The Passion of the Christ (2004)

Nearly every minute of The Passion of the Christ stays inside one night and the morning after, and that narrow window is its power and its limit. Mel Gibson keeps the teaching to a few short flashbacks, so the Sermon on the Mount and the Last Supper arrive as brief pauses between long, solemn scenes. The portrayal is unflinching, and at 127 minutes it asks a lot of anyone watching. Jim Caviezel is fully committed. Maia Morgenstern as Mary is the heart of the film. She says very little and follows every step, and a flashback of her running to her little boy after a fall is its most moving moment. A warm scene of Jesus as a carpenter, teasing his mother about a tall table, hints at what more moments like it could have added. It made $611.2 million worldwide on a reported $30M. A 6.8 because the craft and sincerity are real, and the focus is very tight. $299 says you go back and rewatch the carpenter scene with the tall table before you turn it off.

What works: Maia Morgenstern’s Mary is quietly devastating, and the film’s commitment to its original languages and its sincere tone never wavers.

What doesn’t: Keeping almost everything to the final hours leaves the teachings as brief flashbacks, and the unflinching approach makes it a very demanding watch.

Who it’s for: Viewers of faith marking Lent or Easter, and film fans curious about a sincere, fully subtitled religious epic told on its own terms.