James Cameron's Great Oration

by Jeffrey W. Barbeau

While a New York Times op-ed piece calls Avatar "a long apologia for pantheism," Wheaton College Associate Professor of Theology Jeffrey W. Barbeau says that's not necessarily a bad thing in this guest blog post for CT Movies.
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Critics frequently bash blockbuster films for lacking the aesthetic, philosophic, and dramatic characteristics that distinguish them as works of art—and no one knows that better than James Cameron. His 1997 blockbuster, Titanic, displayed awe-inspiring technology while mixing history and dramatic fiction in a tragic, imaginative tale of enduring love. Critics demurred, complaining that the storyline was frequently cliché, sentimental, and relied on stereotypical characters (the vagabond, the repressed young woman, etc.). When Cameron declared, upon receiving 11 Oscars for Titanic, “I'm the king of the world!”, backlash was strong.

Cameron likely won’t win as many Oscars with Avatar, the current No. 1 movie on our planet, but it’s a genius achievement of cinematography, sound, visual effects, and engaging ideas—even if the story is not wholly new. Some have it called an alien Dances with Wolves, a fair comparison. The stereotypes are there: the noble savage, the scientist who mediates between civilizations in conflict, and the transformed jarhead. The film’s political concerns are evident: an anti-war, environmentalist spirituality ubiquitously appears in dialogue and images alike.

But I suggest that Cameron’s use of a well-worn storyline is less detestable than some critics say.

Avatar draws on some of our deepest intuitions about the relationship between humans, nature, and divinity. In Avatar’s world of Pandora, the bond between all things is acute: living and dead remain intricately tied in a near-pantheistic vision of the universe. Pantheism is philosophically akin to atheism: the world is God. One great threat to Christian faith in the modern world is the exclusive belief in nature. Some evangelical Christians object to Cameron’s political interests and Avatar’s not-so-subtle pantheistic themes, but I believe the film can spark dialogue about nature and the supernatural in an intellectual climate increasingly hostile to any discussion of that which cannot be empirically measured.

The world of Pandora is by no means a Christian allegory, but Avatar raises engaging ideas for Christians and non-believers alike. Above all, the film gives voice to something that many people have intuited: nature is not the sum total of existence. In fact, Avatar’s near-pantheism is, arguably, better described as panentheism. On Pandora, the divine is a personal being named Eywa, the dead remain in communion with the living through memory stored in the fiber of their world, and evil is foreign to the original goodness of creation. Some features resemble the Christian gospel (such as the idea of a mediator between two worlds), but others create more problems than they solve (such as the idealization of the noble savage living in harmony with the world until the threat of civilization risks disrupting a peaceful existence).

Cameron’s Avatar thereby reflects something of the inward connection that humans in every generation have felt with the world around us: the belief that God can be known through the vehicle or book of nature (see Romans 1:19-20). The outward appearance of nature belies a deeper reality: we must read through the text of nature to see that which is beyond. Some will say, no doubt, that such talk of nature and spirituality risks idolizing the vehicles of God's communication. The alternative, however, is equally frightening: in rejecting the idea of divine relationship to nature, we are left with a world without symbols or icons providing points of contact between human and divine. In Avatar, the line between nature and supernatural is thin indeed, but Christians who avoid all appeals to the role of nature as symbol risk a vain and nebulous belief in the unformed imagination (simply replacing God's handiwork for the less-concrete creations of fancy).

So, while some critics balk at Cameron’s sermonizing and others fret over Avatar’s near-pantheistic spirituality, I believe the film opens up a crucial line of dialogue about fundamental questions of existence that are too frequently ignored in the name of modern naturalism. Ralph Waldo Emerson once declared that the preacher’s job is to translate “life into truth.” I, for one, remain in the afterglow of Cameron’s great oration.

The Gritty Life of a Real Parish

by John Wilson

Led by a Harvard-educated activist priest from an affluent family, the congregation—some members wholeheartedly, others grudgingly—reaches out to immigrants, to the hungry and the homeless, to “the least of these.” Over the course of several years, during which the parish raises money to build a center that provides free meals with no strings attached, the film’s director and producer, James Rutenbeck, tracks the lives of a handful of parishioners against the background of the larger story of the church’s calling.

