Social Justice Review 151 September/October 2004 I just viewed producer David Geffen’s film, “The Last Boy Scout,” in order to understand what may be said to represent Geffen’s worldview—his personal morality. Geffen’s foul film is based in gratuitous violence, augmented by the now requisite writhing, nude female strippers/ dancers. His dialogue was a running pattern of four-letter words put into the mouths of his male hero whose adulterous wife and little girl spew the same. Geffen was one of the hot shots in Tinseltown reportedly urging a blacklist of Mel Gibson, due, allegedly, to producer Gibson’s worldview expressed in “The Passion of The Christ.”

For those who missed it, Geffen and the entertainment elite charged Gibson with anti-Semitism, fearing that the film would poison viewers’ attitudes, even trigger copy cat violence. However, the censorious “anti Semitic” crowd has a beef with the Jewish historian who recorded the Passion of Christ, not the Catholic Mr. Gibson. Gibson’s film of Christ’s last days is based on the testimony written by John. That is—by definition—Jewish history. John was a nice Jewish boy when he wrote the Gospel record and, like Christ Himself, was Jewish when he died. Christ said, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them” (Matt 5:17-18). Christ (Yehoshua, Joshua, or Jesus) never renounced His Judaism.

In fact, it is stunning that establishment Jewry has censored from its own annals the most esteemed, pious, incorruptible, world-renowned Jew of history, He whose Word forged Western society, He whom they called The Christ.

Nor do we find mention of His exemplary, virtuous and beloved Jewish mother in any authorized Jewish text. Instead, the contemporary Jewish brass, modern Pharisees, condemn Mr. Gibson’s cinema. Only an orthodox Catholic of the old school could have produced this film. It resonates with a reverence for women, it brings to all a mother’s love, fidelity and nobility. Mary, mother of Christ, Mary Magdalene and Pilot’s wife, the Roman Claudia, are one of the most ennobling portrayals of womanhood in the Hollywood cinema.

Certainly Geffenistas are hardly on record as celebrating the spiritual dignity, the exaltation and glorification of women, especially that of “stay at home” mothers like Mary. Geffenistas, on the other hand, gaily commit cinematic hate crimes against women, depicting them young and naked, sliding up and down stripper poles and in sundry other disordered, self destructive and pornographic.

In a similar state of vain arrogance and cheeky chutzpah, the Anti-Defamation League’s Abraham Foxman opined that Mr. Gibson was “seriously infected with some very, very serious anti-Semitic views.” The barbaric, sadistic Roman soldiers brought no “anti-Romana” moans from Foxman.

As most remember, these are the same Geffinistas who reveled in silent support of the “free speech” that allowed the Jewish Jesus in urine and his Jewish mother, Mary, similarly befouled, for “art’s sake.” This is the same ADL Jewry that, without blush, gave its “Torch of Freedom” award to Hugh Heffner, a flesh-peddling, prurient pornographer and Playboy “Madame,” daughter Christie, who got the ADL “Champion of Freedom Award.” Jesus (who is called “Rabbi” in this “anti-Semitic” film of John’s Gospel) dubbed such leaders “a den of thieves.” The moneychangers are still in power. Nothing changes but it stays the same. And then as now, the “bad guys” would destroy those who do not capitulate.

As Rabbi Lapin has so ably noted, the deadly silence of the Geffinistas when Christianity is assaulted, versus their public outrage against John’s narrative, further confirms John’s account.

The Passion of the Christ is anti-tyranny, whether Jewish or pagan, thus pagan tyrants still rage against it. Still, the violent barbarism of the film deserves comment. I have no doubt that Mr. Gibson’s aims were honorable
and history confirms that the brutality depicted was nothing compared to the reality. However, with millions of profit in “faith” films we can predict a series of Geffenistically sadistic “spiritual” films, flagrantly and garishly embossed with the unrestrained, pornographic sex scenes sensitively and skillfully avoided by Mr. Gibson.

That “The Word” does no longer suffice is troubling. Clearly Mr. Gibson’s film has helped many back to The Word. But we have to ask ourselves, what we, as a people, have lost to our visual addiction? That loss is undeniably much more costly than Geffner’s anti-Semitism boondoggle.

One wonders how Christ would judge it all.