Mark Masaka

1 Star Reviews: An Analysis Aside from the trolls and the people giving it a one-star because of their religious (or irreligious) beliefs, people for the most part gave the movie a one-star because of its "sadistic" nature. If you too are feeling this way, what you ought to ask yourself is why. It's a well-known fact that crucifixions were way more bloody and gory than anything anyone could put on a screen. It's not unreasonable to assume that everyone (and I literally mean everyone) who watches this movie is aware it's about a crucifixion. If it was too gory for you, then realize that's just a personal opinion that has no bearing on how accurately the movie portrays what happened. I'm not even going to address the anti-semitic stuff because it's the exact same argument. This is what happened. You could even ask actual Jews today how they feel about Jesus and they would say he was a blasphemer. The only difference is that they wouldn't try to kill him nowadays. Back then, it was a totally different story. One doesn't blaspheme and get away with it. As one of the Pharisees said, it was a CRIME punishable by death. Another thing that I saw that disappointed people is the expectation for a spiritually uplifting movie and receiving instead an emotionally draining movie. I think you miss the point of the movie if you come in with those expectations. Why was this movie made? It's based on a book (four books actually), and I suggest reading those four books again before watching the movie. Beyond that, I don't think anyone giving the movie a one-star provided any valuable insight into how the movie was. Personally, I think this movie is great. I too also saw it for the first time when I was 6 years old or so and it scarred me, but not for life. Or rather, the way it scarred me when I was younger is not the same way it scars me now, 13 years later. I give this movie 5 stars even though it's not a perfect movie. Small tweaks here and there could make it better. I think this is the case for all movies, some more so than others. I've actually gone back and forth between 4 and 5 stars for a while now because I'm trying to keep in mind that this movie was made in the early 2000s and not that recently. I also have to ask myself if the little flaws I noticed in the acting and some general filming were due to personal taste or an objective critique. I think I would've liked it to be grander in some sense but that again is but a personal preference. Taking this movie as it is, what is it trying to teach and show and how effectively did it do it? I think it does a stellar job of bringing to life the Passion narrative and is a beautiful work of art.