries, soundtrack commentaries, deleted scenes, outtakes, the 2005 re-edited version, and the original 2004 theatrical version.[28]
[edit] Critical reviews
The film received generally mixed reviews from critics. The review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported that 50 percent of critics gave the film positive reviews, based on 260 reviews total; with the consensus that "the graphic details of Jesus' torture make the movie tough to sit through and obscure whatever message it is trying to convey."[29] Metacritic reported the film had an average score of 47 out of 100, based on 43 reviews.[30]
Roger Ebert gave the film four out of four stars.[31]
The June 2006 issue of Entertainment Weekly named The Passion of the Christ the most controversial film of all time, followed by Stanley Kubrick's film A Clockwork Orange[32].
[edit] Controversies surrounding the film
[edit] Questions of historical accuracy
Paula Fredriksen criticized the historical accuracy of the film, saying, "The point of Gibson's errors is not that they are there, but that they give the lie to Gibson's strident assertions of historical accuracy."[33] However, biblical scholar Mark Goodacre protested that he could not find one documented example of Gibson explicitly claiming the film to be historically accurate.[34][35] In fact, Gibson had been quoted as saying, "I think that my first duty is to be as faithful as possible in telling the story so that it doesn't contradict the Scriptures. Now, so long as it didn't do that, I felt that I had a pretty wide berth for artistic interpretation, and to fill in some of the spaces with logic, with imagination, with various other readings."[36]
[edit] Promotional screenings
Gibson was criticized for holding private screenings for prominent, politically and socially conservative Christian and Jewish religious leaders; yet seemingly refusing to include those who had already criticized the film, such as Abraham Foxman.[37]
[edit] Disputed papal endorsement
In early December 2003, Passion of the Christ co-producer Stephen McEveety provided the film to Archbishop Stanislaw Dziwisz, the pope's secretary. Dziwisz returned the film to McEveety and said he had watched it with John Paul II. On December 16, Daily Variety reported that the pope had seen the film, and on Dec. 17, Wall Street Journal columnist Peggy Noonan reported that John Paul II had said: "It is as it was," sourcing McEveety, who said he heard it from Dziwisz.[38] National Catholic Reporter journalist John Allen published a similar account on the same day, quoting an unnamed senior Vatican official.[39] The following day, Reuters and the Associated Press each independently confirmed the story, citing Vatican sources.[40][41] On December 24, an anonymous Vatican official told Catholic News Service, "There was no declaration, no judgment from the pope." On January 9, John Allen defended his earlier reporting, saying that his official source was adamant about the veracity of the original story.[42] In a January 18 column, Frank Rich interviewed the Italian translator who quoted Dziwisz as saying that the pope called the film "incredible" and said "it is as it was." Rich attacked the marketing of the film and suggested the Dziwisz wielded too much influence over the pope. The next day Dziwisz told CNS, "The Holy Father told no one his opinion of this film."[43] This denial resulted in a round of commentators who accused the film producers of fabricating a papal quote to market their movie.
However, the Icon Productions spokesman stood by the story, and a source close to the situation said McEveety had asked for and received Vatican officials' permission to repeat the "It is as it was" statement before speaking to Noonan.[44] Journalist Rod Dreher reported that McEveety had received an email from papal spokesman Dr. Joaquin Navarro-Valls on December 28, backing the Noonan account and ending: "I would try to make the words 'It is as it was' the leit motive [sic] in any discusion [sic] on the film. Repeat the words again and again and again."[45]
Peggy Noonan had also received email confirmation of the quote from Navarro-Valls before writing her December 17 column. Complicating the situation, Navarro-Valls told Dreher that the email sent to McEveety was not genuine, suggesting it was fabricated. However Noonan verified that all of the Navarro-Valls emails came from the same Vatican IP address.[46] The Los Angeles Times reported that they had previously confirmed the accuracy of the quote from Navarro-Valls when the story first broke. On CNN, John Allen reported Vatican sources who claim to have heard Dziwisz on other occasions affirm the accuracy of the quotation.[47]
On January 22, Navarro-Valls released the following official statement:
"The film is a cinematographic transposition of the historical event of the Passion of Jesus Christ according to the accounts of the Gospel. It is a common practice of the Holy Father not to express public opinions on artistic works, opinions that are always open to different evaluations of aesthetic character."[48]
Afterward, Gibson expressed ambivalence about the endorsement.[6][49]
[edit] Allegations of anti-Semitism
Before the film was even released, there were allegations of anti-Semitic content in the movie. 20th Century Fox told New York Assemblyman Dov Hikind they had passed on distributing the film in response to a protest outside the News Corp. building. Hikind warned other movie companies that "they should not distribute this film. This is unhealthy for Jews all over the world."[17]
A joint committee of the Secretariat for Ecumenical and Inter-religious Affairs of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and the Department of Inter-religious Affairs of the Anti-Defamation League obtained a version of the script before it was released in theaters. They released a statement, calling it
one of the most troublesome texts, relative to anti-Semitic potential, that any of us had seen in twenty-five years. It must be emphasized that the main storyline presented Jesus as having been relentlessly pursued by an evil cabal of Jews, headed by the high priest Caiaphas, who finally blackmailed a weak-kneed Pilate into putting Jesus to death. This is precisely the storyline that fueled centuries of anti-Semitism within Christian societies. This is also a storyline rejected by the Roman Catholic Church at Vatican II in its document Nostra Aetate, and by nearly all mainline Protestant churches in parallel documents . . . . Unless this basic storyline has been altered by Mr. Gibson, a fringe Catholic who is building his own church in the Los Angeles area and who apparently accepts neither the teachings of Vatican II nor modern biblical scholarship, The Passion of the Christ retains a real potential for undermining the repudiation of classical Christian anti-Semitism by the churches in the last forty years.[50]
The ADL itself also released a statement about the yet to be released movie:
