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Nomination: For his film, "THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST"
The Passion of the Christ
People often ask me why I wanted to make a film about the Passion of Our Lord. My usual response is that I’ve wanted to make this film for over then years, which is true. That seems to answer the question for most.
The reality, of course, is more complex, and had its genesis during a time in which I found myself trapped with feelings of terrible, isolated emptiness. Because I was brought up to be a good Christian and a good Catholic, the only effective resource for me was prayer. I asked God for His help.
It was during this period of meditation and prayer that I first conceived the idea of making a film about The Passion. The idea took root very gradually. I began to look at the work of some of the great artists who had drawn inspiration from the same story. Caravaggio immediately came to mind, as well as Mantegna, Masaccio, Piero della Francesca ... their paintings were as true to their inspiration as I wanted my film to be. It is one thing to paint one moment of The Passion and be true to it; it is quite another to dramatize the entire mysterious event.
Holy Scripture and accepted visions of The Passion were the only possible texts I could draw from to fashion a dramatic film. But what about the film itself? I wanted the effort to be a testament to the infinite love of Jesus the Christ, which has saved, and continues to save, many the world over.
There is a classical Greek word which best defines what “truth” guided my work, and that of everyone else involved in the project: aletheia. It simply means “unforgetting” (derived from lethe — water from Homer’s River Lethe caused forgetfulness). It has unfortunately become part of the ritual of our modern secular existence to forget. The film, in this sense, is not meant as a historical documentary nor does it claim to have assembled all the facts. But it does enumerate those described in relevant Holy Scripture. It is not merely representative or merely expressive. I think of it as contemplative in the sense that one is compelled to remember (unforget) in a spiritual way which cannot be articulated, only experienced.
That is the truth I aspired to ... and my new hope is that The Passion of the Christ will help more people recognize the power of His love and let Him help them to save their own lives.
Mel Gibson
From the foreword of "THE PASSION"
ISBN: 0-89555-781-9
Copyright, 2004 by Icon Distribution, Inc.
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