I am fascinated by film, and believe this form of visual culture offers us amazing vistas into both the universals and “diversals’ of the human spirit – mind, imagination, emotions, aesthetic sense, and will. Nearly every module in my eventual Cultural Curriculum Project uses film to illustrate key concepts in cultural interpretation and ministry contextualization! And I expect to use more film references in this blog, so this new page lets me update a reference link list periodically.
POTENTIAL FOR LIGHT IN THE DARKNESS
In barely more than 100 years, film has grown to rival – if not replace – print media as the primary global forum for communicating provocative messages about a culture’s values. Whether an audience member is illiterate, literate, or alliterate (able to read but choosing not to), he or she can generally relate with immediacy to some dimensions of the film’s characters and/or themes. And through that illuminated relationship, he or she also receives any “hidden curriculum” messages embedded in the plot, in the structure, and even in the filmography techniques themselves.
So, whether epic or episodic, art house or anime, Hollywood or Bollywood – films give forth an espresso shot of the filmmakers’ values. These may challenge or reinforce existing values, or even implant new or overlooked values into audience members. And values – philosophical tenets shown as lived out concretely – change the horizons of social landscapes in ways that pure abstract philosophies never will.
Films hold the power to transform culture, for good or for ill, through implanting seeds of values that can transform individuals. They can show us the merits of non-violent resistance (Gandhi) or reinforce racism (Olympia). They can depict the power of communication across barriers of hearing abilities (Beyond Silence), demonstrate the absurdity of violence (A Clockwork Orange), and document the sadness of a subculture (Paris is Burning). They can leave us in shock or despair (Requiem for a Dream), or instill hope in the midst of evil (Life is Beautiful). They can embody how one person can challenge another to become a better version of himself/herself, even without every deep-seated wound being healed (Stage Beauty).
EMBODYING A NARRATIVE THEOLOGY
I’d also suggest that films also hold the possibility to help us transition to a narrative perspective in our theologies, and that in turn can help us become more missionally-minded in our world. In my college years as a new disciple of Jesus Christ, I soaked in all the systematic theology my soul could hold – volumes of it! I’m thankful for this training. It gave me a tremendous background in navigating the abstract concepts of scripture. But something was missing. Somehow, what God intended to be both life and life-giving because little more than a search for that one next bit of esoteric biblical information. I saw people who were passionate about “the truth,” but not passionate about people. Even worse, I was becoming a truth-eater without being a life-giver …
Eventually, I found myself drawn to Bible study approaches that were more people-oriented: narrative theology, Bible character studies, reading the Bible chronologically to grasp the impact of God’s actions in the ongoing flow of human history. What a surprise to discover, some 20 years later, that this was preparing me to be better equipped to navigate the relational and concrete cultural world of the modern-to-postmodern transition!
My chosen fields of study – culturology and futurology – involve some very complex concepts. Yet, because they hold very practical implications for us as individuals and in our communities, we need to move toward personal applications. Abstract categories and detailed descriptions, and do-it-yourself questions and cultural fieldwork can only take us so far in considering this critical material.
Sometimes I feel that referring to another story is the best way to shed light on some essential aspect of our stories. (And, since the vast majority of all biblical passages are narrative, apparently God feels storying is important, too!) So, I use films. They embody life lessons, and typically required the investment of millions of dollars and many months to make. In a narrative theological perspective, the understanding of story becomes critical for reflection, discernment, and interpretation of the purpose in our lives as individuals and communities.
Remember all those middle school and high school courses in English literature where we had to learn how to analyze theme, plot, setting, theme, characters, conflicts, resolutions, and point of view? Well, our instructors were right – these skills really REALLY do help us in life, if we’ll use them to interpret our own lives as actors and activators upon the stage God providentially gives us! (Sidenote: Don’t freak out at this, any mathophobes out there, but remember all those freshman algebra “word problems”? Well, they have some practical everyday applications as well!)
FILMOPHILES FOR THE KINGDOM
The past five years, I have probably watched at least 10 hours of DVDs per week on average (and 0 hours of TV). How do I figure out what to watch? I keep in mind large lists of issues related to theories of personal and cultural transformation, and I actively research to see if I can find films that seem like a potential match for some principle or other I’d like to illustrate.
Sometimes it takes years to find a film that embodies this issue or that, but when you get a storyline that captures it, you have what could well provide a memorable metaphor that bridges conceptual issues with concrete realities! But a great story is layered in ways that allow different people to draw out similar messages from it on an issue they hold in common. Or, for different people to draw out uniquely individual applications from watching the same film. Or, for the same person to draw out different but timely lessons from watching the same film multiple times over time. And actually, that is part of the greatness of Scripture, with accounts that offer us timeless stories with timely applications.
This is also why I am an advocate of exegetical, expositional teaching of the Bible as our dominant form of presentation. This exposes some of the original meanings of words in their own historical-cultural context, then helps transpose into our own lives and culture the significance of the historical events, and the personal and communal issues underneath them. Exegetical, expositional teaching that is well done offers both milk and meat for the Holy Spirit to use with disciples of varying spiritual maturity levels and various learning styles. It provides complexity that reaches each of us where we are, and yet draws us ever upward and onward in our transformative process to become more like Jesus Christ.
Anyway, I refer to films dealing with a diverse range of issues, and which have been produced from a wide range of perspectives that I don’t necessarily agree with. I endeavor to use film studies responsibly, and minimize the levels of exposure to raw/vulgar language, violence, and sensuality. However, to quote the animated post-apocalyptic anti-heroine Tank Girl, “It ain’t the world I woulda made, but it’s the world I live in.” These are aspects of reality, and sometimes I choose to use a film others would find offensive, because I conclude it best illustrates a point I think needs to be made.
