I saw The Passion with friends Saturday afternoon. Here's some thoughts.

1. This is a movie for Christians. Non-Christians won't get it. Rather than telling a story, it assumes the viewer already knows the story well, simply providing a graphic and moving visual representation.

2. The people who say this movie is anti-Semitic are nuts. Yes, some of the Jewish religious leaders are portrayed as petty, venal jerks, but the real villains of the movie are the Romans. In reaction to Jesus's suffering, they ran from coarse apathy to sadistic pleasure with hardly a positive detail to be found.

3. This movie is very difficult to watch. At best, you will come out feeling unsettled.

4. Adding to three, don't take your kids.

5. It's not fun, but the movie is well worth seeing. I've tried to think of another experience to equate it with but I draw a blank. Perhaps the uniqueness of the experience explains the movie's popularity.