An Opposing Viewpoint
by Editor in Chief Scott H. Leva
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While I personally don't agree with Michael Niederman's review of The Passion of the Christ and it does not necessarily reflect the general viewpoint of our website, I do respect his opinion and his rights to express it. We are a humor magazine and unfortunately, there's little that's funny about religion --although we've tried pretty damn hard once or twice... Jesus Fears Comeback
May Tarnish Legacy I tried to see this movie with an open mind. I also tried to make out with my date halfway through just so I could honestly tell people that I couldn't remember whether it was good or bad. It worked on Seinfeld but clearly not here. It's really not a "date movie" per se-- so don't make the mistake of bringing your new girlfriend even if Eurotrip is sold out. Whoops. But seriously... I didn't find this movie anti-Semitic. I also didn't find it to be particularly insightful, inspirational, or serve any purpose accept to silence the demons in Mel Gibson's flaky and borderline crazy head. Let's be real, Gibson has really gotten wacko over the past few years and this movie has pretty much sent him over the edge. The Passion, despite all of it's flaws, is taken fairly directly from the Gospels, which as we all know, isn't necessarily the gospel truth. But I do think it's arrogant for Jewish leaders to tell Christians how to interpret their own religious texts. Really, what we have here are Jews killing a Jew. There certainly were Jews calling for the death of Christ no matter how ugly that appears to anyone today. So what? How many tens of millions of Christians have been killed by Christians? Jesus was destined to die for our sins wasn't he? It was his purpose determined by God. Jesus was a Jew and that deserves repeating: He was born a Jew, lived as a Jew and died as a Jew -- he didn't convert to Christianity. He didn't condemn his own people and he certainly never ate a honey-glazed ham during religious holidays! For those fanatical Jew haters out there, who may or may not be foaming at the mouth after viewing this film, continued anti-Semitism will sadly demonstrate the hypocrisy that has plagued the Church for centuries. This movie ain't going to change anything. What it has changed, I fear, is the goodwill created by the recent alliance among traditional Evangelical, Israel-supporting, Jihad-fighting Christians and Jews. I do believe it is mostly the fault of a small group of arrogant, self-serving, so-called "Jewish leaders" who insist on insulting Christians by essentially telling them they are so stupid as to blindly start burning down synagogues because of a movie. Rabbi Foxman of the ADL has a big mouth and needs to learn some valuable lessons on public relations -- he should also be paid handsomely by Mel Gibson for handing him the highest grossing opening weekend for an independent film in the history of moviemaking. I think most Christians (and Jews) are a little smarter than that. Certainly not all of them but the vast majority can see through the bullshit. Gibson has every right to tell the story the way he wants. In his mind, he has filmed it exactly as it happened. Is he a Jew hater? Who knows? His father certainly is. As for the rest of the film, I would love to credit Gibson for the beautiful cinematography, beautiful lighting, beautiful sets and costumes and beautiful score, but I went to film school and so I know the truth. Just as George Bush succeeds in great part because of his handpicked staff, the same can be said for a director -- especially an egomaniacal celebrity director with deep pockets and access to the best crew available. Passion of the Christ is not a "must see" movie. It's a mediocre film by a mediocre talent propelled by a marketing machine gone out of control. I think we can all take a lesson from this week's release of Starsky and Hutch, where Jews and Christians get along like brothers. Email:comments@bobfromaccounting.com
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