Okay so this is easily the most anticipated movie of the year for me. It is also the most fearful as well. Its coming out this weekend and right from the getgo I have to warn all to whom it may concern about the overtly Christian metaphors that run throughout this story. Metaphors that will undoubtedly be cut and pasted out of context to be ravaged upon by endless pointless religious and sociological debate between the warring factions of Christianity-minded and entertainment-minded filmgoers.
Azusa, try to contain yourself cuz its going to be a long month for you Im afraid.
The reason I am personally excited about this film is that after the huge tidal wave that Tolkien and Rowling have been riding in the movie biz I think its time C.S. Lewis got HIS due. I find Lewis to be the most ingenious, magically gifted writer ever to guard Christian faith and write children's books. His well of imagination and logical wisdom is deeper and more potent than any writer I've come across. And there's one big important element that his writing possesses that, based on the films, Tolkien and Rowling do not. That is suspense.
I read Ebert and Roeper's articles regarding the new Narnia flick, and both seem to concur that it is in fact on par with the Lord of the Rings movies. Moreover, both conceded while the Christian allegory is pretty evident, it isn't shoved down the viewer's throats. And to be honest, I'm glad they left it in.
The best forms of storytelling work on more than one level. When I was 12, I liked 'Cool Hand Luke' because I thought it just was a cool prison escape movie. 15 years later, I enjoyed all over again because I was old enough to understand the symbolism.
If Narnia isn't bad (or becomes the darling of critics) it'll make boatloads. Here's why:
1) Kids - Duh, it's basically a tamer LOTR to them. Moreover, 10 year olds aren't gonna make the Jesus/Aslan comparison.
2) Adults/Parents - They either gotta drag their kids to see it, or there are a bunch of 20/30somethings that read the books and now want to see the finished product.
3) Christians - the 700 Club has already devoted entire shows to the movie, it wouldn't surprise me if local churches buy out entire showings for their congregations.
This movie will comfortably make 200 million domestically - not like Harry Potter, but with a respectable opening weekend and a gradual tapering in subsequent weeks.
MeBossy, I'll give almost any movie the benefit of the doubt (unless it is prefaced with Police Academy). If the movie has Christian imagery or Christian themes, that in itself would not turn me off seeing it. You'd have to be blind not to see that there was tonnes of Christian themes and imagery in Braveheart, but it is one of my all time fav movies. I liked Malcolm X too, and seeing it gave me a deeper appreciation of Islam. I would disagree with someone using the film as a propaganda tool for the Nation of Islam though (were that possible).
What bugs me is not so much the religious content but out and out proselytizing. Recently some guy posted here about a movie that describes the life cycle of Penguins, and he was not really about talking about movies even if you don't know what you're talking about. His sole reason for posting here was to get people to come to Christian seminars about the Penguin movie. I read the reviews of the movie and felt that it had nothing whatsoever to do with Christianity. So I told the guy that posted about the penguins that I disagreed with him coming to this forum and trying to convert people.
I'm not overly fond of people expropriating movies for their own agendas. Narnia may be an excellent movie. In all likelihood it is. It bothers me though that Pat Robertson and others of his ilk may be using the movie as a tool for spreading their viewpoints.
I still haven't seen Gibson's movie about Jesus, but I'd like to. I don't care that it was promoted by Christians everywhere as a great movie. That is not what would cause me to rent it anyway. I happen to like Mel Gibson's acting and movies regardless of his religious beliefs. I want to see The Passion of The Christ because it looks visually interesting, and I think it's unique that the dialogue was done in Aramaic (the likely language of Jesus himself), Latin, and Hebrew? Greek? Anyway, I like most every movie I've ever seen Mel in. I'd like to view Passion and make up my own mind. I don't need Pat Robertson, the Pope, or anyone else to decide that for me.
Azusa, I think it would behoove you to see 'Passion of the Christ'. It's wickedly self-indulgent and a little preachy. I had to watch it just so I would end being out of the loop in social circles. But I still can't see why it made hundreds of millions of dollars as opposed to merely a hundred million.
Note: Mel's choice for Satan was pretty cool (he's only it at the very beginning and very end of the flick - so watch for Old Scratch).
I'll see it next time I'm in Canada. In Japan they have subtitled versions, but I can't read Japanese fast enough to keep up. I'd have to re-wind a lot of scenes and watch them 2 or 3 X before I could make sense out of the Japanese subtitles. I'll watch Passion with English subtitles, then I'll actually get a lot more out of it.
