Well, we all know how Mel Gibson treats historical pieces. I’d expect that the Apostles will paint their faces in Galilean colors and then attack the Romans in an ill-fated, last ditch effort. This is of course just after Gibson seduces Herod’s wife.
I’m with Partly Warmer on this. Nobody speaks Latin any more. They all speak Bolivian, Colombian, Brazilian, and so forth.
Today’s Telegraph has the following editorial (in Latin, of course) congratulating Mel on his choice of language:
tullius, this is a subscription/login site.
Capacitor, I’m surprised you couldn’t access the Telegraph; the site’s never asked me to register. In any case, here’s the full editorial, if you’re interested –
Mel Melior Est
O tempora magnifica, o mores digni. Stella magna australis, Mel Gibson, dixit se novam imaginem, The Passion, dirigere et producere velle. Haec imago, quae de Christi vita est, in lingua Latina erit. Mel Gibson pius Christianus est et imaginem insolentem, similem The Last Temptation of Christ, non producet.
Quam admirabile. Fabulae Henrici Potteri populo gratae linguam Latinam in priores paginas actorum diurnorum reduxunt. Qui non scit sententiam scholae Henrici Potteri, Hogwart’s - “Draco Dormiens Nunquam Titillandus”?
Sed, adhuc, hodie pauci pueri aut paucae puellae hanc linguam discunt. Tragoedia est, quod verba bella sunt. Catullus, Vergilius, Ovidius, Tacitus - tabula historicorum et poetarum splendidorum paene sine fine est. Et omnes, qui linguam Latinam iam legere possunt, dicunt: “Sincera verba quam translationem legere melius est.”
Non modo lingua iucunda est, sed etiam utilis: ut linguam discas, multi libri grammatici discendi sunt, et tum historia multorum verborum Anglorum clara fit. Difficilia verba secunda in condicione (supra videlicet) etiam intelleges - damnosa hereditas et gravamen. Tandem iocum vetustissimum orbe in terrarum - “Caesar adsum iam forte, Pompey aderat” - et originem verbi “tandem”, vehiculum rotis binis binos homines, intelleges.
There is no way that I will be watching this movie. I can’t have all my feelings for that yummy Jim Caviezel mixed up with Jesus! That’d just be SICK!
Why does the guy playing Jesus always end up with blue eyes? I always assumed he’d look kind of --I dunno call me silly-- middle eastern?
From Mønti Pythøn ik den Hølie Gräilen
The Characters and incidents portrayed and the names used are fictitious
Signed RICHARD M. NIXON
I’m personally dreading the credits after the film. I mean this is very delicate material here. It will go from tacky to downright dreadful. Imagine…
**Ascention Sequence Supervisor: Mort Kleinfelderman
Brilliant Burst Of Lightbeams created and hand-painted onto this really expensive custom-cut sheet of glass by Judith Gold
Aramaic Titling and Signage by Steve “The Scrivner” Baumbaum.
Opening Sequence Narration by Emily Litella. ( 
)**
It’s no shock to the world at large that Mr. Gibson is deeply religious, and is moved to make what will be doubtless a phenomenal effort.
I hope it goes as well as he wants it to, and one must remember something during the debate in this thread. Even if Mel is the sole Producer and supplies 100% of all financing ( just a WAG ), he will be smart enough to shoot the scenes in more than one language. He may screen the film in Latin and Aramaic, Hebrew, whatever- but you can rest assured that there will be English takes of every single scene shot.
Nobody embarks upon something as mercilessly hard as making a movie without hedging their bet a wee bit.
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