'THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST' - Website Deconstruction

The Passion of the Christ is a film, released in February 2004, documenting ‘the last 12 hours of Christ’s life on Earth’. From visiting the official website- www.thepassionofthechrist.com , a clear identity of the film is shown to audiences from the moment they enter the home page, introducing the site.

From a first glance, the colour scheme of black, yellow and white, captures the eye and draws the viewer into the imagery displayed on screen. An iconic biblical image of the three crucifixions, immediately re-establishes and enhances the theme to this film of religion and biblical connotations. The crosses are placed strategically in the upper left hemisphere of the screen. As the audience is drawn towards the male character, depicted obviously as Jesus, they follow his gaze towards the sky and to the crosses. The typography of the text is clear and bold. The golden yellow colours stand out against the backdrop of the screen and grab attention and interest. ‘ENTER SITE’ is shown on the left of the image, giving a clear instruction to those wanting to view the official website.

From clicking on the 'ENTER SITE' hyperlink, the audience is taken to the main body of the website. ‘THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST’ is situated in the lower segment of the screen, however captures the audience’s attention due to the bold, large text, with the contrasting yellow colour against the backdrop of the black. From scanning the page it is clear that the colour scheme of yellow, red and black has continued on from the first page of the website. Half of the image is taken up by 3 main elements,-an iconic, biblical motif of a cross, the male protagonist and a cluster of other characters. The cross is a clear and strong element to the page. It symbolises the predominant theme of religion and Christianity, emphasising the connotations of the film’s meaning. The male protagonist is illuminated, showing his wounds and sense of helplessness. The image provokes questions to the audience; perhaps asking them to wonder how the character obtained the injuries. As you scroll over the titles such as THE FILM, CAST & CREW, a drop down, selection hyperlink is displayed. The audience can easily see where to click, and the website is a clear guide to the components of the film.

From clicking on SYNOPSIS from the drop down selection of THE FILM, a scroll-like document is shown, overlapping the moving picture on screen. The graphology to the page is vintage and biblical. The simplicity and ease of use, conforms to the conventions of old style film. ‘A MEL GIBSON FILM’ and the DVD is shown in every step of the website. This promotes the film and advertises it to the audience. The moving image shows unique selections of the film, persuading the viewers to purchase and view the film.

From viewing the website, there are a lot of elements in which we could take inspiration from for the layout of our blog. The colour scheme is simple yet eye-catching, and the use of a drop down menu and iconic symbolism, reinforces the genre and theme to the film. It is a well-rounded and informative website. Everything conforms to the codes and conventions of religion and Christianity and the promotional techniques entice the audience to view the film 'THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST'. 

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