Below are some notes on some recent movies we’ve watched, some new, some old. We’ve not been to the actual theater all summer, though opportunity might be coming to do that soon. Nothing profound here, no deep theological/redemptive reflections. Just reactions.
This movie was quite good, really. A kids’ movie that stuck to a story line, was not too heavy handed with its bullying theme, and did not depend on jokes about bodily emissions to carry it along. Since it was based upon an honest and realistic book, it carried with it some heavy themes. Toward the end, even my six-year-old said that he had tears coming to his eyes. I looked down (he was sitting between my wife and me) and he was wiping his eyes with his shirt. Critics seemed to love it. The girl who starred in it did a good job. She has the cuteness factor going for her, but she seems to have a bit more in place as well.
I seem to have become fascinated with Ingmar Bergman, much to the chagrin of my wife. I just need to make sure I watch these on nights that I’ve NOT been up since 3:30 AM. This film is in Swedish, so I use the subtitles. Bergman is visually compelling. Images from the film remain with me. But I am more interested in theological struggle. One is made aware in this film that both the bad guys and the good guys are capable of evil. His main character cries out, for Bergman himself I imagine, “God, I don’t believe in you. I don’t understand you. I don’t understand why you let bad things happen. However, I still ask for your forgiveness.”
This film is ranked 31st on IMDB’s top 250 films (right between It’s a Wonderful Life and Fight Club. On the original AFI greatest movies of all time it is ranked 12th, right in front of The Bridge on the River Kwai. It has two lines quoted in the AFI greatest movie quotes list. So, it’s a biggie.
I just wish I could stay awake for a whole movie these days. This one was about a silent movie star who has lost her star appeal and is slowly going crazy. I admit the b & w camerawork was captivating, and the acting superb. But the movie did not really come out and grab me. However, when a work of art is this well received, I find the fault in my appreciation of it to be in me and not in the work. I need to see it again.
A romantic comedy that actually was funny, did not drag, was not overly offensive. In fact though sex is trivialized as is usual in Hollywood, in this movie it is seen as something that, apart from a deep commitment (which we would say only comes in marriage), cheapens a relationship. There is rich truth in that. So, I liked it. Interestingly, the screen writer, among her other credits, has two other romantic comedies: Sleepless in Seattle and You’ve Got Mail. This gal has her genre down. That, and she apparently likes writing lines for Meg Ryan.
Yes, I have eclectic tastes, and am drawn to old movies. In my queue are all three Die Hard movies. I don’t know why. What movie do you think I should see?