Mel Gibson’s moment of living dangerously . He is surely suffering the consequences of his drunken behavior. In the words of “alcoholics”, this is probably his rock bottom. Look at these instances.
1.ABC, the American TV network, has canceled the miniseries project on the Holocaust with Mel’s production company.
2. Abraham Foxman, who heads the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), was quoted by the LA Times as saying, “Mel Gibson’s apology is unremorseful and insufficient. His tirade finally reveals his true self and shows that his protestations during the debate of his film ‘The Passion,’ that he’s such a tolerant, loving person, were a sham.”
3. Barbara Walters says “Well, I don’t know how the rest of you feel, and I usually don’t come out this strong one way or another about a movie, but I don’t think I want to see any more Mel Gibson movies.”
4. Sony Pictures chief Amy Pascal who said, “It’s incredibly disappointing that somebody of his stature would speak out that way, especially at this sensitive time (in light of the raging Israel-Lebanon conflict)”
5.Producer Arnon Milchan (“Mr. and Mrs. Smith”) who remarked, “To make all of your money from Jews in Hollywood, and then have a few drinks and say you hate Jews, is shocking…If you are so upset with the Jews, don’t work for them.”
These people should cut the flack and give Mel Gibson a break. Alcoholism is a disease which from time to time causes relapse behavior. The most important thing is he’s back to rehabilitation center. Fortunately , Mel Gibson has some allies:
1. One of the people who accepted Mel’s apology is Oren Aviv, new president of Disney, which has a stake in the actor-director’s coming epic, “Apocalypto.”
2. Mel has a defender in Bill Donohue, president of the Catholic League. The Hollywood trade paper quoted Donohue as saying, “Mel’s enemies will never cut him a break. Their real goal is to discredit ‘The Passion of the Christ,’ and that is why their propaganda machine is in full gear… How ironic it is to note that the core message of his film — forgiveness — is sorely lacking in his critics.”
3.Mel found another ally in Doug Martinez, whose marketing firm helped rally “The Passion” to various churches in the US. Doug told Variety: “I look at Mel no different as the rest of us, which is that none of us are without fault and we all make mistakes. But we have a very forgiving God.”
As they say, Hollywood is a forgiving town. Mel Gibson has to prove it to the world that he can recover. He could even be a role model for other alcoholics around the world.