We see people transformed by the love of Christ, and we see instances of failure, confusion, and disappointment. Many scenes in the sanctuary—including a beautifully simple foot-washing ceremony—remind us that there should be no disjunction between worship and service to the community.

Here's the trailer:

John Wilson is editor of Books & Culture, one of CT's sister publications

Avatar and the Gospel According to James

by Mark Moring

But her colleague, op-ed columnist Ross Douthat, apparently doesn't share those feelings, saying that James Cameron's sci-fi epic is, "Like the holiday season itself . . . a crass embodiment of capitalistic excess wrapped around a deeply felt religious message. It’s at once the blockbuster to end all blockbusters, and the Gospel According to James."

And that's just his opening paragraph. Douthat goes on to call the film "a long apologia for pantheism" that merely reflects the results found in a recent Pew Forum report -- that "many self-professed Christians hold beliefs about the 'spiritual energy' of trees and mountains."

Hmm, interesting observations, and quite possibly on target. But I simply say, relax. Avatar isn't forcing anything down anyone's throat, no more than any other movie -- and less so than many agenda-driven films made by Christians -- with a message. It's a fantasy film about an alien planet.

Can't we all just chill out and enjoy the cinematic ride? I haven't hugged any trees since seeing Avatar -- though they sure are beautiful outside my window right now with today's fresh snowfall -- and I can't wait to see it again.

Mormon Films, Evangelical Audience?

by Mark Moring

David Austin, vice president of sales and marketing at Bridgestone, told the newspaper he was "looking for films that don't have any direct denominational connections, that won't exclude or cause any group within the Christian community to be adverse to them. The better job we can do to make them have ecumenical appeal, the better chance they have for commercial success and a regional larger audience."

Mormon filmmaker Lyman Dayton is working with BYU on a remake of 1975's Against a Crooked Sky, and sought Austin's advice on making it appeal to a wider audience.

Carman Gets Biblical with Ruth

by Mark Moring

Haven't heard much from Carman since then, but now he's making another comeback -- not as a pugilist, but as an Old Testament farmer named Boaz in the new DVD, The Book of Ruth, one of two new releases this week from PureFlix.

PureFlix, which bills the movie as "a biblical Cinderella story from the archives of the royal Jewish bloodline," specializes in producing and distributing Christian and family-friendly films.

Of his latest cinematic venture, Carman says, "To work on a film that takes an in-depth look at conflicting relationship issues has been a great experience. From an acting perspective, it required each of us to take our performances to a new level, and artistically challenge anything we’ve done before. I believe everyone involved did just that. This film will be around for a long time."

PureFlix's other new release is A Greater Yes, the true story of high school girl Amy Newhouse and her battle with cancer.

PureFlix recently signed a distribution pact with EMI/CMG to expand their reach.

'How Sweet the Sound': Lost Gets (Even More) Religious

by Laura Leonard

With less than two months to go until the premiere of its sixth season, the TV show Lost has begun ramping up energy and excitement by releasing new promotional content around the world. In order to avoid spoiling the results of season five’s cliffhanger ending, promos for the final season have not revealed any new footage. Not that fans need any incentive to tune in — at this point, you’re either obsessed with the show or you could care less — but half the fun of following Lost is theorizing on every morsel of information, especially in these eight long months between seasons.

First we received an electrifying, original promo from Cuatro, the Spanish carrier of the program. That 45-second spot creatively repackaged old images into a narrative of epic proportions and puts the show’s overarching spiritual themes — of fate vs. free will, good vs. evil — into what seems like a very specifically Christian context:

It’s visually stunning and thematically clever: the chess board! The eyes! The Egyptian statue! A popular Lost blog identified the poem as an adaptation of a verse from the Rubaiyat by Omar Khayyam – see their excellent analysis of the verse and its translations.

Then yesterday ABC released its own extended promo, perhaps less visually creative but just as thematically, and religiously, significant:

Set to Willie Nelson’s cover of “Amazing Grace,” this new spot also seems to suggest a rich payoff on the spiritual themes the show has nurtured over the years. See how many Christian allusions you can spot. My favorite: the image of Jack’s eye opening (the very first shot of the pilot episode) set to the lyrics, “was blind, but now I see.”