For filmmakers to do justice to the biblical accounts of the passion, they must complement their artistic vision with sound scholarship, which includes knowledge of how the passion accounts have been used historically to disparage and attack Jews and Judaism. Absent such scholarly and theological understanding, productions such as The Passion could likely falsify history and fuel the animus of those who hate Jews.[51]
Rabbi Daniel Lapin, the South African-born head of the Toward Tradition organisation, criticized this statement, and said of Foxman, the head of the ADL, "what he is saying is that the only way to escape the wrath of Foxman is to repudiate your faith."[52]
In The Nation, reviewer Katha Pollitt said, "Gibson has violated just about every precept of the (United States Conference of Catholic Bishops) conference's own 1988 "Criteria" for the portrayal of Jews in dramatizations of the Passion (no bloodthirsty Jews, no rabble, no use of Scripture that reinforces negative stereotypes of Jews, etc.) ... The priests have big noses and gnarly faces, lumpish bodies, yellow teeth; Herod Antipas and his court are a bizarre collection of oily-haired, epicene perverts. The "good Jews" look like Italian movie stars (Italian sex symbol Monica Bellucci is Mary Magdalene); Mary, who would have been around 50 and appeared 70, could pass for a ripe 35."[53] Jesuit priest Fr. William Fulco, S.J., of Loyola Marymount University — and the film's Aramaic dialogue translator — specifically disagreed with that assessment, and disagreed with concerns that the film accused the Jewish community of Deicide.[54]
One specific scene in the movie perceived as an example of anti-Semitism was in the dialogue of Caiaphas, when he states "His blood [is] on us and on our children!", a quote historically interpreted by some as a curse taken upon by the Jewish people. Certain Jewish groups asked this be removed from the film. However, only the subtitles were removed; the original dialogue remains in Aramaic soundtrack.[55]
When asked about this scene, Gibson said, "I wanted it in. My brother said I was wimping out if I didn't include it. But, man, if I included that in there, they'd be coming after me at my house. They'd come to kill me."[56] In another interview when asked about the scene, he said, "It's one little passage, and I believe it, but I don't and never have believed it refers to Jews, and implicates them in any sort of curse. It's directed at all of us, all men who were there, and all that came after. His blood is on us, and that's what Jesus wanted. But I finally had to admit that one of the reasons I felt strongly about keeping it, aside from the fact it's true, is that I didn't want to let someone else dictate what could or couldn't be said."[57]
In the New Republic, Leon Wieseltier said: "In its representation of its Jewish characters, The Passion of the Christ is without any doubt an anti-Semitic movie, and anybody who says otherwise knows nothing, or chooses to know nothing, about the visual history of anti-Semitism, in art and in film. What is so shocking about Gibson's Jews is how unreconstructed they are in their stereotypical appearances and actions. These are not merely anti-Semitic images; these are classically anti-Semitic images." [58]
Asked by Bill O'Reilly if his movie would "upset Jews," Gibson responded, "It's not meant to. I think it's meant to just tell the truth. I want to be as truthful as possible."[59] In a Globe and Mail newspaper interview, he added, "If anyone has distorted Gospel passages to rationalize cruelty towards Jews or anyone, it's in defiance of repeated Papal condemnation. The Papacy has condemned racism in any form... Jesus died for the sins of all times, and I'll be the first on the line for culpability".[60]
Movie reviewer Cal Thomas also tried to dispel the allegations of anti-Semitism, saying "To those in the Jewish community who worry that the film, which is scheduled for release next Easter season, might contain anti-Semitic elements, or encourage people to persecute Jews, fear not. The film does not indict Jews for the death of Jesus."[61] Two Orthodox Jews, Rabbi Daniel Lapin and Michael Medved also vocally rejected claims that the film is anti-Semitic. They have noted the film's many sympathetic portrayals of Jews: Simon of Cyrene (who helps Jesus carry the cross), Mary Magdalene, the Virgin Mary, St. Peter, St. John and Veronica (who wipes Jesus' face and offers him water).
Moreover, Senior Vatican officer Darío Cardinal Castrillón Hoyos, who has seen the film, addressed the matter so:
Anti-Semitism, like all forms of racism, distorts the truth in order to put a whole race of people in a bad light. This film does nothing of the sort. It draws out from the historical objectivity of the Gospel narratives sentiments of forgiveness, mercy, and reconciliation. It captures the subtleties and the horror of sin, as well as the gentle power of love and forgiveness, without making or insinuating blanket condemnations against one group. This film expressed the exact opposite, that learning from the example of Christ, there should never be any more violence against any other human being.[62]
[edit] Criticism of excessive violence
Certain critics were troubled by the film's explicitly-detailed violence, and especially cautioned parents to avoid taking their children to the cinema. Although only one sentence in three of the Gospels mentions Jesus's flogging, and it is unmentioned in the fourth, The Passion of the Christ devotes ten minutes to the portrayal of the flogging. Film critic Roger Ebert, who rated the movie four-out-of-four stars, said in his review:
The movie is 126 minutes long, and I would guess that at least 100 of those minutes, maybe more, are concerned specifically and graphically with the details of the torture and death of Jesus. This is the most violent film I have ever seen.
Ebert also mentioned that the R-rated film merits the MPAA NC-17 rating in a "Movie Answer Man" response, adding that no level-minded parent should ever allow children to see it.[63]
A.O. Scott, in The New York Times, said, The Passion of the Christ is so relentlessly focused on the savagery of Jesus' final hours that this film seems to arise less from love than from wrath, and to succeed more in assaulting the spirit than in uplifting it."[64]
David Edelstein, Slate's film critic, dubbed the film "a two-hour-and-six-minute snuff movie — The Jesus Chainsaw Massacre — that thinks it's an act of faith", and further criticised Gibson for focusing on the brutality of Jesus' execution, instead of his religious teachings.[65]
During Diane Sawyer's interview of him, Gibson said:
I wanted it to be shocking; and I wanted it to be extreme ... So that they see the enormity — the enormity of that sacrifice; to see that someone could endure that and still come back with love and forgiveness, even through extreme pain and suffering and ridicule. The actual crucifixion was more violent than what was shown on the film, but I thought no one would get anything out of it.
