Gibson's 'Passion' a brutal gift of love

It's practically impossible for me to compress my range of reactions to Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ" into a 400 word review. Garnering a massive amount of media coverage, Gibson's controversial film has become the archetype of the cliché: "There's no such thing as bad publicity." Surrounded by experiences which only seem to grow more surreal, Gibson's little film on Jesus, which no studio would touch, was slammed by claims of anti-Semitism, but now has exploded at the box office and even caused a woman to have a heart attack and die while watching it. If nothing else, Gibson's film is a pure testament to the power of what one man can do when he is truly passionate in what he believes.\n"The Passion of the Christ" follows the last 12 hours of Jesus Christ's life -- some of the most consequential moments for the Christian religion. Jim Caviezel's performance as Christ is the best given to date, full of humanity, humility and love without oozing sappy sentimentality or coming across as a pompous deity. Furthermore, it is obvious Gibson approached the film with the original intentions of including no subtitles, as he creates some of the most beautifully moving and brutally disturbing images to ever be captured -- speaking volumes regardless of the language. And while the film is not completely flawless, especially concerning the end and its tacked on resurrection scene, it's as close as we could ever hope to get. Regardless of your own religious beliefs, "The Passion of the Christ" still stands as a meaningful work of art.\nComing from a deeply religious background, my own father being a minister, the story and teachings of Christ are more than familiar to me, to the point of becoming stale. Breathing new life into our carcass-like souls, Gibson opens our eyes to what the real cost of Christ's love was. The violence is repulsive and nauseating and it's certainly the most violent film I have ever seen. That is neither the point, nor the most poignant part of the film. Hearing Christ teach of loving your enemies while nails are driven through his flesh, screaming out for the forgiveness of his persecutors. The final image of Mary holding the broken body of her dead son on Golgotha, her eyes full of a piercing intensity which is beyond any amount of words. These were the moments which left the audience with their faces in their hands, their hearts melting down their cheeks, as Gibson's movie both challenges and reminds us that the greatest gift we could ever give would be to love with the passion that Christ loves us all.