Jesus invented the dining table

[Tim W]

This is in Mel Gibson's film made in the presence of the Holy Spirit of
course so it must be true, even the Pope has said so. Nevertheless it has
bugged me ever since I saw it. Why was there that long flashback to the
young Jesus the carpenter inventing a new type of table (and chairs iirc)?
What was it all about?

Am I right that it was a high normal modern table instead of a low one with
squatting height stools? Was that something to do with Jesus being
conspicuously western, european and non-semitic. Good Christian posture as
we know is straight backed in am upright chair and only heathen foreigners
sit on the floor and eat with their hands.
Tim W

[Michael J Davis]

Post by Tim W
This is in Mel Gibson's film made in the presence of the Holy Spirit of
course so it must be true, even the Pope has said so.

(er, no he hasn't!)

Post by Tim W
Nevertheless it has
bugged me ever since I saw it. Why was there that long flashback to the
young Jesus the carpenter inventing a new type of table (and chairs iirc)?
What was it all about?

Joke!

Post by Tim W
Am I right that it was a high normal modern table instead of a low one with
squatting height stools? Was that something to do with Jesus being
conspicuously western, european and non-semitic. Good Christian posture as
we know is straight backed in am upright chair and only heathen foreigners
sit on the floor and eat with their hands.

Yeah, as you say! The joke AIUI was he hadn't invented the chairs to go
with it yet. On a more serious note, it was the getting across the
'normality' of his 'hidden' years as a carpenter/joiner.

Mike
[The reply-to address is valid for 30 days from this posting]

[Tim W]

This is in Mel Gibson's film ...

Joke!

It couldn't be. Nobody would want to punctuate a marathon blood and torture
session with jokes. And besides, it wasn't funny.

Tim W

[Mark Goodge]

On Tue, 4 May 2004 12:50:11 +0100, Tim W put finger to keyboard and

Post by Tim W

This is in Mel Gibson's film ...

Joke!

It couldn't be. Nobody would want to punctuate a marathon blood and torture
session with jokes. And besides, it wasn't funny.

It's what's known in the trade as "comic relief". It doesn't have to
be particularly funny, and raising a laugh isn't the main object. The
point is to give the audience something that will make them relax, and
maybe even smile - thus setting them up for the hammer blow of the
next scene. From a cinematic point of view, these are essential in a
"marathon blood and torture session" in order to ensure the maximum
impact. Otherwise, if the blood and torture are entirely unrelieved,
the audience habituates to it by the end of the film and some of the
forcefulness of the violence is lost.

Mark

[Michael J Davis]

Post by Tim W

This is in Mel Gibson's film ...

Joke!

It couldn't be. Nobody would want to punctuate a marathon blood and torture
session with jokes. And besides, it wasn't funny.

Look - *some* light relief was needed, and that's all it was. (Anyway -
I got that from the book of the film!)

Mike
[The reply-to address is valid for 30 days from this posting]