[edit] Response from Protestants
Fundamentalist Protestant groups criticised the film for its Catholic and ecumenical overtones, especially the addition of noncanonical scenes of Jesus with his mother (which they say encourages Mariolatry).[66]
[edit] "Kill Christ" parody trailer
In 2003, a New York University student named Spencer Somers created a parody trailer named "Kill Christ" by recutting the real trailer for The Passion of the Christ in the style of Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill trailer (also utilizing Battle Without Honor or Humanity for the musical soundtrack). Satirically, it spoofed Kill Bill's tagline "In 2003 Uma Thurman will kill Bill" by changing it to "In 2004 the Jews will kill Christ". This parody was taken down from the internet after a lawsuit threat from Mel Gibson's Icon Productions. [67][68][69]
[edit] Awards
[edit] Won
- National Board of Review, Award for Freedom of Expression (2004)
- People's Choice Awards — Favorite Motion Picture Drama (2004)
- Satellite Awards – Best Director – Mel Gibson
- Moviefone Moviegoer Awards - Best Picture
- Ethnic Multicultural Media Academy Award – Best Film Production
- Ethnic Multicultural Media Academy Award – Best Film Actress – Maia Morgenstern
- Motion Picture Sound Editors, USA, Golden Reel Award – Best Sound Editing in a Feature Film - Music – Michael T. Ryan
- Golden Knight Film Festival – Grand Prix – Mel Gibson
- Golden Knight Film Festival – Best Actor – Hristo Shopov
- ShoWest / USA Today / Coca-Cola – Consumers Choice for Favorite Movie Award
- American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers –ASCAP Henry Mancini Award – John Debney
- Hollywood Film Festival, USA – Hollywood Producer of the Year – Mel Gibson
- Catholics in Media Associates – Film Award – Mel Gibson
- Cinema Writers Circle Awards, Spain – Best Foreign Film
- GMA Dove Award, The Passion of the Christ Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, Instrumental Album of the Year (2004)
[edit] Nominated
- Academy Awards, USA - Oscar for Academy Award for Best Cinematography (2007) - Caleb Deschanel
- Academy Awards, USA - Oscar for Best Makeup (2004) - Keith Vanderlaan, Christien Tinsley
- Academy Awards, USA - Oscar for Best Original Score (2004) - John Debney
- American Society of Cinematographers, USA - ASC Award for Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography in Theatrical Releases (2004) - Caleb Deschanel
- Motion Picture Sound Editors Golden Reel Award for Best Sound Editing for Music in a Feature Film (2004)
- Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards - BFCA Award for Best Popular Movie (2004)
- Irish Film and Television Awards – Jameson People's Choice Award for Best International Film
- Motion Picture Sound Editors, USA, Golden Reel Award – Best Sound Editing in Domestic Features - Dialogue & ADR
- MTV Movie Awards – Best male performance – James Caviezel
[edit] Cast
| Actor/Actress | Role |
|---|---|
| James Caviezel | Jesus |
| Maia Morgenstern | Mary |
| Monica Bellucci | Magdalene |
| Hristo Shopov | Pontius Pilate |
| Mattia Sbragia | Caiphas |
| Rosalinda Celentano | Satan |
| Hristo Jivkov | John |
| Francesco DeVito | Peter |
| Luca Lionello | Judas Iscariot |
| Claudia Gerini | Claudia Procles |
| Pietro "Pedro" Sarubbi | Barabbas |
| Sergio Rubini | Dismas |
| Francesco Cabras | Gesmas |
| Toni Bertorelli | Annas ben Seth |
| Roberto Bestazoni | Malchus |
| Giovanni Capalbo | Cassius |
| Emilio De Marchi | Scornful Roman |
| Roberto Visconti | Scornful Roman |
| Lello Giulivo | Brutish Roman |
| Abel Jafry | 2nd Temple Officer |
| Jarreth Merz | Simon of Cyrene |
| Matt Patresi | Janus |
| Fabio Sartor | Abenader |
| Luca De Dominicis | Herod Ántipas |
| Sabrina Impacciatore | Seraphia |
[edit] Music
Three CDs were released with Mel Gibson's co-operation: (i) the film soundtrack of John Debney's original orchestral score conducted by Nick Ingman; (ii) The Passion of the Christ: Songs, by producers Mark Joseph and Tim Cook, with original compositions by various artists, and (iii) The Passion of the Christ: Songs Inspired By. The first two albums each received a 2005 Dove award, and the soundtrack received an Academy Award nomination of Best Music Score.
A preliminary score was composed and recorded by Lisa Gerrard and Patrick Cassidy, but was incomplete at film's release. Jack Lenz was the primary musical researcher and one of the composers[70]; several clips of his compositions have been posted online.[71].
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ a b "The Passion of the Christ (2004)". Box Office Mojo. http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=passionofthechrist.htm. Retrieved on 2009-02-05.
- ^ a b "Domestic Grosses by MPAA Rating: R". BoxOfficeMojo.com. http://www.boxofficemojo.com/yearly/chart/mpaarating.htm?rating=R&yr=2004&p=.htm.
- ^ The Holy Bible, Book of Revelation 21:5. http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Revelation%2021:5;&version=31.
- ^ The Holy Bible, Book of Isaiah 53:5. http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Isaiah%2053:5;&version=31.
- ^ The Holy Bible, Book of Genesis 3:15. http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%203:15;&version=31.
- ^ a b Cooney Carrillo, Jenny (2004-02-26). "The Passion of Mel". Urbancinefile. http://www.urbancinefile.com.au/home/view.asp?a=8559&s=Interviews.
- ^ Abramowitz, Rachel (2004-03-07). "Along came Mary; Mel Gibson was sold on Maia Morgenstern for 'Passion' at first sight". Los Angeles Times. http://articles.latimes.com/2004/mar/07/entertainment/ca-encounter7.
- ^ a b c Clement Brentano. The Dolorous Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ. http://www.jesus-passion.com/DOLOROUS_PASSION_OF_OUR_LORD_JESUS_CHRIST.htm.
- ^ Moring, Mark (2004-03-01). "What's Up With the Ugly Baby?". Christianity Today. http://www.christianitytoday.com/movies/news/040301-passion.html. Retrieved on 2008-08-20.
- ^ [hhttp://www.zenit.org/article-6723?l=english "Mel Gibson’s Great Passion"]. Zenit. 2003-03-06. hhttp://www.zenit.org/article-6723?l=english.
- ^ Mark Goodacre (November 26, 2004). "SBL Passion of the Christ interview — Fulco and Fitzgerald.". NT Gateway Weblog. http://www.ntgateway.com/weblog/2004/11/sbl-passion-of-christ-interview-fulco.html.
