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THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST
OPENS AT NO.1 AT THE US BOX OFFICE GROSSING $117,538,465
FOR A FIVE DAY OPENING WEEKEND
The Passion of the Christ directed,
produced and co-written by Mel Gibson is to open across
the U.K. on the 26th March
2004. The film stars Jim Caviezel as Jesus Of Nazareth, Monica
Bellucci as Mary Magdalene, Maia Morgenstern as Mary, Mattia
Sbragia as Caiphas, the High Priest, Hristo Naumov Shopov
as Pontius Pilate, Claudia Gerini as Claudia Procles, Pilate’s
wife, Sergio Rubini as Dismas & Luca Lionello as Judas
Iscariot.
Written by Benedict Fitzgerald & Mel
Gibson, produced by Mel Gibson, Bruce Davey, Stephen McEveety,
Enzo Sisti
is executive producer. Music by John Debney, cinematography
by Caleb Deshanel, production design by Francisco Frigeri,
set decoration by Carlo Ervasi, costume design by Maurizio
Millenotti with special effects make up by Keith Vanderlaan
and Greg Cannom.
The Passion of the Christ is a film
about the last twelve hours of Jesus of Nazareth’s life. The film opens in
the Garden of Olives (Gethsemane) where Jesus has gone to
pray after the Last Supper. Jesus resists Satan’s temptations.
Betrayed by Judas Iscariot, Jesus is arrested and taken back
to within the city walls of Jerusalem where the leaders of
the Pharisees confront him with accusations of blasphemy
and his trial results in a condemnation to death.
Jesus is brought before Pilate, the Roman Governor of Palestine,
who listens to the accusations leveled at him by the Pharisees.
Realizing he is confronting a political conflict, Pilate
defers to King Herod in the matter. Herod returns Jesus to
Pilate who gives the crowd a choice between Jesus and the
criminal Barrabas. The crowd chooses to have Barrabas set
free and to condemn Jesus.
Jesus is handed over to the Roman
soldiers and flagellated. Unrecognizable now, he is brought
back before Pilate, who
presents him to the crowd as if to say “is this not
enough?” It is not. Pilate washes his hands of the
entire dilemma, ordering his men to do as the crowd wishes.
Jesus is presented with the cross
and is ordered to carry it through the streets of Jerusalem
all the way up to Golgotha.
On Golgotha, Jesus is nailed to the cross and undergoes his
last temptation - the fear that he has been abandoned by
his Father. He overcomes his fear, looks at Mary, his Holy
Mother, and makes the pronouncement which only she can fully
understand, “it is accomplished.”
He then dies: “into Thy hands
I commend my Spirit.”
At the moment of his death, nature itself overturns.
www.passionofthechrist.com |
