The Passion of the Christ
By his wounds, we were healed.
Country
Production
Genre
Budget
$30 000 000
Box office
$609 493 825
Director
Actors
Jim Caviezel, Maia Morgenstern, Christo Jivkov, Francesco De Vito, Monica Bellucci, Mattia Sbragia, Toni Bertorelli, Luca Lionello, Hristo Shopov, Claudia Gerini
All actors and roles (10)
All actors and roles (10)
Scenario
Producer
Mel Gibson, Bruce Davey, Stephen McEveety, Enzo Sisti
Camera operator
Composer
Artist
Francesco Frigeri, Giulia Chiara Crugnola
Audition
Shaila Rubin
Editing
Short description
A graphic portrayal of the last twelve hours of Jesus of Nazareth's life.
What's left behind the scenes
- All the characters speak the languages they would have spoken two thousand years ago. Jews, including Christ and the apostles, speak Aramaic, and Romans speak 'vulgar Latin'.
- Mel Gibson donated $100 million from the film's box office to the Catholic Church.
- In order not to portray Jews as guilty of Jesus's death, the film omits the cry of the Jews, “His blood be on us and on our children!,” which appears in the Gospel.
- Even before its release, the film caused great controversy. Concerns were raised that it could provoke anti-Semitic sentiment, especially among Muslims in the Middle East. The authorities in Malaysia allowed the film to be shown only to Christians. For this purpose, tickets were allowed to be sold exclusively in Christian churches belonging to the National Evangelical Christian Fellowship of Malaysia. In addition to the ban on viewing by Muslims, the authorities also banned advertising of the film.
- In the film, nails go through the palms, while on the Turin Shroud they go through the wrists. Nails through the palms cannot support the weight of a crucified body.
- The film's screenplay was written by Mel Gibson and Benedict Fitzgerald based on the four canonical gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
- During the torture scenes, actor James Caviezel twice experienced being struck by a whip on bare skin. The first time, the strike only knocked him to the ground, but after receiving a second strike, James dislocated his wrist.
- Once during filming, James Caviezel was struck by lightning, but the actor sustained absolutely no injuries. Many observers attributed this event to the wrath of God.
- When it became known that the film would be entirely in Latin and Aramaic, Mel Gibson stated he wanted to remove the subtitles altogether. However, later, at the insistence of distributors, subtitles were still added. In general, it was a very risky move, as many American moviegoers are so spoiled that they can't even tolerate dubbing.
- In the crucifixion scene, viewers can see the real James Caviezel. Mel Gibson decided to forgo computer animation and used only the help of makeup artists.
- When James Caviezel auditioned, he was completely confident that he would be filming a movie about windsurfing. However, upon learning that he had been entrusted with the role of Jesus, he did not refuse.
- Maya Morgenstern, who played the role of Jesus' mother, was pregnant during filming. She carefully concealed this news from the entire film crew. By the time everything came to light, it was no longer possible to replace the actress.
- On the very first day of the film's screening, during the crucifixion scene, 56-year-old Peggy Scott lost consciousness. She died shortly after in one of the hospitals in Kansas.
- The crucifixion scenes were filmed in the city of Matera, in southern Italy, near the location where Pier Paolo Pasolini filmed "The Gospel According to St. Matthew" (1964).
- Mel Gibson is a traditionalist Catholic. He disagrees with the Vatican regarding the language in which services should be conducted, believing it should be Latin only. Mel Gibson's daughter stated in 2002 that she wished to become a nun.
- Mel Gibson knew he would need the best makeup artists in the world to make the scenes of flogging and crucifixion as realistic as possible. James Caviezel was made up for seven hours every day for the filming of these episodes.
- James Caviezel didn't have to invent how to portray physical suffering – he genuinely experienced it. His body was covered in blisters from the multilayered makeup, and he couldn't sleep. The cross that Caviezel carried to Golgotha was not a prop – it weighed about 70 kilograms. Although the filming took place in winter, the actor was dressed only in a lion's skin. He often became so cold that he couldn't speak – his frozen face had to be warmed so he could move his lips even a little.
- In two films in a row – “The Passion of the Christ” and “Apocalypse” – Mel Gibson reproduces the same astronomical error: on the night before the main events, he depicts a full moon, and during the day – a solar eclipse. However, according to the laws of celestial mechanics, these events are always separated by an interval of 14-15 days.
- During the torture scenes, actor James Caviezel experienced the strike of a whip on bare flesh twice. While the first strike merely knocked him off his feet, the second strike resulted in a dislocated wrist.
- On one occasion during filming, James Caviezel was struck by lightning, yet the actor suffered no injuries whatsoever. Many observers linked this event to the wrath of the Lord.
- When it became known that the film would be entirely in Latin and Aramaic, Mel Gibson stated that he wanted to remove the subtitles as well. However, later, at the insistence of the distributors, subtitles were included. Overall, it was a very risky move, as many American moviegoers are so spoiled that they cannot even stomach dubbing.
- In the crucifixion scene, viewers are seeing the real James Caviezel. Mel Gibson decided to do without computer animation and relied solely on the help of makeup artists.
- When James Caviezel auditioned, he was fully convinced he would be starring in a film about windsurfing. However, upon learning that he had been entrusted with the role of Jesus, he did not turn it down.
- Maya Morgenstern, who played the mother of Jesus, was pregnant during filming. She carefully hid this news from the entire crew. By the time it was discovered, it was no longer possible to replace the actress.
- On the very first day of the film's screening, 56-year-old Peggy Scott lost consciousness during the crucifixion scene. Shortly thereafter, she passed away in a Kansas hospital.
- All the characters speak the languages they would have spoken two millennia ago. The Judeans, including Christ and the apostles, speak Aramaic, while the Romans speak 'Vulgar Latin'.
- The crucifixion scenes were filmed in the city of Matera in southern Italy, near the location where Pier Paolo Pasolini filmed 'The Gospel According to Matthew' (1964).
- Mel Gibson is a traditionalist Catholic. He disagrees with the Vatican regarding the language in which religious services should be conducted; Gibson believes they should be in Latin only. In 2002, Mel Gibson's daughter announced her desire to become a nun.
- Mel Gibson knew he would need the world's best makeup artists to make the scourging and crucifixion scenes as realistic as possible. For the filming of these episodes, James Caviezel spent seven hours a day in the makeup chair.
- James Caviezel didn't have to imagine how to portray physical suffering—he actually experienced it. His body broke out in blisters from the multi-layered makeup, making it impossible for him to fall asleep. The cross Caviezel carried to Golgotha was not a prop—it weighed about 70 kilograms. Although filming took place in winter, the actor was dressed only in a lion's skin. He often became so cold that he could not speak; his frozen face had to be warmed up just so he could move his lips slightly.
- Mel Gibson donated 100 million dollars from the film's box office earnings to the Catholic Church.
- In two consecutive films—'The Passion of the Christ' and 'Apocalypto'—Mel Gibson repeats the same astronomical error: a full moon occurs the night before the main events, followed by a solar eclipse the next day. However, according to the laws of celestial mechanics, these events are always separated by an interval of 14–15 days.
Similar movies
8.7/10
8.5/10
8.5/10
8.5/10
8.5/10
8.4/10
8.3/10
8.3/10
8.3/10
8.3/10
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