- ^ "TRANSLATING THE PASSION.". Language Hat. March 08, 2004. http://www.languagehat.com/archives/001196.php.
- ^ "Jesus actor struck by lightning". BBC. 23 October, 2003. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/3209223.stm.
- ^ Susman, Gary (10-16-2004). "Napoleon Branding". “Entertainment Weekly”. http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,519051,00.html. Retrieved on 2008-08-16.
- ^ Nick Vivarelli (2002-9-23). "Gibson To Direct Christ Tale With Caviezel As Star". The Hollywood Reporter. http://www.allbusiness.com/services/motion-pictures/4866159-1.html. Retrieved on 2008-10-20.
- ^ Patsuris, Penelope (2004-03-03). "What Mel's Passion Will Earn Him". Forbes.com. http://www.forbes.com/business/2004/03/03/cx_pp_0303mel.html.
- ^ a b "Fox passes on Gibson’s ‘The Passion’". Los Angeles Times. 2004-10-22.
- ^ Horn, John (2004-10-22). "Gibson to Market ‘Christ’ on His Own, Sources Say". Los Angeles Times. http://articles.latimes.com/2003/oct/22/business/fi-mel22. Retrieved on 2008-10-20.
- ^ Cobb, Jerry (2004-02-25). "Marketing ‘The Passion of the Christ’". MSNBC.com. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4374411.
- ^ Maresco, Peter A. (Fall 2004). "Mel Gibson's The Passion Of The Christ: Market Segmentation, Mass Marketing and Promotion, and the Internet". The Journal of Religion and Popular Culture. http://www.usask.ca/relst/jrpc/art8-melgibsonmarketing.html.
- ^ a b "Box Office Statistics for The Passion of the Christ". BoxOfficeMojo.com. http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=passionofthechrist.htm.
- ^ a b Blanford, Nicholas (2004-04-09). "Gibson's movie unlikely box-office hit in Arab world". The Christian Science Monitor. http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0409/p01s02-wome.html.
- ^ "Censors in Malaysia give OK to ‘Passion’". Los Angeles Times. 2004-7-10. http://articles.latimes.com/2004/jul/10/entertainment/et-quick10. Retrieved on 2008-10-20.
- ^ Laura King (2004-3-15). "‘Passion’ goes unseen in Israel". Los Angeles Times. http://articles.latimes.com/2004/mar/15/entertainment/et-king15. Retrieved on 2008-10-20.
- ^ "2004 Box Office Totals for Egypt". BoxOfficeMojo.com. http://www.boxofficemojo.com/intl/egypt/yearly/?yr=2004&p=.htm.
- ^ a b "The Passion of the Christ Review". PluggedInOnline.com. http://www.pluggedinonline.com/movies/movies/a0001657.cfm.
- ^ "Box Office Stats for The Passion Recut". BoxOfficeMojo.com. http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?page=main&id=passionrecut.htm.
- ^ "Re-Release of The Passion". Miserere.org. http://www.miserere.org/m/archivedposts/175.
- ^ "The Passion of the Christ Movie Reviews, Pictures — Rotten Tomatoes". Rotten Tomatoes. http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/passion_of_the_christ/. Retrieved on 2008-07-16.
- ^ "Passion of the Christ, The (2004): Reviews". Metacritic. http://www.metacritic.com/video/titles/passionofthechrist. Retrieved on 2008-07-16.
- ^ Ebert, Roger (2004-02-24). "Movie Reviews: The Passion of the Christ" (in English). Chicago Sun–Times. http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040224/REVIEWS/402240301/1023. Retrieved on 2006-08-02.
- ^ Entertainment Weekly. June 2006.
- ^ Paula Fredriksen (February 2004). "History, Hollywood, and the Bible: Some Thoughts on Gibson's Passion". Journal of Religion and Film. http://www.unomaha.edu/jrf/2004Symposium/Frederiksen.htm. Retrieved on 2008-10-20.
- ^ Mark Goodacre (2004-5-02). "Historical Accuracy of The Passion of the Christ". http://www.ntgateway.com/weblog/2004/05/historical-accuracy-of-passion-of.html. Retrieved on 2008-10-20.
- ^ Mark Goodacre, “The Power of The Passion: Reacting and Over-reacting to Gibson's Artistic Vision” in “Jesus and Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ. The Film, the Gospels and the Claims of History,” ed. Kathleen E. Corley and Robert L. Webb, 2004
- ^ David Neff and Jane Johnson Struck (February 23, 2004). "'Dude, That Was Graphic': Mel Gibson talks about The Passion of The Christ". Christianity Today. http://www.christianitytoday.com/movies/interviews/melgibson.html. Retrieved on 2008-10-20.
- ^ Abraham Foxman (2006-05-01). "Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ:Legitimizing Anti-Semitism". Institute for Global Jewish Affairs. http://jcpa.org/JCPA/Templates/ShowPage.asp?DRIT=3&DBID=1&LNGID=1&TMID=111&FID=610&PID=0&IID=572&TTL=Mel_Gibson%27s_The_Passion_of_the_Christ:_Legitimizing_Anti-Semitism.
- ^ Peggy Noonan (2003-12-17). "'It Is as It Was' Mel Gibson's "The Passion" gets a thumbs-up from the pope.". Wall Street Journal. http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/pnoonan/?id=110004442. Retrieved on 2008-10-20.
- ^ John L. Allen, Jr. (2004-1-23). "The Word From Rome". National Catholic Reporter. http://nationalcatholicreporter.org/word/word012304.htm. Retrieved on 2008-10-20.
- ^ Peggy Noonan (2004-1-22). "The story of the Vatican and Mel Gibson's film gets curiouser". Wall Street Journal. http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/pnoonan/?id=110004587. Retrieved on 2008-10-20.
- ^ John L. Allen, Jr. (2004-1-23). "The Word From Rome". National Catholic Reporter. http://nationalcatholicreporter.org/word/word012304.htm. Retrieved on 2008-10-20.
- ^ John L. Allen, Jr. (2004-1-9). [http http://www.nationalcatholicreporter.org/word/word010904.htm "The Word From Rome"]. National Catholic Reporter. http http://www.nationalcatholicreporter.org/word/word010904.htm. Retrieved on 2008-10-20.
