Review: The Stepford Wives (dir. Frank Oz, 2004)

Last updated on: December 26, 2013 at 10:12 am By Peter T. Chattaway

There has always been something a tad absurd about The Stepford Wives, even once you accept its science-fiction premise, but the new film pushes the concept way, way over the top. The original novella by thriller writer Ira Levin (Rosemary’s Baby, The Boys from Brazil) tapped into feminist fears that men would gladly exchange their flesh-and-blood wives for domesticated, hyper-sexual robots if they could, and the 1975 film directed by Bryan Forbes went on to emphasize the even deeper horror... Read more

Review: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (dir. Alfonso Cuarón, 2004)

Last updated on: November 21, 2015 at 11:09 pm By Peter T. Chattaway

The children, they grow so fast. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban is the tale in which J.K. Rowling’s young orphan wizard becomes a teenager, and the first thing that strikes you about the new movie is how much more mature its protagonists have become, at least on the outside; the boys’ faces are leaner, longer, a bit more rugged, definitely free of baby fat, while it seems Hermione Granger (played by Emma Watson), the one girl of any... Read more

Review: Troy (dir. Wolfgag Petersen, 2004)

Last updated on: May 24, 2014 at 9:29 pm By Peter T. Chattaway

Gladiator gave us a nasty, brutish vision of the world, but it compensated somewhat with a soothing and vaguely pagan belief in the afterlife. The Passion of The Christ gave us the suffering and execution of the Jewish Messiah, but it concluded with a brief glimpse of the resurrection by which he conquered death. Now comes Troy, the biggest Greco-Roman epic of them all — so far — and its theology is of a more agnostic sort. (more…) Read more

Review: The Apocalypse (dir. Raffaele Mertes, 2002)

Last updated on: November 28, 2013 at 9:51 am By Peter T. Chattaway

There have been many films about the end times, but few have had all that much to do with the actual Book of Revelation. Most apocalyptic movies have been more interested in giving the ancient prophecies a modern spin than in bringing the Scriptures themselves to life — and they have usually accomplished this by spinning a web of hokey political conspiracies and horror-movie shock effects out of thin air. Thus, these films have tended to reflect the social and... Read more

The Passion sets records, wins converts

Last updated on: February 1, 2014 at 11:07 am By Peter T. Chattaway

CONFOUNDING the expectations of its foes and even some of its fans, Mel Gibson’s self-financed movie about the death of Jesus has become one of the biggest box-office hits of all time. The Passion of the Christ, released across North America on February 25, has earned $317 million in its first five weeks and has already set records for top-grossing R-rated film, independent film and foreign-language film (beating The Matrix Reloaded, My Big Fat Greek Wedding and Crouching Tiger Hidden... Read more

Review: The Ten Commandments (dir. Cecil B. DeMille, 1956)

Last updated on: November 28, 2013 at 9:51 am By Peter T. Chattaway

With industry analysts predicting a box-office take of over $300 million, The Passion of The Christ is easily the biggest religious blockbuster in decades. But for sheer popularity, staying power and cultural clout, it would be hard to top the biblical epics of the 1950s. One film towers above them all. According to Box Office Mojo, Cecil B. DeMille’s The Ten Commandments — which is now available as a “special collector’s edition” DVD — grossed the equivalent of $790 million... Read more

The Passion of the Christ — a box-office report

Last updated on: February 1, 2014 at 10:55 am By Peter T. Chattaway

THE MOVIE that everyone said was too risky is now on course to become one of the biggest box-office hits of all time. Mel Gibson’s graphic and controversial The Passion of the Christ surprised everyone — including its own distributor — when it opened last Wednesday. Newmarket, the company that released the film in the United States, predicted that afternoon that the film would gross about $20 million; instead, it made $23.6 million for the day, or $26.6 million once... Read more

Commentary: Evil, violence and The Passion of the Christ

Last updated on: February 1, 2014 at 11:25 am By Peter T. Chattaway

Over the weekend thousands of Canadians flocked to movie theatres to see The Passion of the Christ. Peter Chattaway has seen Mel Gibson’s movie on the torture and crucifixion of Jesus…twice. He reviews movies for a national paper called ChristianWeek and contributes to the American website ChristianityToday.com. On Commentary he says he doesn’t think Gibson’s movie rises above the violence and evil it depicts. (more…) Read more

Review: The Passion of the Christ (dir. Mel Gibson, 2004)

Last updated on: February 1, 2014 at 12:35 pm By Peter T. Chattaway

The Passion of The Christ may be the most artistically and commercially ambitious feature film about Jesus to come out of Hollywood since the 1960s. It is certainly the most devout, though at first it seems odd that Mel Gibson should be the one to produce, write, and direct a film about the Prince of Peace. From the buddy-cop Lethal Weapon franchise to revisionist epics like The Patriot, Gibson has specialized in playing violent action heroes who take bloody revenge... Read more

Comment: The Passion is more complex than critics, supporters may admit

Last updated on: February 1, 2014 at 12:35 pm By Peter T. Chattaway

EVERYTHING you know about The Passion of the Christ is wrong. For over a year, the film’s most vocal critics have said Mel Gibson’s movie about the death of Jesus is anti-Semitic, while its most vocal supporters have said no, it’s only an accurate representation of scripture and history. In truth, the film is neither. First, the charges of anti-Semitism. It is true that Gibson’s film tends to divide the Jewish race into those who follow Christ and those who... Read more