Meanwhile, I also respect you and expect you to do your own homework and “be Bereans” (Acts 17:11) – critical learners who check things out for yourselves. Individuals have different tolerance levels. Decide for yourself in advance whether you want to watch a film that I suggest has relevance. Check out www.imdb.com for information on film genres, ratings, DVD special features, cast and character listings, production information, etc.
So – come back to this Films in Futuristguy page and watch it grow over time …
POSTS THAT MENTION MOVIES
The following directory includes only those movies that contain commentary about the plot, characters, themes, etc., of the film. At this time, it does not include mere categories and listings of films, or movie references where the entire substance is a quote. [Also, I am far behind on listing films ... sorry. Will get back to this eventually.]
Hyperlinks on the titles go to www.imdb.com. The blog page title at the end of each entry is hyperlinked to that particular post.
The Count of Monte Cristo (2002). It is easy for those of us who have been spiritually abused to “become” what has happened to us – to wrap ourselves in that false identity of “victim” as if we deserved it or as if we cannot escape it! However, we see the fallacy of that from Abbe Faria, friend and mentor to the wrongfully imprisoned Edmond Dantes. As he lies dying, the Abbe whispers to his protégé, “Here now is your final lesson. Do not commit the crime for which you now serve the sentence.” Recovery from Spiritual Abuse – Part 2E: Mentoring and Moving Toward Hope.
Ever After (1998). This particular post mentions both Danielle De Barbarac from Ever After, and Lyra Belacqua, from The Golden Compass. Both of these young women are teen-age heroines, and the post suggests we could use their somewhat parallel situations to consider utopian and dystopian societies as simulation models for social transformation. Concrete Media Systems – The Golden Compass, Part 5, How to Conduct a Cultural Case Study.
The Golden Compass (2007). There is such extensive commentary about The Golden Compass in this blog that the best advice is to click on the “Golden Compass” category in the sidebar, or go to the list on the “Reader’s Guide to Futuristguy” page, and read the entries in sequence.
Max Headroom: 20 Minutes Into the Future (1985; TV film) and Max Headroom (1987-1988; spin-off TV series). For many years, I have used Max Headroom to compare and contrast three kinds of futurist trends and their impact: fads, short-term trends, and long-term trends – also known as “drivers.” Max is a delightfully quirky character, and the futuristguy blog header shows me with some of my Max Headroom gear, from when I gave a presentation called, “Futurists as Archaeologists of the Present.” Concrete Media Systems – The Golden Compass, Part 4, Differentiation of Cultural Trends.
The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993). There is a significant – and probably irreconcilable – difference between conventional church/leadership paradigms and the holistic paradigm that is becoming more prominent in today’s global culture. Culture clash is inevitable and chaos is probable when leaders assume their own perspective is absolutely correct and universally applicable, and then they attempt to impose its methods and models upon a world they presume they understand but actually know nothing about. This is an unfortunately too-relevant metaphor for the clash of systems between leaders of what Robert Webber terms the Traditional and Pragmatic Evangelicals versus the Younger (i.e., Holistic) Evangelicals. (See Webber’s book, The Younger Evangelicals: Facing the Challenges of the New World.) While leaders can sincerely want to reach people from a paradigm not their own, the best they can do is to “push” toward the others and allow the others to “pull” them in culturally. Otherwise, the result is imperialism, not evangelism. Recovery from Spiritual Abuse – Part 2D: Organizational Cultural Dynamics and Governance.
Pride and Prejudice (1995; two-disc BBC TV mini-series version). Jane Austen was a keen observer of conflict, and her 19th-century writings embrace timeless themes that relate to how some people attempt to use others for their own gain. This post explores the relationship between Miss Elizabeth Bennett and “the perfidious Mr. Wickham” to illustrate our contemporary need for discerning between the appearance versus substance of good in those who be our leaders. Recovery from Spiritual Abuse – Part 2B: Five Criteria Continued … Learning Discernment.
Rain Man (1988). This post addresses analysis issues related to learning style. Rain Man illustrates someone who is an “autistic savant” and has one particular Multiple Intelligence, manifested at a genius level of ability, yet does not manifest other intelligences at perhaps even a basic threshold level. Concrete Media Systems – The Golden Compass, Part 3, Learning Style Accommodations.
Star Wars – Episode IV: A New Hope (1977). This post references the classic appeal from Princess Leia Organa to Old Ben Kenobi, transmitted holographically through the ever-faithful R2-D2: “Help me Obi-Wan Kenobi – you’re my only hope!” Willow Creek REVEAL 1: Preparing my own self-study on Willow Creek and Reveal.
Stuck on You (2003). I use this Farrelly brothers’ comedy to illustrate the problem of inevitable conflicts between leaders of the same church/ministry, but from paradigms in opposition, as being like “culturally conjoined twins.” Is the solution found in reconciliation? Separation? Annihilation? Or some other “-ation”? Interview: My Ministry, Cultural Issues, and Relevance.
The Two Towers (2002). Saying anything about the topic of “emergence” is like speaking Old Entish: “It takes a loong time to say anything in oooold … Entish. And we never say anything … unless it is worth taking a looong … time to say.” (Treebeard to Merry and Pippin.) Certainly, important thoughts on emergence can be expressed succinctly, but with such a tremendously complex subject, surely we can allow for analysis that goes beyond surface labels and quick-tip ideas for conquering it! The Core Strength of Emergence.
