Mad Mel

We at Holier than Thou were bemused by Mel Gibson’s recent interview with Diane Sawyer on ABC’s Good Morning America when the outspoken traditionalist Catholic and macho-man discussed his summer drunk driving arrest in Malibu and his bizarre anti-Semitic ranting. But we’ll let Mel provide clarification about his behavior that fateful night.

1). As everyone knows, when Gibson was pulled over for drunk driving, he blew his stack, blustering that the Jews were responsible for all of the wars in the world and just to really spice things up, Mr. Traditionalist Catholic called a female officer “sugar tits.” So what does one of Hollywood’s biggest hitters attribute his uncontrollable rage to that led to his arrest?

A. He’d had a fight with his wife earlier that night.
B. He was angered by the Pope’s stance on the Iraq war.
C. The devil and his minions had been tormenting him for years and he cracked.
D. The criticism he received for his very successful movie “The Passion of the Christ.”

2). Gibson has been dogged by allegations that he is anti-Semitic for years due to opinions expressed by his father and comments that Gibson made about the Holocaust. When “The Passion” came out, some critics worried that the film could incite violence against Jews, although Gibson insists that didn't happen and that:

A. He used a portion of the film’s profits to increase interdenominational understanding.
B. His film should be shown in public schools to educate all children about Jesus Christ.
C. He is forever thankful to God that the film was a success.
D. He is owed an apology.


ANSWERS
1). D, criticism he’d received. Gibson insists his rights were violated by the criticism he received for his movie "The Passion of the Christ," which, he explains, resulted in resentment that surfaced the night he was arrested for drink driving. And he goes on to add, "Even before anyone saw a frame of the film, for an entire year, I was subjected to a pretty brutal sort of public beating. During the course of that, I think I probably had my rights violated in many different ways as an American. You know, as an artist, as a Christian. Just a human being, you know." Huh? What the hell is he talking about? Life as a powerful superstar living in Malibu must be rougher than we imagined.
2). D, an apology. Apparently having a hugely successful film, making hundreds of millions of dollars in profit and having such creative freedom just aren’t enough for poor old Mel. He adds, "The film came out. It was released, and you could have heard a pin drop, you know. Even the crickets weren't chirping…But the other thing I never heard was one single word of apology." So, Gibson is blaming the Jews for his behavior because they didn’t say they were sorry? Hmmm…