- ^ Wooden, Cindy (2004-01-19). "Pope never commented on Gibson's 'Passion' film, says papal secretary". Catholic News Service. http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/20040119.htm. Retrieved on 2008-08-20.
- ^ Gabriel Snyder (2004-1-19). "Did Pope really plug 'Passion'?". Daily Variety. http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117898727.html?categoryid=13&cs=1. Retrieved on 2008-10-20.
- ^ Rod Dreher (2004-2-21). "Did the Vatican endorse Gibson's film - or didn't it?". Dallas Morning News. http://web.archive.org/web/20040202015147/http://www.dallasnews.com/s/dws/dn/opinion/columnists/rdreher/stories/012204dnedidreher.ebfd.html. Retrieved on 2008-10-19.
- ^ Peggy Noonan (2004-1-22). "The story of the Vatican and Mel Gibson's film gets curiouser". Wall Street Journal. http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/pnoonan/?id=110004587. Retrieved on 2008-10-20.
- ^ "'The Passion' Stirs Controversy at the Vatican". CNN transcript. 2004-1-21. http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0401/21/lol.07.html. Retrieved on 2008-10-20.
- ^ John L. Allen, Jr. (2004-1-23). "The Word From Rome..". National Catholic Reporter. http://nationalcatholicreporter.org/word/word012304.htm. Retrieved on 2008-10-20.
- ^ "Transcript of February 2004 Primetime". http://web.archive.org/web/20050716090130/http://sixtyminutes.ninemsn.com.au/sixtyminutes/stories/2004_02_22/story_1034.asp. Retrieved on 2006-07-31.
- ^ Pawlikowski, John T. (February 2004). "Christian Anti-Semitism: Past History, Present Challenges Reflections in Light of Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ". Journal of Religion and Film. http://www.unomaha.edu/jrf/2004Symposium/Pawlikowski.htm.
- ^ Anti-Defamation League (2003-06-24). ADL Statement on Mel Gibson's 'The Passion'. Press release. http://www.adl.org/presrele/mise_00/4275_00.asp. Retrieved on 2008-08-20.
- ^ Nacha Cattan (2004-03-05). ""Passion" Critics Endanger Jews, Angry Rabbis Claim, Attacking Groups, Foxman". The Jewish Daily Forward. http://www.forward.com/articles/6434/.
- ^ Pollitt, Katha (2004-03-11). "The Protocols of Mel Gibson". The Nation. http://www.thenation.com/doc/20040329/pollitt. Retrieved on 2008-08-20.
- ^ Wooden, Cindy (2003-05-02). "As filming ends, `Passion' strikes some nerves". National Catholic Reporter. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1141/is_26_39/ai_101680926. Retrieved on 2008-08-20.
- ^ Vermes, Geza (2003-02-27). "Celluloid brutality". The Guardian. http://film.guardian.co.uk/features/featurepages/0,4120,1157381,00.html. Retrieved on 2008-08-20.
- ^ "The Jesus War". http://www.seethepassion.com/article.php?id=21.
- ^ Terry Lawson (2004-02-17). "Mel Gibson and Other "Passion" Filmakers say the Movie was Guided by Faith". Detroit Free Press.
- ^ Leon Wieseltier (2004-03-08). "The Passion of the Christ". The New Republic. https://ssl.tnr.com/p/docsub.mhtml?i=20040308&s=wieseltier030804.
- ^ "The Passion of Mel Gibson". http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1101030127-409570,00.html.
- ^ "Mel Gibson Interview". Globe and Mail. 2004-02-14.
- ^ "The Greatest Story Ever Filmed". TownHall.com. 2003-08-05. http://townhall.com/columnists/CalThomas/2003/08/05/the_greatest_story_ever_filmed.
- ^ Gaspari, Antonio (2003-09-18). "The Cardinal & the Passion". National Review Online. http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/comment-gaspari091803.asp. Retrieved on 2008-08-20.
- ^ [1] - "The Movie Answer Man", Chicago Sun-Times, March 7, 2004
- ^ A. O. Scott Scott.. "Good and Evil Locked In Violent Showdown". The New York Times. http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9A07EFD6143CF936A15751C0A9629C8B63.
- ^ David Edelstein. "Jesus H. Christ". Slate Magazine. http://www.slate.com/id/2096025/.
- ^ "Passion Movie Thoughts". http://hisemptygrave.com/passion.html. Retrieved on 2008-08-20.
- ^ Are Mel Gibson And Newmarket Films Trying To Censor An NYU Student Filmmaker? moviecitynews.com
- ^ Attack of the trailer trashers Times Online
- ^ Kill Christ (parody)
- ^ "Jack Lenz Bio". JackLenz.com. http://www.jacklenz.com/index.htm.
- ^ "Clips of Musical Compositions by Jack Lenz". JackLenz.com. http://www.jacklenz.com/clips.htm.
