Passion two-disc interesting, unnecessary

What can be said about Mel Gibson's gorgeous, graphic-tone poem to his own personal lord and savior that hasn't already been said by every film critic, pundit and biblical scholar on the planet? I won't waste time trying to break new ground; suffice it to say that Gibson and his collaborators had to do something right to puncture my callous, secular shell to impress the hell out of me with this film. \nGibson expertly directs actor James Caviezel through a veritable house of horrors in depicting the hours before and after the crucifixion of Jesus, and Caleb Deschanel's stunning, sometimes brutal cinematography is enough to make cinephiles shed a tear. \nThe first disc of this new two-disc edition contains the original theatrical cut of the film with four separate commentary tracks. The first and most revealing features Gibson, Deschanel and editor John Wright. Two other minor tracks point the spotlight on the producers and original score composer John Debney respectively. The final and most curious track features Gibson and a gaggle of religious theologians discussing the perceived accuracy of "Passion's" depictions of Jesus' final hours as well as dissecting the outrage brought upon the film by the Jewish community. \nGibson's ill-received, and arguably ill-conceived, recut is the definite lowlight of this so-called definitive edition. It was difficult for me to notice if anything had been added to this cut, but what is beyond both obviousness and reproach is Gibson's choice to cut nearly every bit of graphic violence from the film in order to appease some church groups and parents. Considering the rigorous, often adrenalizing workout of torture-porn gore the original cut succeeds in putting audiences through, the recut would as well be a movie-of-the-week if not for Deschanel and Debney's excellent work. \nDisc two consists primarily of a massive, multi-part making-of documentary titled "By His Wounds We Are Healed: The Making of The Passion of the Christ." Chronicling everything from the extensive research into the film's Aramaic language to the character design of the devil himself, it's a multi-faceted doc that ends up exposing more about the motivations that went into making "The Passion" than how it was actually made. Regardless of one's religious beliefs, or lack thereof, it's impossible not to get a little vicariously excited about the film through Gibson's passionate ravings. \nWhile no one I'm aware of was exactly clamoring for this two-disc edition, the second disc is worth the price for those interested in learning more about Gibson's filmmaking style. The recut is an embarrassment of pandering, but I'm sure someone could design a drinking game around every blatantly obvious gore trim. Gibson and Deschanel's original vision still shines through on the theatrical cut, though, and it's enough to crown "The Passion of the Christ" as the most potent, worthwhile example of faith-based cinema since "Ben-Hur"