2) All the disciples who fled when Jesus was arrested died horrible tortureous deaths for preaching that he was the Son of God. Would cowards die painful deaths for a leader who was already dead?
Of course the disciples that ran also had Jesus come
back to them. I would think this would be a powerful enough event to buck up their courage. After all - they are a small handful of people that had Jesus' divinity "proven" to them. That would be something worth becoming a martyr for.
As for the movie itself... i had of course thought about the crucifixion, but never really dwelt on it. I think I just shied away from it, because it is almost impossible to imagine that kind of horror being done to someone you love. but seeing it really hit me hard, and made me realize
deeper what Jesus had done for me. He had the chance to avert it, but didn't because of us. WOW!