[edit] External links
- Official website
- The Passion of the Christ at the Internet Movie Database
- The Passion of the Christ at Allmovie
- Passion-movie.com
| Preceded by 50 First Dates | Box office number-one films of 2004 (USA) February 29 - March 14 April 11 | Succeeded by Dawn of the Dead |
| Preceded by Hellboy | Succeeded by Kill Bill Volume 2 | |
| Preceded by Starsky & Hutch | Box office number-one films of 2004 (UK) March 28, 2004 | Succeeded by Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed |
PROFITEERS AT LARGE - It is time the IPL registered itself as a corporate entity | |
| Cutting Corners - Ashok Mitra | |
With the shift of venue of its principal activity, the Indian Premier League is now a full-fledged transnational outfit. If market gossip has a minimum veracity, it promises to emerge soon as one of the richest of the species. Despite the size of its turnover, the IPL is not a corporate body though, it has not registered itself as such. It continues to masquerade as a sports body, operating under the umbrella of the Board of Control for Cricket in India. The anatomy of this curious animal invites some dissection. Apart from the personnel constituting its managerial core, there is nothing particularly Indian any more about the IPL. This is hardly surprising: it is in the nature of a transnational corporation to walk away from its roots, although the roots are never totally severed. The teams affiliated to the league bear Indian names. Their composition is, however, cosmopolitan, or, if the lingo currently in vogue is to be used, global; Indian players are in a minority in a fair number of them. Most of the teams have coaches and trainers from overseas. This is equally true of their captains. The financial transactions that take place under the auspices of the IPL are in the universally recognized international currency, the American dollar. The coaches, the trainers and the players are paid their fabulous fees in this currency. The stadia and other facilities being rented this season for the fixtures scheduled in South Africa will no doubt also be paid for in American dollars. What is remarkable is that the income accruing from the IPL matches will be generated overwhelmingly from within India. There is immense passion for cricket in Australia, New Zealand, the West Indies, Sri Lanka and South Africa, but these countries are not hugely populated; the number of those watching cricket both live and on the television screen is unlikely to exceed a few paltry millions in the aggregate. Pakistan could have offered a more substantial clientele; that country, however, has at the moment other priorities. The density of cricket-watchers in the total population is relatively greater in the United Kingdom. The British, though, remain an archly conservative country in so far as taste for the Twenty20 version of the game is concerned. One can lay a wager that on most of the days the league fixtures are played in South Africa, the stands will be near-empty. This will be in stark contrast to what took place in India when the IPL I was on: whether it was Jaipur or Calcutta or Bangalore of Mumbai or Hyderabad, the stands were over-full. The gravy really lies in the telecasts. Indians will not have the opportunity this time to crowd the stadia to watch the IPL II fixtures. So what, the total number watching the games on the TV screen — and therefore the advertisements displayed between the overs and the two innings — will on the average touch, according to one estimate, close to 300 million. Of this, roughly one-half will belong to the category known in the trade as ‘sleeping watchers’, that section of viewers who gaze at the ‘commercials’ but lack the purchasing power to go to the market and buy the goods and services that are advertised. However, the other half of the watchers — 150 million or thereabouts — have conceivably a total purchasing power approximating to that of entire Western Europe. Advertisers know what is what; now that the IPL has arrived, they will pay through the nose to spread the charm of their goodies even as the T20 games are shown on the TV screen. As they buy up TV time, dollops of money flow in to the coffers of the body owning the franchise for the telecasts. That body, in its turn, will pay through the nose to the IPL. This is where questions crowd in, for a haze hovers over the relevant facts. The community at large may like to know a bit more than just the nitty-gritty of the financial transactions at different levels. How much money the IPL is going to earn by selling the telecast rights is not easily obtainable. Nor is information on tap on the kind of arrangements worked out between the IPL and its constituent teams. Details of the wage bill on account of foreign players, coaches, trainers, physiologists and so on should also be in the realm of public knowledge, but are not. So is the case with the audited accounts of the net takings of the Indian Premier League, and their breakdown under different heads of income and expenditure. Were such data laid bare, the possibility is indeed high of coming across some extraordinary anomalies. The IPL is, to all intents and purposes, an out-and-out business enterprise, in effect a transnational set-up. It nonetheless keeps flaunting itself as a sports body. Since it is not registered as a corporate outfit, the corporate laws are apparently not applicable to it, and this in spite of its making mountains of money that is the envy of many business houses. Yet, other puzzles abound. Since a large proportion of the IPL’s spending goes in payments to coaches, trainers and players who are foreign citizens, in leasing hotels and stadia in a foreign country as well as in foreign travel expenses, a considerable amount of foreign exchange outlay is involved. Whether such spending in foreign exchange requires the nod of the Reserve Bank of India is not altogether clear. In the past, the tax authorities used to decide on the foreign exchange outlay needed by a corporate entity to carry out its normal activities over a given period. Such norms have been relaxed in the liberalized milieu, and in any case the IPL will perhaps persist in claiming the privilege of a non-profit making agency. Even so, it will be interesting to know the criterion applied to judge the worthwhileness of the lavish expenditure in foreign currency it is indulging in. After all, the bulk of the income from out of which such spending is taking place is sourced within the country. Even if the IPL drags its feet to register itself as a corporate body, is there not some way to make it pay the due taxes on its huge profits? And notwithstanding the double taxation agreement with South Africa, cannot the foreigners who make a beeline for the IPL be persuaded to pay taxes in India on their mind-boggling earnings? Those who love to delve into the mystique of national income estimation will have plenty of fodder to chew on from the affairs of the IPL. For example, will the income accruing to it from the league fixtures held in South Africa be reckoned as accretion to India’s national income, but not to its domestic product? Will the various payments made by the IPL on the soil of South Africa add to the gross domestic product of that country? The primary task, it would still seem, is to slap an order on the BCCI — or at least on the IPL — asking it to register itself as a corporate entity, thereby rendering it amenable to the discipline of the Company Law Board. It is by no stretch a not-for-profit organization, it is not a private charitable trust either. Cricket has anyway ceased to be a sport; at least its T20 version is more like gambling. Gambling, even where allowed, is heavily taxed. No reason exists why the Twenty20 entertainment should be permitted to opt out of that obligation. But, who knows, a part of the profits the IPL is piling up is possibly being set aside to please the deities who decide on such matters as tax liability. Besides, why forget that the tax haven, Mauritius, is just one hop from South Africa? |
Thu, Apr 9 05:39 AM
North Korean soldiers on Wednesday celebrated the nation's defiant launch of a rocket in a mass rally, while Russia's foreign minister said any new measures to punish Pyongyang could be counter-productive.
The United States, Japan and South Korea said the North's launch on Sunday was a disguised test of a long-range missile designed to carry warheads to U.S. territory and deserved punishment because it violated U.N. resolutions.
North Korea warned the U.N. Security Council on Tuesday it would take "strong steps" if the 15-nation body took any action in response to the launch. On Wednesday, the Communist-ruled country gathered its top party and military officials for a celebration of the launch broadcast on its state TV and monitored in Seoul.
The reclusive state has threatened to boycott six-nation nuclear disarmament talks and restart a plant that makes bomb-grade plutonium. It also warned on Wednesday of military action if anyone tried to retrieve debris from the rocket.
U.S. and South Korean military officials said the missile, known as the Taepodong-2, crashed into the Pacific Ocean and that no satellite was deployed during its 3,200 km (2,000 mile) flight over Japan, as Pyongyang has said.
The North's KCNA news agency quoted a military spokesman as saying Japan's attempt to find booster stages off its coasts was "an intolerable military provocative act of infringing upon its (North Korea's) sovereignty" and would prompt a response.
