Beautifully Produced Book Covers Mel Gibson's Superb Movie!,
February 26, 2004
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Reviewer:
Barron Laycock (Labradorman) from Temple, New Hampshire
United States |
This superbly crafted, photographed and carefully
scripted book, along with the wonderful daily vespers book "His
Passion' (see my review) provide an excellent set of companion
material for those moved to action by the experience of the film
itself, and who want to explore more into both the project Mel
Gibson embarked on in the making of the film as well as the
particualr sect of scriptural teachings informing the endeavor. It
also provides Gibson for a forum in which he can explain the
project and deal with the multitude of criticism emanating from
both the secular and wider religious communities.
As a result of these considerations, the reader is
presented with a great deal of relevant material explaining why
Gibson chose to use some fairly obscure and narrow interpretations
of the events surrounding Jesus' Passion during the final days of
His life on earth. For example, within the pages of the foreword
of the book, Gibson explains how he came to depend so heavily on
the use of Biblical passages from the "New Living Translation"
version of the Bible almost exclusively as the material for the
spoken dialogue in the script. He also articulates why he
deliberately decided to use more original antique languages along
with English subtitles in order to maximize the authenticity of
the moviegoer's experience of the final twelve hours of Jesus'
life.
The book works quite well, using the combination
of both diverting text and a wonderful collage of stunning
photographs to display the movie-making experience. One caution,
however; those who have not seen the movie should be aware that
Gibson assumes those reading the book have seen the epic, and
although one can get a fairly good representation of the film from
the book, it is clearly no substitute for the experience itself. I
highly recommend the book for people who have seen the movie and
who want to extend the experience with a wonderfully reproduced
book that showcases both Gibson's artistry and the magic talents
of his cinematographer's craft. Enjoy!
