March 1, 2006 9:12 AM
Movies - It's all about choice
I love movies! When I lived in San Francisco in the 70's, I spent a lot of time at the repertoire theaters - the old funky movie houses that showed two classic or foreign films each day. Tripp loved movies too, and it always seemed we were on the same wavelength, so for a couple years, I had a fellow traveler through the world of film.
But then in 1983 the babies started coming and our movie-going days were numbered. In 1987, we became Christians and our sensibilities were changed so that there were movies we no longer desired to see. Add to that the fact that movies were getting darker and darker - It's been a long slide from Academy Award winners like Sound of Music and Ben Hur to American Beauty and Mystic River (ugh - what an ugly movie that was!)
Neither Tripp nor I cared much for TV and didn’t have one until 1984, when Tripp came home from work on New Year’s Eve and announced that there was a new machine out that played movies from tape. With two babies under two – plus Samantha 15 and Jasmine 8 we weren’t getting out very much. I practically pushed him out the door to go get one. He came home with a VCR and a TV set we used as a monitor (still didn’t get TV channels for another 14 years). I’ll never forget the absolute wonder of watching West Side Story and Some Like it Hot that night snuggled on the couch as a family. What bliss!
Now we take it for granted.
I have remained passionate about movies and though there are many I don’t really want to see, I pore over all the reviews. Movies offer a lot of insight into the collective mind of our culture. Movies are actually a lot like an alternative religion for some people, whose ideas and opinions are shaped by what they see on the big screen. I’ve written more about this in Majoring in the Movies: One Writer’s Curriculum.
There are others whose work involves analyzing film for content and worldview. Besides reading the more artistic reviews – I like those especially in Wall Street Journal and National Review – I check out these sources before I see a movie or before allowing my kids to see one. I urge every parent to do the same, as you cannot take anything for granted. While Legally Blonde, for instance, was fairly innocuous (and who ever dreamed that cutesie-poo Reese Witherspoon would go on to be nominated for an Oscar for her remarkable portrayal as Johnny Cash’s wife June in Walk the Line?) – and yet the follow-up Legally Blonde II had a heavy pro-homosexual agenda.
When my kids press me with: “All my friends are seeing it!†I simply pull up a Screen-It review and start reading it out loud.
Now I am talking about younger teens. I do believe that there comes a point when you have to start turning this kind of decision-making over to older teens, even if it means they make a questionable choice here and there. There comes a time when they have to start working out their own salvation – you can’t do this for them forever.
But the groundwork should be laid long before, as you make it a practice not to just give them an arbitrary yes or no about a movie, but model for them how you go through the decision-making process. It’s a good feeling then when you see them start to research themselves and make informed decisions.
Here are sites I depend on for reviews:
Plugged In
Movieguide
Screen-It (a secular site – and the most detailed of all)
I also appreciate the efforts of those who are working to remind Hollywood that their biggest money-makers are family-friendly films (they are, you know – this study shows that moral movies make six times more than immoral ones) and to focus attention on the uplifting and positive side of cinema.
In case you haven’t had the time to keep up with last year’s films – now out in video, here are two lists
Ten Most Redeeming Movies of 2005: Christianity Today
The 10 Best Conservative Movies of 2005: Don Feder
Best Movies of 2005: American Film Renaissance
By the way, the American Film Renaissance is what prompted me to write this. I received an email announcing their Best Movies of 2005 (don't know how I got on their mailing list, but glad I did). Curious, I checked out there website and found this:
ABOUT AFRIn 2003, then-law students Jim Hubbard and Ellen Gard made a routine trip to their local art house movie theater for a much-needed study break. Their options? Frida, a critically acclaimed biopic about a Marxist painter; The Life of David Gale, an anti-capital punishment polemic; and Bowling for Columbine, Michael Moore's fact-challenged assault on gun rights.
Jim and Ellen's decision? Skip the movies that day and attempt the impossible: create the American Film Renaissance, the first-ever film festival formed expressly to celebrate the timeless principles of individual freedom that made America great. In September 2004 AFR held its debut in Dallas, Texas, attracting some 4,000 attendees and media coverage from around the world.
AFR has expanded to include a film institute as well as a network of film festivals across America. To date, AFR has organized film festivals throughout the U.S., including Texas, Michigan and a sister festival in Little Rock, Arkansas. AFR-affiliated film festivals have screened scores of films, entertained (and enlightened) countless thousands of attendees, garnered press attention from six continents, and midwifed the distribution of several independent films. In January 2006, AFR held its biggest festival to date in the heart of the entertainment industry -- Hollywood.
Christians who are busy engaging the culture through film - and other creative endeavors - deserve our support. Hooray for the folks at Plugged In, Movie Guide, and American Film Renaissance!
Comments
This movie choice thing is hard for me, I have to admit. Thankfully my husband is a much stronger person than I am and can put down his foot and it won't budge. We frequent Plugged In a lot!!!
Posted by: Mama B | March 1, 2006 10:38 AM
The best site I have found for getting a handle on movies is Christiananswers.net/spotlight
It not only gives a reviewers analysis but comments from everyday people seeing the movie and you can also leave your comments. I use for everything from current movies, new to DVD stuff to even rating games. Awesome sight!
Posted by: Susanne | March 1, 2006 11:36 AM
I depend on ChristianityTodayMovies.com for reviews. They offer discussion questions at the end of every review to get the family talking about the issues in each movies.
They also have a section to help parents know about any red flags in a given film.
They also have a lot of special features like interviews, lists, commentaries, and a lot more.
They get my vote!
Posted by: M.Joseph | March 1, 2006 12:42 PM
I love movies, but don't watch them often enough. One of my favorite movies is The Shawshank Redemption. Do you like that one? I also love the movie It Could Happen to You. Those two are opposite ends of the spectrum though in terms of "lightness." Thanks for the links!
Posted by: Elaine | March 1, 2006 9:08 PM
I appreciate that info! Several of the movies on the recommended lists I haven't seen, so I have some catching up to do.
Posted by: Shannon from Rocks in my Dryer | March 1, 2006 10:52 PM
I took my four year old daughter to see The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe after Christmas. It was a wonderful, magical time for both of us. She now wants to see more movies but there is absolutely nothing out that I want her to see. My kids have seen 2 or three stage plays/musicals for every movie we take them to. Hollywood does not want to make movies that families want to take their kids to, they don't win awards and get applause from within the industry. I live in Southern California and have friends who work in movie and television production and they won't take their kids to see what they work on either. I hope this family film festival takes off.
Thanks for the information on the film review sites. Something for me to check out.
Posted by: JaneD | March 2, 2006 11:39 AM
Bet you went to the Roxie Cinema. . .and visited the Women's Building down the street! I saw quite a few movies at the Roxie. I believe it is closed now.
Posted by: Monika | March 2, 2006 3:04 PM
Wow - now I have more review sites to check out!
Elaine - my movie tastes are pretty wide too - I appreciate "heavies" like The Shawshank Redemption" - but also am a complete sucker for "It's a Wonderful Life" and "Meet John Doe."
Monika- yes I spent many happy hours at the Roxie. I lived on the oddly-named Lexington Avenue (between Valencia and Mission) between 20th and 21st. Also 21st and Folsom. Burritos at El Faros, enchiladas at La Rondalla. Are they still there?
Posted by: barbaracurtis | March 2, 2006 9:15 PM
