It strikes me that this is the kind of dialogue you just don’t hear at press junkets here in America, even among our most daring filmmakers. While the film itself is receiving mixed reviews, it’s interesting that someone is trying to say something broader about the world we’re living in, even if it is half-baked. Try to imagine any American filmmaker or studio putting this out and the kind of protests it would get. Here is Amenabar on Agora from an Indiewire interview:
Amenabar, who won a best foreign language Oscar for ‚ÄúThe Sea Inside,‚Äù was quick to say his film was not ‚Äúanti-Christian‚Äù but instead a condemnation of any fundamentalism. ‚ÄúYou could interpret the film as anti-Christian, but I think it‚Äôs actually ‚ÄòChristian.‚Äô I explore the [good] side of Christianity, working with lepers and the poor – the humanity of it. But this movie is against fundamentalism, the idea that ‚ÄòI will kill you for what you think‚Äô.‚Äù Though the crusaders in this film are actually Christian, Amenabar – who when pushed during the conversation Sunday said he was personally an atheist – said he had no particular present group in mind when making ‚ÄúAgora.‚Äù