By Charles Masters

PARIS -- If religious and political leadership has any influence on cinemagoing, then Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ" (Newmarket) could be set for a stellar career overseas. Figureheads as diverse as Pope John Paul II -- who recently blessed Jim Caviezel, the Catholic actor who plays Christ in the film -- and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat have seen the controversial movie in specially arranged screenings.

But their interest is no guarantee that Gibson's take on the last hours of Christ's life will replicate its record-breaking performance at the U.S. boxoffice as it continues to roll out across Europe this week.

Early boxoffice is promising, if not overwhelming. In the United Kingdom, where the film opened Friday, "Passion" grossed $3.7 million from 323 screens, narrowly beating out "Dawn of the Dead," which took in $3.5 million from 339 screens.

But one thing is certain: Gibson's movie has aroused passions in Europe, as it did in America -- and nowhere more so than in France, where a war of words has broken out between Tarak Ben Ammar, the film's distributor, and Marin Karmitz, a high-profile figure in the art house cinema business.

Karmitz refused to program "Passion" in his MK2 chain of theaters and publicly denounced the film as "fascist propaganda" for its supposed depiction of barbarity as spectacle, its "revisionist" take on history and its allegedly anti-Semitic representation of Jews.

Ben Ammar, whose newly formed Quinta Distribution will release the movie Wednesday, hit back forcefully. "This is not a fascist movie. On the contrary -- 50 million people have seen the film so far; I don't think they're all fascists," says Ben Ammar, a Tunisia-born Muslim. Quinta has screened the movie in France to Holocaust survivors and prominent Jewish leaders. "Not one said it was anti-Semitic," Ben Ammar adds.

French distributors held Gibson's opus at arm's length from the outset. By the time of the film's U.S. release, France was the only major territory for which the picture had not been acquired.

Gallic distributors apparently were worried that the movie was too hot to handle -- with many no doubt fearing a backlash to the film's alleged anti-Semitism. But talk of an organized boycott orchestrated by a Jewish film industry lobby was flatly denied by Karmitz, who also is president of the French Federation of Distributors and at the time had not seen the film.

Adding to concern about how the film would be received in France, some recalled how a Catholic fundamentalist firebombed a Paris cinema when Martin Scorsese's "The Last Temptation of Christ" (1988) was released there, in an apparent protest the movie's sacrilegious content.

Then up popped Ben Ammar, who cited his Muslim faith and his credits as producer on several biblical projects -- including everything from Franco Zeffirelli's miniseries "Jesus of Nazareth" (1977) to Monty Python's "Life of Brian" (1979) -- as giving him the legitimacy to handle "Passion."

Ben Ammar used the movie's notoriety to maximum media advantage, announcing the deal live during the top-rated evening news bulletin on TF1 -- quite possibly the first time a movie acquisition has made a national news broadcast anywhere in the world.

Quinta has reported strong demand from exhibitors (with the exception of MK2) and plans to send out an initial 480 prints, a sizable release in France.

It remains to be seen whether Karmitz's comments will presage wider protests from those who see the movie as anti-Semitic when the film hits screens this week. "I'm not worried. France is a country of refuge and tolerance," Ben Ammar says. Quinta is not taking any special security measures for the French release.

Religious leaders in France have not been especially outspoken about the film. Cardinal Jean-Marie Lustiger, archbishop of Paris, reportedly said after a screening that he considered the film "a challenge for the Catholic Church" to explain its content to the faithful.

More outspoken views on the director-producer's supposed naivete have been heard in the local media. "Mel Gibson is to cinema what George (W.) Bush is to politics: a dangerous zealot who doubts nothing and from whom we can fear the worst," French newspaper Le Monde's Washington correspondent wrote recently.

So far, reaction to the movie in other European countries with a strong Catholic tradition has varied widely, though the movie has yet to open in Italy, Spain or Portugal.

In Italy, where "Passion" has received a general admission rating, distributor Eagle Pictures plans to release the film April 7 on about 500 prints, making it the last of Europe's major territories to see the picture. Controversy surrounding the movie hit as early as the fall, when Roman Catholic Church members voiced concern that some of the more brutal scenes may be too violent for the general public.

Conservative Catholic publications in Italy have endorsed the view that the film is not anti-Semitic and is a "straightforward, exact account of a historical event." Left-wing newspapers, however, have criticized the film heavily for its violence and alleged anti-Semitic tones. In a recent op-ed, la Repubblica, Italy's largest liberal newspaper, characterized Gibson as a "Taliban."

Dublin-based Eclipse Pictures released "Passion" on 59 prints in Ireland on March 12, a major release for a subtitled film. That nation's film censor controversially rated the movie PG15 with a warning that the movie contains extreme violence. By contrast, U.K. censors have stamped the film with an 18 label, meaning no one under 18 will be allowed in.

An Eclipse spokesman says the censor's decision took into account Ireland's largely Catholic population and culture. "The censor felt that he didn't want to deny people under 18 or families who wanted to take their children to the film," the spokesman says. In a statement, the censor also said he didn't feel "Passion" was in any way anti-Semitic, and there has been little controversy in Ireland over the film's depiction of the Jews. Eclipse reported immense interest from churches across Ireland wanting to block-book screenings of the movie.

