Ash Wednesday Notes
Ken Watanabe, the Oscar-nominated actor from The Last Samurai, has been cast as R'as al Ghul, Batman's nemesis in the next Batman movie (2005), opposite Christian Bale.

A review of The Passion of the Christ by Walter Chaw. Good stuff.

A review by Ebert of the same film. Quote: "This is the most violent film I have ever seen." That's saying a lot from a film critic. He also makes an interesting observation in closing:

The MPAA's R rating is definitive proof that the organization either will never give the NC-17 rating for violence alone, or was intimidated by the subject matter. If it had been anyone other than Jesus up on that cross, I have a feeling that NC-17 would have been automatic.

Is that to say that violence against a man-god is acceptable, or that mythological flaying is good?

Finally, my father messaged me this morning to say, "Happy Ash Wednesday!" It sounded utterly strange to me, and I grew up getting dirt put on my forehead.