Bible igniting `The Passion`: Director
Washington: Filmmaker Kevin Smith has blamed the Bible for the controversy behind his Mel Gibson movie, “The Passion.”
According to ratethemusic.com, the movie is about the final hours of Jesus Christ and parts of the story line have been taken from Smith’s religious comedy, “Dogma.”
Smith is disgusted at the way the movie is being treated even before its release.
“I must say that the notion of boycotting a film in advance over a religious argument is ridiculous. We took it on the chin for “Dogma” and then it came out and people realised it was reverent,” he says.
“Mel has said he’s sticking close to the Bible to make an accurate depiction of Christ’s crucifixion, so perhaps the problem is not Mel. Maybe it’s a Bible that throws around a term like ‘Jew’. Perhaps it’s time to clean up that book,” he continues.
“As for Mel, the best thing he can do it find a distributor like Harvey and Bob Weinstein, which will really commit to the picture,” adds the director.
Select religious leaders have screened the controversial film and the results have been positive. However, Anti-Defamation League officials have said that if the movie is released in its present form, it will fuel hatred, bigotry and anti-semitism.

“Of course, the video-store clerk has become a storied figure in modern American cinema, with the rise of ex-clerks like Tarantino and Kevin Smith, and Smith’s own homage to the profession in “Clerks.” ”