Thursday, February 26, 2004

New Yorker review

I mentioned this review in quoting from another, but Dwight Peterson helpfully provides the URL for the review:

NAILED
by DAVID DENBY
Mel Gibson’s “The Passion of the Christ.”

It's all worth reading, but here's his concluding paragraph:
What is most depressing about “The Passion” is the thought that people will take their children to see it. Jesus said, “Suffer the little children to come unto me,” not “Let the little children watch me suffer.” How will parents deal with the pain, terror, and anger that children will doubtless feel as they watch a man flayed and pierced until dead? The despair of the movie is hard to shrug off, and Gibson’s timing couldn’t be more unfortunate: another dose of death-haunted religious fanaticism is the last thing we need.
Will people really take their children to see this? I really hope not. I wouldn't dream of taking mine, not the remotest chance.

Aside from the content of these reviews, which I cannot judge until I've seen the film, some of these reviewers have such a wonderful command of the English language that I am beginning to think I read too much academic prose. I don't suppose I've ever read so many reviews of just one film, let alone over such a short period of time, but my goodness have some of these reviewers got a nice turn of phrase!

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