DEADLOCK AT U.N.
Diplomats in New York said negotiations on a Security Council response to the launch were deadlocked. The five permanent council members -- United States, Britain, France, China and Russia -- and Japan have failed to break the impasse in several meetings.
The United States and Japan would like a legally binding resolution expanding existing financial sanctions and an arms embargo against North Korea. Critics have said the sanctions lacked enforcement.
But U.N. diplomats say the Chinese would prefer that the council either do nothing or issue a non-binding statement to the media that stops far short of condemning the launch. Japan and the three Western powers have rejected that idea.
U.S. State Department spokesman Robert Wood told reporters on Wednesday "there are some differences of opinion" when asked why the Council had not yet responded to the launch.
"It's going to take time," he said about the negotiations in New York. "I can't put a timeframe on it."
Concerned about the stability of its unpredictable neighbor, Beijing has said any U.N. reaction must be "cautious and proportionate." China is sometimes viewed as North Korea's only major ally.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the threat of sanctions against North Korea was "counter-productive."
North Korea said it had the right to deploy a satellite, which it says is circling the globe playing revolutionary songs, as a part of a peaceful space program.
Analysts said North Korea went ahead with the launch knowing it would not suffer serious repercussions, while its leader, Kim Jong-il, would see an enormous boost at home for the defiant act.
"The successful launching of the satellite ... is not a mere fruition of wisdom and talent but a fierce confrontation with those who disliked it," KCNA said in a separate report.
Kim is expected to ride a wave of patriotic fervor generated by the launch at the annual meeting of the North's rubber stamp parliament on Thursday.
The Supreme People's Assembly meeting, where a new pecking order for communist party cadres will be unveiled, is expected to show that Kim, 67, has recovered from a suspected stroke and is fully in control of Asia's only communist dynasty.
In its only previous missile test in 2006, the rocket exploded seconds after launch. Despite a technical failure the recent launch showed that the impoverished North had greatly increased the range of its missiles but may be years away from building one to threaten the United States, analysts said.
(Additional reporting by Chisa Fujioka in Tokyo, Kim Junghyun in Seoul, Guy Faulconbridge in Moscow, Deborah Charles in Washington and Louis Charbonneau at the United Nations)
Asia News
Pakistani student recounts horror of being under anti-terror arrest in UK
ANI - 07:05 PMLondon, Apr. 10 (ANI): A Pakistani student, who was mistaken for an al-Qaeda suspect and taken into a custody briefly on Thursday in northern England, has recounted the horror of being arrested.
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Russia said on Friday it had signed a contract to buy drones from Israel, in the first such deal analysts said was aimed at strengthening the armed forces after last year's brief war with Georgia.
- Fiji president takes over, says will name new govt Reuters - 04:27 PM
Fiji's president revoked the politically unstable South Pacific nation's constitution on Friday, named himself to replace temporarily a post-coup interim government and called for fresh elections by 2014.
- Russia test-fires intercontinental missile Reuters - 05:55 PM
Russia successfully test-fired a Topol intercontinental ballistic missile on Friday as part of checks needed to extend its service life for up to 22 years, Russian media reported.
- Pak Railway's multi-million dollar scam to please China ANI - 05:40 PM
Islamabad, Apr. 10 (ANI): A multi-million dollar scam has been unearthed in Pakistan's Railway Ministry with top railway bosses confessing before the National Assembly Standing Committee that a Chinese company was awarded contracts on the basis of "fake performance certificates."
- Georgia's Saakashvili faces down street protests Reuters - 05:20 PM
Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili on Friday faced down street protests and rejected opposition demands to resign over his record on democracy and last year's disastrous war with Russia.
- ANALYSIS - Now the Obama party is over, Turkey needs to deliver Reuters - 05:15 PM
U.S. President Barack Obama's call on Turkey to help resolve conflicts from the Middle East to Afghanistan is an endorsement the secular democracy has long sought, but meeting those expectations will be far harder.
- Pakistan's parliament moves to implement governance agenda IANS - 05:07 PM
Islamabad, April 10 (IANS) Pakistan's political equations are set for a sea-change with the lower house of parliament Friday moving to implement the governance agenda, which envisages power being centred in the prime minister's office, that the ruling party and its now estranged partner had agreed on before elections last year.
- Most Pakistanis satisfied with life: Poll ANI - 04:35 PM
Islamabad, Apr. 10 (ANI): More than half of Pakistanis are satisfied with the way their lives are going on, a recent survey has revealed.
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London, Apr.10 (ANI): Following the 9/11 incident the world saw Afghanistan as the hub of worldwide terrorism, but now the focus has shifted to Pakistan which experts believe is the origin of three-quarters of all terror plots.
- Thai, Cambodian leaders meet in wake of clash Reuters - 04:24 PM
The prime ministers of Thailand and Cambodia met briefly on Friday, a week after border clashes killed two Thais, and expressed sorrow over the incident, but a Thai official said there may be future "hiccups".
- Japan extends North Korea sanctions, UN split Reuters - 04:17 PM
Japan on Friday extended economic sanctions on North Korea by a year to punish it for what was widely seen as a long-range missile test, but softened its drive for a United Nations resolution to chastise Pyongyang.
- Asian leaders, and protesters, gather for summit Reuters - 04:16 PM
Thai troops confronted anti-government protesters at a resort hosting an Asian summit on Friday as leaders began arriving for a meeting meant to focus on the global financial crisis.
- Pakistan slams UK for its slack visa norms ANI - 04:15 PM
London, Apr.10 (ANI): Pakistan has criticized Britain for its slack visa norms after it was disclosed that most of those who were nabbed during anti-terror raids in north-west of England were holding student visas.
- Taliban agrees to leave Pak's Buner District ANI - 04:15 PM
Lahore, Apr. 10 (ANI): The Swat-Taliban has agreed to leave Buner District without any condition after a peace jirga persuaded them to do so.
- Pak, a Molotov cocktail waiting to explode, says expert ANI - 04:15 PM
Islamabad, Apr.10 (ANI): Pakistan seems like a Molotov cocktail waiting to explode. It is a country so busy quarrelling, that it is failing to solve its problems, claims David Ignatius, the co-host of PostGlobal, an online discussion of international issues.
