Sister Roses Revenge
It's been awhile since I've felt moved to comment on the current state of affairs. I frankly have been disheartened with the way things are and not much interested in putting my two cents in. But I must confess my glee at the recent fall from grace of one of Hollywood's most illuminous stars. The first report of Mel Gibson's drunk driving arrest made me titter.
I had long fell out of love with the hot young stud from down under. I passed on Braveheart. Too much testosterone, I thought. I did see The Patriot. I had enough of Mel after that. I shunned any news of him after that but how could you get away without hearing about The Passion of the Christ. The best I could do was stay away from the theatre. I did however attend a screening of 'Sister Rose's Passion' ,the documentary shown at the Ojai Film Festival a couple of season's ago. In case you missed it, go rent it. Fabulous. It's the story of Sister Rose Thering, an American nun of the Dominican order who comes out of retirement to combat the rise in anti-Semitism which followed the release of Gibson's blockbuster film. It is the first thing that came to my mind when details of Gibson's arrest were revealed. I've since watched every tabloid show and read as much of the blogsphere on the subject as I could stomach. The most entertaining is Christoper Hitchens of Slate Magazine (http://www.slate.com/id/2146880/).
But I've not read one reference to this Academy Award nominated film. It lost out to Ojai's own Hudson and Houston's documentary, 'Mighty Times, The Children's March.' Sister Rose, who was suffering from pulminary hypertention at the time the documentary was filmed, has since passed away. I imagine her looking down on Mel's unfortunate situation and smiling, knowing that her final efforts had not been in vain. I think Mel Gibson should screen the movie in the privacy of his rehab room as part of his attrition. I encourage everyone to see it and stay mindful of how bigotry can be most harmful during these trying times.
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Comments (5)
Oh Demetri you've hit the nail on the head! When I heard the details of Yankee Doodle Braveheart's arrest, I did the dance of joy. Whenever a loud-mouthed holier-than-thou religious right winger eats his own words, I cannot contain myself. Between Mel G. and Tom C. (free Katie), my teenage-inspired love affairs with Hollyweird heart throbs has nearly ceased to exist (although we can likely always count on Clooney). Anyway, Ojai Film Fest films are usually available at the library, so the one you mentioned should be on the shelf. Meanwhile, I am going to sit with bated breath and dictionary in hand awaiting Mel's next long-winded apology in hopes it will be as transparent and entertaining as the last two. Passion of the Loser!
Comment #1 Posted by: Lisa Snider | August 2, 2006 02:00 PM
I was totally amused by the fact he had a network miniseries on the Holocaust in the works.
And dismayed by the Hollywood insiders who kept their mouths shut and chose money and racism over ethics and morals.
Comment #2 Posted by: Tyler | August 2, 2006 06:25 PM
THANK YOU Demitri, for putting words to the thoughts and feelings i've had for years. why did i allow "The Mel Man" - and Braveheart, specifically - to remain untouchable? here i thought i was the only person in the world who sneered in disgust at the testosterone-and-blood cocktail that was Braveheart, and only slightly less so at Braveheart 2: The Patriot. i skipped The Passion very much on purpose, because if i wanted to see people be tortured, i'd watch the news.
HOWEVER...i'm not sure we'd recognize an honest apology (especially out of Hollywood) if we heard one. we seem to WANT him - anyone - to be foolishly and easily labeled and categorized: Anti-Semite. boom. done. end of story.
a part of me wants to give Mel the benefit of the doubt and believe that his apology is sincere, not because it'd excuse what he's done (and what he'll likely continue to believe and do), but because i think we need to hear contrite words more often in general. nobody knows what it sounds like to apologize, because we never do it. WE, each other. WE, our government. WE, our society.
there's probably a really clever ending line for that philosiphical rant, but it hasnt found me yet.
Comment #3 Posted by: evan | August 5, 2006 05:58 PM
That's a really interesting observation, evan. In today's Rovian world of politics, you are ONLY allowed to show strength. There is no room for a balance of the feminine and masculine.
Comment #4 Posted by: Tyler | August 6, 2006 09:18 AM
Let us not throw stones at others. For this was truly the passion of the Christ.
Comment #5 Posted by: Jock Doubleday | October 1, 2006 11:20 AM