The Passion for the Christ

The film tapped into the interest of local churches, and the video release is using the same strategy | Gene Edward Veith

When TV film critic Richard Roeper put out his list of top religious movies (The Passion of Joan of Arc; The Gospel According to St. Matthew; A Man for All Seasons; Brother Sun, Sister Moon; Jesus Christ Superstar; Gandhi; Kundun), it underscored just how much greater in comparison is The Passion of the Christ.

With the possible exception of St. Matthew, these others are anemic, sentimental, and humanistically correct. Mel Gibson's movie, by comparison, is unflinching both in its brutal realism and by not evading what Christianity is all about, namely, the scandal of Christ crucified to save sinners.

Now The Passion of the Christ has been released on video and DVD. There had been talk of a special edition stocked with extras—an English-dubbed version, outtakes, "making of" features—but this is a bare-bones release, just as it was shown on the big screen. (In addition to English subtitles for the Aramaic, the DVD also allows for Spanish subtitles.)