A group of protestors are outside the Village East City Cinemas on Second Avenue at East 12th Street this afternoon, per this photo via @RTSNYC.
The film in question is "Paradise: Faith," from Austrian filmmaker Ulrich Seidl. Here's the Rotten Tomatoes recap:
In "PARADISE: Faith" Ulrich Seidl explores what it means to bear the cross. For Anna Maria, an X-ray technician, paradise lies with Jesus. She devotes her vacation to missionary work, so that Austria may be brought back to the path of virtue. On her daily pilgrimage through Vienna, she goes from door to door, carrying a foot-high statue of the Virgin Mary. One day, after years of absence, her husband, an Egyptian Muslim confined to a wheelchair, comes home. Hymns and prayers are now joined by fighting. "PARADISE: Faith" recounts the stations of the cross of a marriage and the longing for love.
(Read the review in the Times here.)
According to Wikipedia, "the film has been named as a favourite of director John Waters, who presented the film as his annual pick within the Maryland Film Festival 2013."
There was a similar protest of the film in Hollywood this past week. According to a blog by the executive director of America Needs Fatima:
The movie Paradise: Faith, by Ulrich Seidl, is a terrible pornographic attack on Jesus’ crucifix.
EXTREME CAUTION
The NY Times (8/22/13) reports: Speaking of the main character in the film, “…Later in the movie, she m*****bates with the same crucifix.” [redaction ours: Ed.] Other press reports contribute… A woman…“m*****bates using a crucifix.” “it is right to show her m********ing using a cross, as she is making love to Jesus,” responds the director Ulrich Seidl when asked about it.
The protest consisted in praying the fifteen decades of the rosary, some other prayers (especially the St. Michael prayer) and the Litany of Our Lady. Our people spread out single to double file to cover the entire front of the cinema.
We were very happy and consoled to be able to offer this public act of reparation against such a terrible pornographic attack on the Holy Crucifix of Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Meanwhile, there haven't been any protests over "We're the Millers," also playing at Village East City Cinemas, for being billed as a "comedy."
[EVG reader John]
I think we should invite to protesters to a screening of The Night They Raided Minsky's... shot at the same place, once Minsky's The Poor Mans Paradice... so they could fully appreciate the irony of their gesture...
ReplyDeleteMan, at all the protests I've been to for decades, the cops won't even let us have our signs on small sticks and Jesus dude gets to stand there with a 20 foot spear? WTF?
ReplyDeleteIs "bearing the cross" similar too "belling the mouse"??
ReplyDeleteThese "protesters" are being paid by the film's producers to drum up publicity for this obscure film. Nobody would even know about this film were it not for the publicity surrounding these "spontaneous" protests in LA and in NYC. I must admit it has worked on me. Although I wasn't planning on seeing the film now I wouldn't miss it for the world. Brilliant marketing....
ReplyDeleteDown with this sort of thing. Be careful now.
ReplyDeletegreat trailer, truly brave topic exploration here.
ReplyDeleteNo one has to see this against his or her will, but that's
where the crap stops, let the others decide for themselves.
Don't these people have jobs? Oh wait it's Sunday.
ReplyDeleteI bet the sign outside their church has one of those great slogans you see all over the South like "The Devil and homosexuality: There's nothing gay about Hell."
ReplyDeleteThe irony of this protest about a christian film outside of a yiddish theater is too much for me to bear.
ReplyDeleteAmerica Needs Fatima? Haven't they heard of Mary Help of Christians church? It's ripe for a sighting.
ReplyDeleteyawn, another attempt by Ulrich Seidl to stir up controversy using catholics, seems to have a bug up his ass about them...well I guess he is lucky he is picking on them instead of muslims...he'd be in hiding right now if that was the case.
ReplyDeleteAnd yet they didn't protest the closing of Mary Help of.... who?
ReplyDelete.
OOOoooh Pinhead is on TV saying "...and Jesus wept"
"America Needs Fatima? Haven't they heard of Mary Help of Christians church? It's ripe for a sighting."
ReplyDeletealong with 20 or so other New York churches they are cashing in on, probably looking at 1/2 billion dollars that they are going to rake in and give to the poor, lol not.
http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/manhattan/ny_losing_all_its_old_churches_1PLSdD92TpfrkUYfbDVLqK
Wasn't there a similar controversial crucifix scene in 'The Exorcist"? I seem to remember that it was the talk of our 8th grade class, although we weren't supposed to know about it.
ReplyDelete