In Spain, Aurum plans to release "Passion" on Friday, just ahead of Easter week. Spanish media have already reported the debate surrounding the film in detail. Much of the commentary has revolved around Gibson's supposed zeal, the perceived absurdity of a film in Latin and Aramaic and the alleged anti-Semitism. But the coverage has focused on the film's violence and sensationalism.

Aurum's commercial director Jose Maria Sanchez says "Passion's" huge success stateside have affected its release plan. "Normally, a subtitled film would open with eight or 10 prints," Sanchez says. "Due to (its) success in other territories and audience demand, it will open as a tremendous exception with around 270 prints because we are very confident in the film."

Outside of Europe's Catholic heartland, in the United Kingdom, opinion on the movie has been sharply polarized. The film is "damagingly anti-Semitic," claims Labor MP Gerald Kaufman, chairman of the House of Commons Culture, Media and Sport Committee. "What you are in for is sadism, gratuitous violence, ugliness, wallowing in blood and, it has to be said, crude anti-Semitism," Kaufman told GMTV's "The Sunday Programme." "I am not accusing (Gibson) of being a deliberate and overt anti-Semite, but there is no doubt that the message of the film is seriously, damagingly anti-Semitic."

The film was endorsed by Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, leader of the Catholic Church in England and Wales. "I have not seen it, but everyone I have met who has seen it has been profoundly moved," he told BBC1's "Breakfast With Frost." "I don't think from what I hear that it is in any way anti-Semitic."

Neville Nagler, director of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, issued a statement following a press screening of the movie. "It would have been better if this film had never been made," Nagler said. "The glorification of violence and bloodshed and the reinforcement of medieval stereotyping of the Jewish people are extremely dangerous."

The Council of Christians and Jews issued a statement saying it was very troubled about the potential impact of the film on Christian-Jewish relations. The CCJ specified supposed inaccuracies in the telling of Christ's last hours. "The main burden of guilt is placed on the Jews, which ignores historical scholarship. Given the significant development and progress in Jewish-Christian relations since the Holocaust, this approach is deeply regrettable."

"Passion" opened decently in Germany, taking in $2.4 million in its first weekend, but was beat out of the top spot by Buena Vista's "Brother Bear," which screened on 741 screens compared to "Passion's" 406. This was four times the original number of prints distributor Constantin Film had planned, boosted in response to the movie's U.S. success.

Shortly before the German premiere of "Passion" on March 18, the top representative of the Catholic Church in Germany, Cardinal Karl Lehmann; former head of the German Protestant Church Wolfgang Huber; and the president of Germany's main Jewish organization, Paul Spiegel, issued a joint statement warning religious groups and individual churches against using the film for anti-Semitic purposes.

They said the portrayal of Jews in the film has the potential to reawaken anti-Semitic prejudices, "particularly in Europe where anti-Semitic tendencies are on the rise." But the film's German bow has not been marred by any public anti-Semitic actions.

"Passion" is rated "16 plus" in Germany, the second-highest rating, due to its violent content. Constantin distribution head Thomas Peter Friedl says audience demand for the film was "immense, both from (religious) groups and also from the regular audience. There is an amazing awareness and discussion (of the film) in the media."

Friedl was in the United States to follow the "Passion" rollout there and says Constantin was coordinating its marketing campaign with German churches and universities -- setting up special screenings and discussion forums and providing extra background and educational materials to complement the film.

The controversy over "Passion's" alleged anti-Semitism has made headlines in the German press. Although, as in Spain, most German film critics have focused more on the movie's extreme violence.

Prominent German-Jewish journalist Michel Friedman, however, has attacked the movie as "irresponsible and highly dangerous" in its portrayal of the Jews. In an article in leading German tabloid Bild, Friedman called the film "a step back to the Middle Ages" and accused Gibson of promoting anti-Semitism "under the cover of a movie."

Some prominent members of Germany's Protestant and Catholic churches have publicly criticized the film for what they called its excessive violence and lack of theological depth. But Friedl says Constantin has been flooded with requests from churches across the country wanting to block-book seats and the distributor arranged a special screening for members of the German parliament from the opposition -- and traditionally Catholic -- Christian Democratic Party.

In the end, once the different religious camps have had their say, it seems likely European audiences will sample the movie as much out of curiosity as from thirst for a religious message, historical enlightenment or even pure bloodlust -- all of which should play well for the director.

"What (the film) celebrates is not so much God but the cult of Mammon," French newspaper Liberation wrote recently. "Judas' pieces of silver were a pittance compared to the millions of dollars that Mel and his distributors are pocketing by making 'The Passion' a spectacle to see with the Bible in one hand (and) a carton of popcorn in the other."

Scott Roxborough in Cologne, Germany, Ray Bennett in London, Caren Davidkhanian in Rome and Pamela Rolfe in Madrid contributed to this report.

Published March 30, 2026
Copyright 2004 The Hollywood Reporter