# Yet another question about The Passion. What sort of film is it? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 1, 2004, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-question-about-the-passion-what-sort-of-film-is-it/231861 "2004-03-01T04:29:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Casey1505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dc4da7/32.png) [@Casey1505](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Casey1505)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-question-about-the-passion-what-sort-of-film-is-it/231861/1 "2004-03-01T04:29:32Z")
I suppose that this could be asked in GQ, but I’m not sure the answer is factual. Plus, this forum offers leeway for the tangents that this topic may take, in case the other 67 or so _Passion_ threads haven’t already covered them. I do not recall this question being posed, however. So, put aside any opinions of the movie itself, and keep in mind that the following question is purely hypothetical at this point. Would _The Passion_ be considered a foreign language film come Oscar time next year? ---
**Author:** ![vivalostwages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d07c76/32.png) [@vivalostwages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vivalostwages)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-question-about-the-passion-what-sort-of-film-is-it/231861/2 "2004-03-01T06:12:40Z")
You read my mind. I’ve been wondering about that very question for a few weeks now. I think it could be nominated as such, but…do foreign films have to be made by, um, foreigners? ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-question-about-the-passion-what-sort-of-film-is-it/231861/3 "2004-03-01T13:56:35Z")
> [@vivalostwages](#): > > but…do foreign films have to be made by, um, foreigners? Mel Gibson is Australian. ---
**Author:** ![singular1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ba9def/32.png) [@singular1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/singular1)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-question-about-the-passion-what-sort-of-film-is-it/231861/4 "2004-03-01T14:40:47Z")
No, American raised in Australia, I think. ---
**Author:** ![Casey1505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dc4da7/32.png) [@Casey1505](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Casey1505)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-question-about-the-passion-what-sort-of-film-is-it/231861/5 "2004-03-01T15:47:22Z")
But there is not a word of English spoken in the film… Peter Jackson is from New Zealand, and his film wasn’t considered “foreign”, although the way it steamrolled last night, it probably would have won for “animated musical” if nominated… ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-question-about-the-passion-what-sort-of-film-is-it/231861/6 "2004-03-01T15:53:26Z")
I believe the category is titled Foreign Language Film, which would put “The Passion” in that category. Mel could be from anywhere and it would still be a foreign language film (to Americans, anyway ;)) ---
**Author:** ![Interrobang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/interrobang/32/17463_2.png) [@Interrobang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Interrobang)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-question-about-the-passion-what-sort-of-film-is-it/231861/7 "2004-03-01T18:04:57Z")
The category is indeed the [Best Foreign Language Film](http://www.oscars.org/76academyawards/rules/rule14.html). Because _Passion of the Christ_ is in a foreign language, it would theoretically qualify. But. Nominees for the BFLF are not selected the way nominees for plain ol’ Best Picture are. Each country submits their FLF choice to the Academy: > [@](#): > > Selection of the best picture from each country shall be made by one organization, jury or committee which should include artists and/or craftspeople from the field of motion pictures. And the US does not have one of those organizations because the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences – namely, the Oscar people – _are_ our professional organization. So _Passion_ wouldn’t qualify because there’s no country that can submit it for the Foreign Language Film award. Also: > [@](#): > > The recording of the original dialogue track as well as the completed film must be predominantly in an official language of the country submitting the film except when the story mandates that an additional non-English language be predominant. Films involving subcultures that speak a non-English, non-official language may qualify if their subject matter concerns life in the submitting country. Assuming that the financing of the film is considered either American or Australian (based on Mel’s citizenship and the source of financing, details of which I’m not clear on), _Passion_ isn’t in a language that’s an official language of either country, nor does it concern life in the submitting country except in an abstract sense. Of course, “the Academy has the right to make the final determination in questions of eligibility,” and these are the rules for the 76th annual awards which were just given out, so who knows what could change, because they do rewrite the rules every now and again. But it is fully eligible for most other Oscar categories next year – Best Film, actor, actress, score, etc. ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-question-about-the-passion-what-sort-of-film-is-it/231861/8 "2004-03-01T22:33:27Z")
So since the movie was filmed in Italy, and much of it is in Latin, I suppose it _could_ be nominated by the Italian Film Board (whatever it’s called). I mean, there _is_ a sub-group of people in Italy that speaks Latin… ---
**Author:** ![vivalostwages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d07c76/32.png) [@vivalostwages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vivalostwages)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2004, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-question-about-the-passion-what-sort-of-film-is-it/231861/9 "2004-03-02T02:50:16Z")
> [@singular1](#): > > No, American raised in Australia, I think. True. He was born in New York and lived there till he was 12, when his dad moved the brood to Oz. ---
**Author:** ![seaworthy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a8b319/32.png) [@seaworthy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/seaworthy)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2004, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-question-about-the-passion-what-sort-of-film-is-it/231861/10 "2004-03-02T05:41:31Z")
> [@HeyHomie](#): > > So since the movie was filmed in Italy, and much of it is in Latin, I suppose it _could_ be nominated by the Italian Film Board (whatever it’s called). I mean, there _is_ a sub-group of people in Italy that speaks Latin… I could be wrong because I haven’t seen the movie, but I thought it was in Aramaic, because that’s what Jesus would have spoken. Of course that still makes me wonder how there’s anyone alive today who knows how to speak Aramaic. I mean, reading it and writing it are one thing, but how do you know how to pronounce that word? ---
**Author:** ![SpartanDC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b2d939/32.png) [@SpartanDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpartanDC)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2004, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-question-about-the-passion-what-sort-of-film-is-it/231861/11 "2004-03-05T19:46:04Z")
> [@seaworthy](#): > > I could be wrong because I haven’t seen the movie, but I thought it was in Aramaic, because that’s what Jesus would have spoken. Of course that still makes me wonder how there’s anyone alive today who knows how to speak Aramaic. I mean, reading it and writing it are one thing, but how do you know how to pronounce that word? It’s still spoken in some places. According to [this](http://cal1.cn.huc.edu/aramaic_language.html) site, it’s spoken in pockets of Syria, Iraq, Turkey, and Iran. I’m also fairly sure that the surviving Samaritans (yeah, they’re still around) speak it as well, though I don’t have a cite for that other than my memories of sophomore year religion class in high school. And it would indeed seem that it can’t be nominated for Foreign Language Film. Not that it would be if it were eligible. My guess is the Academy wouldn’t touch this movie with a 10-foot pole, even though it’s actually not _that_ bad a movie. It could at least get a nomination for makeup or costumes or maybe art direction. ---
**Author:** ![cuauhtemoc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ecb155/32.png) [@cuauhtemoc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cuauhtemoc)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2004, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-question-about-the-passion-what-sort-of-film-is-it/231861/12 "2004-03-05T20:45:30Z")
It’s a snuff film, but I don’t think the Oscars have a category for that. ---
**Author:** ![Casey1505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dc4da7/32.png) [@Casey1505](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Casey1505)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2004, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-question-about-the-passion-what-sort-of-film-is-it/231861/13 "2004-03-05T20:55:48Z")
> [@cuauhtemoc](#): > > It’s a snuff film, but I don’t think the Oscars have a category for that. :rolleyes: He must have [resurrected](http://us.imdb.com/name/nm0001029/) on the third day, so does it still count as a snuff film?