- Indonesia president sees Islamist party in coalition Reuters - 04:13 PM
Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said on Friday his Democrat Party could form a coalition with the Islamist Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), amid jockeying ahead of July's key presidential election.
- Greek student shoots, wounds three; kills self Reuters - 04:10 PM
A Greek student angry at how his schoolmates treated him shot and wounded a fellow student and two workers at a training institute in Athens on Friday before killing himself, police said.
- Terror threats prompt security alert in Islamabad IANS - 04:06 PM
Islamabad, April 10 (IANS) Security was tightened in this Pakistani capital Friday following threats from terrorists that they would target parliament and international schools, prompting the US embassy here to suspend consular services for the day.
- Iran hangs three people over 2007 mosque bombing Reuters - 03:59 PM
Iran executed on Friday three people convicted of being involved in the bombing of a mosque which killed 14 Iranians in the southern city of Shiraz in 2007, the official IRNA news agency reported.
General
- Turkmens blame Gazprom for pipeline blast, ASAP - 01:42 PM
ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan (AP) Turkmenistan on Friday blamed Russia's state natural gas monopoly for a pipeline blast that shut off shipments to Russia an unusual show of tension that could bolster Western efforts to buy Turkmen gas directly.
- Indians in Kuwait not to be affected by global meltdownANI - 11:15 AM
Despite the economic slowdown affecting almost all the Gulf countries, Indians working in Kuwait say they are quite unaffected, with no job cuts or salary cuts.
- Japanese leader unveils $150 bln stimulus plan, ASAP - 08:15 AM
TOKYO (AP) Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso has unveiled a new stimulus package that includes 15 trillion yen ($150 billion) in public spending.
- - 08:15 AM
TOKYO (AP) Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso unveiled a new stimulus package Friday, calling for 15 trillion yen ($150 billion) in government spending to lift the world's second-largest economy from a painful recession.
- Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso unveils new stimulus plan worth 15 trillion yen ($150 billion), ASAP - 08:09 AM
TOKYO (AP) Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso unveils new stimulus plan worth 15 trillion yen ($150 billion) in spending.
International
- Russia delivers first batch of nuclear fuel to IndiaIANS - 03:13 PM
Moscow, April 10 (RIA Novosti) Russia's TVEL, a subsidiary of state-controlled nuclear power company Atomenergoprom, has delivered its first shipment of nuclear fuel for Indian heavy-water reactors, the company said Friday.
- Energy agency again downgrades 2009 global oil demandIANS - 03:13 PM
Paris, April 10 (DPA) Worse-than-expected prospects for the world economy has prompted the International Energy Agency (IEA) to again revise downward global oil demand for 2009.
- Promotion is bad for your healthIANS - 12:12 PM
London, April 10 (IANS) Do people become healthier after getting a promotion? The answer seems to be no, according to a new study. To the contrary, the study has found that promotions could undermine your peace of mind and curtail visits to the doctor.
- Recession anxieties driving youngsters to psychiatrists, smokingIANS - 12:06 PM
New Delhi, April 10 (IANS) Mahavir Singh, 27, had everything going for him. A high-paying job with a BPO company and engaged to be married to his sweetheart. Then, suddenly, the pink slip thunderbolt struck.
- Brazil's main stock index hits highest level in six monthsIANS - 11:32 AM
Rio de Janeiro, April 10 (Xinhua) The Sao Paulo Stock Exchange's Ibovespa index was up 3.07 points Thursday, reaching 45,538 points, the highest level registered since October 2008.
Personal-Finance
- Markets close marginally up, Sensex gains 0.5 percentIANS - Thu, Apr 9
Mumbai, April 9 (IANS) Indian equities markets closed marginally in the green Thursday, with a key index ending trade about 0.57 percent higher than its previous close.
- No pickup for eurozone economies before 2010, says central bankIANS - Thu, Apr 9
Frankfurt, April 9 (DPA) European economies can only expect to begin their recovery in 2010, the European Central Bank (ECB) predicted Thursday.
- India's inflation falls again, to 0.26 percentIANS - Thu, Apr 9
New Delhi, April 9 (IANS) India's annual rate of inflation fell marginally to 0.26 percent for the week ended March 28, from 0.31 percent the week before, official data showed Thursday.
- Markets volatile, Sensex up 1 percentIANS - Thu, Apr 9
Mumbai, April 9 (IANS) Indian equities markets, which were fluctuating between negative and positive terrains during earlier sessions, climbed back into the green Thursday afternoon, with a key index ruling almost 1 percent higher than its last closing figure.
- India announces largest ever auction of hydrocarbon assetsIANS - Thu, Apr 9
New Delhi, April 9 (IANS) India Thursday announced the auctions for 80 more hydrocarbon assets in the country, including 10 for coal-bed methane, in the largest such exercise under its new policy on oil and gas exploration.
Markets
- GLOBAL MARKETS - Asia stocks push towards 6-mth highsReuters - 01:03 PM
Asian shares rose on Friday, with South Korean stocks hitting a 6-month high after the country averted recession in the first quarter, as a Wall Street rally boosted risk demand around the region and dented the yen.
- Factory output falls, but recovery signs seenReuters - 07:23 AM
India's factory output fell for the third time in five months in February as the global slowdown hit hard, but analysts said they could see some signs of revival after a dismal March quarter.
- Nikkei hits 3-mth high, SMFG hit by sell ordersReuters - 07:22 AM
Japan's Nikkei share average touched a three-month high above the key 9,000 level on Friday after U.S. shares rallied sharply on better-than-expected preliminary results from Wells Fargo, while a softer yen boosted exporters such as Sony Corp.
- Wall St Week Ahead: Bank results to dictate rally's fateReuters - 06:00 AM
If Wells Fargo's upbeat first-quarter performance is any sign, Wall Street could rally further next week on any reassuring news from three other big banks due to post quarterly results.
- Wall St sets 5th weekly gain on banks, Boeing off lateReuters - 03:30 AM
U.S. stocks jumped on Thursday after Wells Fargo said it expects to report a record quarterly profit, fueling a month-long rally prompted by hopes that deterioration in the financial sector was abating.
http://in.news.yahoo.com/business.html
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