Mel Gibson's new film, "The Passion of The Christ," is clear proof: The critics are full of it.

Nooooo – not that word! What they are full of is cynicism, anti-Christian bias, liberal politics, hatred of Catholics and their Church, and in many cases, atheism. They hate any religion.

It's not usually so blatant, but this case has all the elements. Critics, reviewers and self-appointed spokesmen for groups have an agenda and they put it before integrity. You have to search for an honest review of Gibson's film and it's not in mainstream media.

Those critics have delivered what they hope is a killing barrage of invective and insults against the film and everything about it, against Gibson as a professional filmmaker and astonishingly enough, against Gibson personally – his life, religion and even his father.

In an interview with Mel Gibson, ABC's Diane Sawyer raised the issue of his father's controversial statements. Mel would have none of it, saying with deadly seriousness, "He's my father. Leave it alone, Diane. Leave it alone."

Good for him for not being suckered into delivering what the media want. They want your blood and guts. They want you to grovel. They want to see you in pain.

Sawyer left it alone.

The industry wanted Gibson to grovel. When the film was proposed, no one would touch it. He couldn't get production or distribution partners. To Hollywood, a movie based on the Gospels, telling the story of the Crucifixion, was dead in the water. This was especially true because they knew of Gibson's loyalty to traditional Catholicism and his patriotism. A triple whammy – a religious, patriotic, conservative.

But Gibson didn't grovel. He put up more than $25 million of his own money and produced it himself. Hollywood hated him even more. Then, he marketed the film to a target audience. Not to hormonally active teenage boys and stupid teen girls, he marketed the film to ... Christians.

Smart. It worked. Interest built, but the haters got busy, perhaps, doing the devil's work. There were accusations of anti-Semitism and gratuitous violence – even, racism!

It began long before the film opened, even before many of the critics saw the film. It continues, even after the record-setting open on Ash Wednesday, Feb. 25.

With a first day box office of $23.6 million, the film will probably break the $100-million mark. And now, some of the biggest names in Hollywood, not wanting to be quoted, are saying they'll never work with Gibson again. Sounds like a blacklist to me.

I was invited to a special screening, two days before the film opened.

"The Passion of The Christ" is extraordinarily powerful. Would I want it see it again? Yes. Even more, I'd like to own it so I could see it again and again, because it's layered. I want to see details I may have missed. I want to see the devil, portrayed as never before, including the vipers tongue. I want to see Christ through new eyes.

"The Passion of The Christ" is visually gorgeous. It's beautifully filmed, the cinematography is immaculate, the lighting dramatic. It's all wonderful: direction, script, casting, performances, makeup, costumes, special effects, music, sets. The fact that the actors are people we don't recognize makes it all the more realistic.

The use of Aramaic and Latin is beautifully done. Subtitles are used judiciously without being intrusive. There are long stretches without them but your mind carries you to understand what is happening.

If there aren't Oscars for a number of different levels of art and craft which should be so honored – in addition to Mel Gibson being recognized as producer, writer and director – then there really is no justice. But, remember those Hollywood threats of retribution.

Is it anti-Semitic? That's an early accusation made mostly by people who hadn't seen the film. "Passion" shows what was done to a Jewish man by Roman soldiers carrying out a decision made by Jewish priests. It was all politics and power – nothing's changed.

If you're a believer, that's what happened.

If you interpret that as anti-Semitism and take it out against people living today, then you're ignorant, foolish and biased.

There's nothing to arouse hate unless, of course, you hate the Bible – and many do.

There is violence but the Bible did count Christ's lashes. Beating and crucifixion aren't pretty. It hurt to watch. Several times, I found myself thinking, "Stop! Somebody make them stop!" But they didn't – the story had to play out.

Mel Gibson didn't write it, he told it.

It's not for young children but for those who understand and know the story – yes.

For people of faith, "The Passion" strengthens beliefs.

For people questioning, it will help them look further.

For those who see it knowing nothing about the Bible, it would be difficult to understand. They might call it nonsense, but should appreciate the filmmaking.

To me, Pontius Pilate had always seemed a remote figure. Now, he's human. In fact, all these people are more real to me than they've ever been in my religion or in other movies.

I know that I'll never again see or wear a crucifix, the cross with the body of Christ, in the same way – because now, I've seen the way it probably was, rather than the usual sanitized version. I better understand His suffering and sacrifice.

Thank you, Mel Gibson, for a brilliant and realistic piece of filmmaking and for taking us closer to God.