Use of subtitles is interesting. I watch movies here in Japan; like recently I watched Million Dollar Baby. When I read the subtitles in Japanese they sometimes don't convey quite the same sentiment as what the actor has just said. It's interesting too because subtitles summarize what the characters are saying rather than tell word-for-word. The translator must be economical. There is only enough space provided for them to provide a terse explanation.
e.g. of possible line from a movie: "Man, you look like you've been hit by an 18 wheeler driven by a fat trucker on a 12 hour meth driving spree dude!" Probable Japanese translation: "Sugoi, daijobu ka? - lit: Wow, you OK?" The translators sort of have to do stuff like that. Something is lost in translation (& I'm not referring to the Bill Murray movie either).
I just saw March of the Penguins. I agree with you Azusa, I can't find the similarities between Christianity and this movie.
I found the behavior of these creatures utterly fascinating however.
Narnia, on the other hand, was heavily loaded with Christian theming. I found it only minimally distracting, though, and I must say it added a little to the movie for me.
I've read & heard about the symbolism in Cool Hand Luke. I never bought it. Luke does endure his own scourging but I never saw the movie in those terms. It's about one man being beaten down by the system and in the end, he is destroyed because of his individuality. If anything, the movie is metaphor for society destroying the individual.
Marc, I would be interested in your thoughts about Cool Hand Luke in more detail. That film is one of my all time favorites and my favorite Paul Newman film. That film had a great supporting cast - Strother Martin & George Kennedy at their best.
'Cool Hand Luke' - arguably one of the greatest films of all time. I say that without the slightest sense of hyperbole. I've actually never read the Donn Pearce novel the film is based on, but the suggested Christ symbolism in the movie is pretty much Film 101. Luke outstreched on the table after eating the eggs, much like JC on the cross; I think the final camera shot is a slow pan from a crossroads that also resembles a cross. But c'mon, one can find friggin' Jesus figures in practically every movie nowadays from Neo in the Matrix to Superman. Frankly, I think it's just a successful plot device. One individual, against insurmountable odds, self-sacrifice, blah, blah, blah.
Back to 'Cool Hand Luke'. I like movies virtually without a romantic subplot (unfortuntely, that only leaves me with prison movies and Guy Ritchie flicks), I wonder what the girl that washes the car looks like now? Hmmm. There are so many great bit parts in the movie for now famous character actors (Dennis Hopper, Harry Dean Stanton, Anthony Zerbe), I think George Kennedy won an Oscar for his role, right?
My rowing coach in college made us watch it at least once a season (I think I convinced him NOT to show 'Rudy'). And I gotta tell ya, if ya watch that movie before a race, the whole boxing 'Just stay down Luke'; beating the sunset while working on the road; and the running of the dogs to death (literally) scenes are quite inspiring.
My favorite line is by Dragline as well, Kennedy with his big tongue saying, 'Hey! Why don't you put your money where your mout' is?"
This message has been edited by sadowsmd on Feb 17, 2006 1:53 AM
So you think the main forms of Christ symbolism are visual. I don't pick up on those kinds of cues unless they are obvious (Dead Man Walking). Luke, as a character, is so much different than Christ that I never bought into the theory of symbolism.
That film had number of outstanding scenes that were strung together to mask what was a standard story. It is a prison break movie with a convict that is extremely charismatic. Any film that takes a remotely sympathetic or empathetic view of the convict has to address the prisoner vs. the system.
Other great dialog from that film.
"I'm shaking Boss! I'm shaking!"
"Kick a buck."
The scene where Carr the Floorwalker is stating the rules and every rule ends with "...spends a night in the box."
And of course, "What we have here is a failure to communicate."
To be fair, I think I watched it a bunch of times in college with a couple of my Film Studies friends (which can get annoying). One of them actually mentioned that the fact that eggs were the food of choice during the eating contest, had some sort of biblical significance. I don't get it.
However, there is that long soliloquy (sp?) at the end in the abandoned chruch where he talks to God and stuff.
"You made me like I am. Now just where am I supposed to fit in? Old Man, I gotta tell You. I started out pretty strong and fast. But it's beginning to get to me. When does it end? What do You got in mind for me? What do I do now?" Etc.
Personally (much like when I was 11 and first read the Narnia books), I think I enjoyed Cool Hand Luke more when I was younger and didn't look for a deeper meaning in anything.
The eggs do have biblical significance if you really want to read between the lines. The eggs signify the rebirth of man, much like the eggs for Easter signify the same thing.
Another way to look at the eggs, which is contrary to this, but has been used in other movies, is that eating the eggs is like taking souls. This symbolism was used in "Angel Heart".
My favorite way to explain eggs is to compare it to many pagan rituals. Eggs signify rebirth and fertility. That's why I always like to explain to my Christian friends that Easter is all about Fucking ...
Oh yeah... I DO remember them going on and on about the eggs thing now.
That would also explain why one of my extremely Christian housemates in college (rent money was rent money), screamed like a little girl when one of us discovered a bloody yolk one morning - wait, one Sunday morning! Hmm...
