I'm not sure what angle I want to use to review this film. It is obviously intended to have a religious impact. At that, it is effective. Though I was raised with the dogma, I do not consider myself a Christian. I knew the story, including most of the smaller details, before ever setting foot in the theatre. The plot contained no surprises. Yet even as a non-believer, I could not help but be swayed almost to tears.

Taken from the context through which I viewed the story, whether or not Jesus was a divine being is irrelevant. He had a power that transcended his circumstances. Even if we assume that the Biblical records are not a valid historical source (which I'm not going to argue one way or the other), this story -- in and of itself, be it fiction or fact -- reveals some fundamental truths about the nature of humanity. Looking at the way Jesus was can teach us lessons about ourselves.

Throughout the film and afterwards, I kept asking myself the question, "What was it about this man that allowed him to have such a huge effect on everyone he encountered?"

As portrayed here (which follows quite closely to the Biblical records I was taught), the answer doesn't necessarily require an explanation that involves supernatural magic, though I'm sure many people will infer it. (i.e. "He's the Son of God. Therefore, his very presence is extra special, and no other reason for his power is needed." Obviously, if the movie had done nothing but try to stand on that sort of spiritual technobabble, someone of my persuasion wouldn't be buying into it.)

So what's my take? There are certain types of people whose presence is so powerful, whose thinking is so clear, whose demeanor is so calm, whose unflinching gaze is so piercing, that you cannot help but be transformed by them. Buddhists would refer to them as "enlightened beings". During the course of my life, I have met a few such individuals. I could count them on one hand.

The Jesus portrayed in this film had exactly this quality. Quintessentially human, yet not bound up by the worries of this life, because he was able to see something greater; something no one else could. Egoless. He stood in stark contrast to the perpetrators of his demise, each of whom frantically scurried around worrying about how to protect their own asses, even as they tried to deny responsibility at each step.

This was why he was crucified. No matter what they did, they could not squelch his spirit, which was able to see through (thereby forcing them to see) all their own lies and fabrications. Those who could embrace what he revealed to them about themselves loved him for it. Those could not, or would not, confront their own nature tried all the harder to beat him down.

Yes, it is a bloody movie. Gory and gruesome to the max. Some have said that any religion that places at its center an image of such brutality must be trying to appeal to some sadistic impulse. (I believe I made just such a point myself in an online discussion a while back, which triggered no shortage of debate.)

I think perhaps after this viewing, I have gained a better understanding of what it is really about, at least in the ideal sense. The power of the narrative does not reside in the mere beating, torture, and death of a man, though they are necessary ingredients. Its real appeal comes from how Jesus conducted himself with such grace and dignity, even as his body was literally being torn to shreds. That is a trait worth aspiring to.

The words have been repeated so often that they have become a cliché in the world of sermons. "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."

In addition to being an incredibly selfless thing to say during a moment of such personal physical agony, there is a great profundity to the words. The soldiers and others who participated in this ritual killing had literally turned off the part of their brains that respond and empathize with human suffering. They were unable to consciously recognize the depth of their own cruelty. Anyone who numbs themselves to that degree is actually suffering a great deal, so much that they cannot let themselves know it.

Even as he was being tortured, Jesus felt their unacknowledged pain more acutely than his own, and suffered not because of his own physical wounds, but because of their emotinal wounds. He know that deep down, the perpetrator of such a crime hurts even more than the victim.

For all the reasons I've just stated, I liked this movie a lot.

In terms of technical merit, it is executed with a high degree of competence in pretty much every regard. The cinamatography is sweepingly exquisite. There are no instances of bad acting, and all the key players really shined. Like any truly good movie, it immerses you into its world.

Though I'm certain it was a feat of makeup artistry (possibly with some seamless cgi elements), the graphical bloodiness made me flinch several times. It's not for the squeamish.

The ultra-dramatic musical score really served to accentuate the impact.

Though I'm not about to start attending church again (I'm pretty much terminally un-swayable in that regard), this movie did give me a better appreciation of one of the fundamental events that shaped the Christian religion. It's also a really good study of the human species, and presents a possible image of what we might hope to evolve toward if we are to become a more compassionate and enlightened society.

(Semi-off-topic tangent, because I have to say it. How could any religion that holds this man as its ideal model ever bring itself to perpetrate crimes such as the Inquisition, the Salem Witch Trials, or the Pat Robertson style hate mongering we see these days? I cannot fathom it. Oh well. How does the saying go? Don't let Christians get in the way of seeing Christ. I guess I'll leave it at that.)