The Passion of the Christ
Short description
The Passion of the Christ depicts the final hours in the life of Jesus of Nazareth, from his prayer in the garden after sharing a last meal with his apostles through his arrest, trial and execution. Judas betrays him to the priestly authorities, who accuse him of blasphemy and seek his death, while the Roman governor Pontius Pilate finds himself pressed to pass sentence in order to prevent unrest. The film, set in the Roman province of Judea, presents these events as a graphic and sustained account of suffering and condemnation.
Mel Gibson directed and co-wrote the screenplay with Benedict Fitzgerald, and produced it with Bruce Davey and Stephen McEveety. It was his third film as director, following The Man Without a Face and Braveheart. Jim Caviezel plays Jesus, with Maia Morgenstern as Maria, Christo Jivkov as Juan, Francesco De Vito as Pedro, Monica Bellucci as Magdalena and Mattia Sbragia as Caifás. Seventy-five cast members and 266 crew members are credited.
Made for about 30 million dollars, the film took roughly 610 million dollars worldwide, a return far beyond its production cost. On IMDb it holds 7.3 out of 10 from around 270,000 votes, and on TMDB 7.5 out of 10 from more than 5,300 votes. A critics' rating of 6.5 out of 10 from 277 reviews places it lower than the audience scores.
What's left behind the scenes
- All the characters speak the languages they would have spoken two thousand years ago. Jews, including Christ and the apostles, speak Aramaic, and Romans speak 'vulgar Latin'.
- In two films in a row – “The Passion of the Christ” and “Apocalypse” – Mel Gibson reproduces the same astronomical error: on the night before the main events, he depicts a full moon, and during the day – a solar eclipse. However, according to the laws of celestial mechanics, these events are always separated by an interval of 14-15 days.
- In the crucifixion scene, viewers are seeing the real Jim Caviezel. Mel Gibson decided to avoid computer animation and relied solely on the help of makeup artists.
- In order not to portray Jews as guilty of Jesus's death, the film omits the cry of the Jews, “His blood be on us and on our children!,” which appears in the Gospel.
- Even before its release, the film caused great controversy. Concerns were raised that it could provoke anti-Semitic sentiment, especially among Muslims in the Middle East. The authorities in Malaysia allowed the film to be shown only to Christians. For this purpose, tickets were allowed to be sold exclusively in Christian churches belonging to the National Evangelical Christian Fellowship of Malaysia. In addition to the ban on viewing by Muslims, the authorities also banned advertising of the film.
- In the film, nails go through the palms, while on the Turin Shroud they go through the wrists. Nails through the palms cannot support the weight of a crucified body.
- Jim Caviezel didn't have to imagine how to portray physical suffering—he actually experienced it. His body broke out in blisters from the multi-layered makeup, and he was unable to sleep. The cross that Caviezel carried to Golgotha was not a prop—it weighed about 70 kilograms. Although filming took place in winter, the actor was dressed only in a lion's skin. He often became so cold that he couldn't speak; his frozen face had to be warmed up just so he could move his lips a little.
- When it became known that the film would be entirely in Latin and Aramaic, Mel Gibson stated he wanted to remove the subtitles altogether. However, later, at the insistence of distributors, subtitles were still added. In general, it was a very risky move, as many American moviegoers are so spoiled that they can't even tolerate dubbing.
- Mel Gibson knew he would need the world's best makeup specialists to make the scourging and crucifixion scenes as realistic as possible. For the filming of these episodes, Jim Caviezel spent seven hours in the makeup chair every day.
- Mel Gibson donated $100 million from the film's box office to the Catholic Church.
- Mel Gibson is a traditionalist Catholic. He disagrees with the Vatican regarding the language in which services should be conducted, believing it should be Latin only. Mel Gibson's daughter stated in 2002 that she wished to become a nun.
- When Jim Caviezel auditioned, he was completely convinced he would be starring in a film about windsurfing. However, upon learning that he had been entrusted with the role of Jesus, he did not turn it down.
- Maya Morgenstern, who played the role of Jesus' mother, was pregnant during filming. She carefully concealed this news from the entire film crew. By the time everything came to light, it was no longer possible to replace the actress.
- The film's screenplay was written by Mel Gibson and Benedict Fitzgerald based on the four canonical gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
- On the very first day of the film's screening, during the crucifixion scene, 56-year-old Peggy Scott lost consciousness. She died shortly after in one of the hospitals in Kansas.
- During the torture scenes, actor James Caviezel twice experienced being struck by a whip on bare skin. The first time, the strike only knocked him to the ground, but after receiving a second strike, James dislocated his wrist.
- The crucifixion scenes were filmed in the city of Matera, in southern Italy, near the location where Pier Paolo Pasolini filmed "The Gospel According to St. Matthew" (1964).
- Jim Caviezel was once struck by lightning on set, but the actor suffered absolutely no injuries. Many observers linked this event to the wrath of the Lord.
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
