Saving Private Christ
At least that's what I got out of watching The Passion of the Christ. Simply put, it was an amazingly brutal and violent version of some old mysteries of the rosary/stations of the cross films I watched back in elementary school. The scourging at the pillar seemed to go on forever and had that Private Ryan feel to it, as did the crucifixion.

I do believe the complaints about anti-Semitism are well-founded. While I hear the passion passages every year during Lent, the movie depiction of it, especially the role of Caiphas and other rabbis, really puts the Jews (especially those in power) in a bad light. If anything, all the hype and hoopla about Mel Gibson's faith just made it a tad easier to take that part of the film (i.e. it wasn't as huge a shock).

Given everything I've heard about Jim Caviezel's faith, I couldn't see anyone else taking this role, and he did a great job with it. I also now appreciate how some filmmakers avoid putting stars in certain roles so as not to distract the viewer. Caviezel blended into the role thanks to the beard and long hair , but Monica Bellucci was slightly distracting as Mary Magdalene, if only because I had the thought of those bad Matrix movies stuck in my head (obviously, she wasn't wearing her Persephone outfit on Mt. Calvary).

For those expecting more, such as further going into Jesus' teachings or even how he got to this situation in the first place, you're best served reading the Bible or other scholarly works. As the title suggests, it was a passion play. An overly elaborate and often dark one. It's the Stations of the Cross expanded over two hours with lots more bloodletting replacing prayers.

One thing I've noticed has been swept aside in the whole hoopla is the fact that none of the dialogue is in English. While there was talk of not including subtitles at all, using them let the words and the message sink in a lot more than if they were spoken -- in some way, it was like reading a scripture passage. And given there were probably more elderly viewers (with hearing problems) at the theater compared to your usual movie, the subtitles were a huge bonus.

I am curious, though, if the film would qualify for a "Foreign Language" Oscar, given that the dialogue was in a language other than English.

As for the reviews in general, I really haven't bothered to go through most of them. I was going to see this movie anyway (and probably would've gone to one of those packed outings with my church if it didn't conflict with work), but here's a link to Roger Ebert's review, which seems to be one of the fairer assessments of the film -- although I'd like to have seen him actually comment a bit more on the "technical" aspects of the movie.