Are you excited for the return of Lost? What is your favorite religious "moment" on the show? How do hope to see the religious themes addressed in the final season?

'Letters to God' Trailer: A CT Exclusive

by Mark Moring

Letters to God, a true story directed by David Nixon (one of the producers of Fireproof and Facing the Giants), is about an 8-year-old boy's brave battle with cancer and how his letters to God affect the local mailman.

The film doesn't hit theaters till April, and the official trailer doesn't debut until next week. But Vivendi Entertainment and Possibility Pictures have given Christianity Today exclusive dibs on the debut. Check it out:

CT Movies previous did an on-the-set story in Orlando. For more on the film, check out the official website.

Robin Hood: Men in Fights (Very Bloody Ones)

by Mark Moring

By the looks of the brand-new trailer for Ridley Scott's Robin Hood, opening sometime in 2010 and starring Russell Crowe in the lead role, we've got another blood-fest on the way. Robin Hood and his Merry Men? Errol Flynn's amusing banter with his fellow rogues? Ha!

This is swords and axes and stabbings and blood and . . . Well, you get the point. Pun intended.

Check it out. Heads will roll:

The 67th Annual Golden Globe Awards Nominations

by Brandon Fibbs

This just in!

HOLLYWOOD FOREIGN PRESS ASSOCIATION
2010 GOLDEN GLOBE AWARDS
FOR THE YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2009

NOMINATIONS PRESS RELEASE

1. BEST MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA
a. AVATAR
Lightstorm Entertainment; Twentieth Century Fox
b. THE HURT LOCKER
Voltage Pictures C/O 42West; Summit Entertainment
c. INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS
The Weinstein Company; The Weinstein Company
d. PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL PUSH BY SAPPHIRE
A Lee Daniels Entertainment / Smokewood Entertainment Group Production;
Lionsgate
e. UP IN THE AIR
Paramount Pictures; Paramount Pictures

2. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA
a. EMILY BLUNT THE YOUNG VICTORIA
b. SANDRA BULLOCK THE BLIND SIDE
c. HELEN MIRREN THE LAST STATION
d. CAREY MULLIGAN AN EDUCATION
e. GABOUREY SIDIBE PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL
PUSH BY SAPPHIRE

3. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA
a. JEFF BRIDGES CRAZY HEART
b. GEORGE CLOONEY UP IN THE AIR
c. COLIN FIRTH A SINGLE MAN
d. MORGAN FREEMAN INVICTUS
e. TOBEY MAGUIRE BROTHERS

4. BEST MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY OR MUSICAL
a. (500) DAYS OF SUMMER
Watermark Pictures; Fox Searchlight Pictures
b. THE HANGOVER
Warner Bros. Pictures; Warner Bros. Pictures
c. IT’S COMPLICATED
Relativity Media, Scott Rudin Productions; Universal Pictures
d. JULIE & JULIA
Columbia Pictures; Sony Pictures Releasing
e. NINE
The Weinstein Company; The Weinstein Company

5. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY OR
MUSICAL
a. SANDRA BULLOCK THE PROPOSAL
b. MARION COTILLARD NINE
c. JULIA ROBERTS DUPLICITY
d. MERYL STREEP IT’S COMPLICATED
e. MERYL STREEP JULIE & JULIA

6. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY
OR MUSICAL
a. MATT DAMON THE INFORMANT!
b. DANIEL DAY-LEWIS NINE
c. ROBERT DOWNEY JR. SHERLOCK HOLMES
d. JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT (500) DAYS OF SUMMER
e. MICHAEL STUHLBARG A SERIOUS MAN

7. BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
a. CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS
Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures Animation; Sony Pictures Releasing
b. CORALINE
Laika, Inc.; Focus Features
c. FANTASTIC MR. FOX
American Empirical Picture; Twentieth Century Fox
d. THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG
Walt Disney Pictures/Walt Disney Animation Studios; Walt Disney Studios
Motion Pictures
e. UP
Walt Disney Pictures/PIXAR Animation Studios; Walt Disney Studios Motion
Pictures

8. BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
a. BAARIA (ITALY)
Medusa Film; Summit Entertainment
b. BROKEN EMBRACES (SPAIN)
El Deseo SA; Sony Pictures Classics
c. THE MAID (CHILE)
(LA NANA)
Forastero; Elephant Eye Films
d. A PROPHET (FRANCE)
(UN PROPHETE)
Chic Films; Sony Pictures Classics
e. THE WHITE RIBBON (GERMANY)
(DAS WEISSE BAND – EINE DEUTSCHE KINDERGESCHICHTE)
Wega Films; Sony Pictures Classics

9. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A
MOTION PICTURE
a. PENÉLOPE CRUZ NINE
b. VERA FARMIGA UP IN THE AIR
c. ANNA KENDRICK UP IN THE AIR
d. MO’NIQUE PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL
PUSH BY SAPPHIRE
e. JULIANNE MOORE A SINGLE MAN

10. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A
MOTION PICTURE
a. MATT DAMON INVICTUS
b. WOODY HARRELSON THE MESSENGER
c. CHRISTOPHER PLUMMER THE LAST STATION
d. STANLEY TUCCI THE LOVELY BONES
e. CHRISTOPH WALTZ INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS

11. BEST DIRECTOR – MOTION PICTURE
a. KATHRYN BIGELOW THE HURT LOCKER
b. JAMES CAMERON AVATAR
c. CLINT EASTWOOD INVICTUS
d. JASON REITMAN UP IN THE AIR
e. QUENTIN TARANTINO INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS

12. BEST SCREENPLAY – MOTION PICTURE
a. NEILL BLOMKAMP, DISTRICT 9
TERRI TATCHELL
b. MARK BOAL THE HURT LOCKER
c. NANCY MEYERS IT'S COMPLICATED
d. JASON REITMAN, UP IN THE AIR
SHELDON TURNER
e. QUENTIN TARANTINO INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS

13. BEST ORIGINAL SCORE – MOTION PICTURE
a. MICHAEL GIACCHINO UP
b. MARVIN HAMLISCH THE INFORMANT!
c. JAMES HORNER AVATAR
d. ABEL KORZENIOWSKI A SINGLE MAN
e. KAREN O,
CARTER BURWELL WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE

14. BEST ORIGINAL SONG – MOTION PICTURE
a. “CINEMA ITALIANO” — NINE
Music & Lyrics by: Maury Yeston
b. “I WANT TO COME HOME” — EVERYBODY'S FINE
Music & Lyrics by: Paul McCartney
c. “I WILL SEE YOU” — AVATAR
Music by: James Horner, Simon Franglen
Lyrics by: James Horner, Simon Franglen, Kuk Harrell
d. “THE WEARY KIND (THEME FROM CRAZY HEART)” — CRAZY
HEART
Music & Lyrics by: Ryan Bingham, T Bone Burnett
e. “WINTER” — BROTHERS
Music by: U2
Lyrics by: Bono

15. BEST TELEVISION SERIES – DRAMA
a. BIG LOVE (HBO)
Anima Sola and Playtone in association with HBO Entertainment
b. DEXTER (SHOWTIME)
Showtime Presents, John Goldwyn Productions, The Colleton Company, Clyde
Phillips Productions
c. HOUSE (FOX)
Universal Media Studios in association with Heel and Toe Films, Shore Z
Productions and Bad Hat Harry
d. MAD MEN (AMC)
AMC
e. TRUE BLOOD (HBO)
Your Face Goes Here Entertainment in association with HBO Entertainment

16. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES –
DRAMA
a. GLENN CLOSE DAMAGES
b. JANUARY JONES MAD MEN
c. JULIANNA MARGULIES THE GOOD WIFE
d. ANNA PAQUIN TRUE BLOOD
e. KYRA SEDGWICK THE CLOSER

17. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES – DRAMA
a. SIMON BAKER THE MENTALIST
b. MICHAEL C. HALL DEXTER
c. JON HAMM MAD MEN
d. HUGH LAURIE HOUSE
e. BILL PAXTON BIG LOVE

18. BEST TELEVISION SERIES – COMEDY OR MUSICAL
a. 30 ROCK (NBC)
Universal Media Studios in association with Broadway Video and Little
Stranger Inc.
b. ENTOURAGE (HBO)
Leverage and Closest to the Hole Productions in association with HBO
Entertainment
c. GLEE (FOX)
Twentieth Century Fox Television
d. MODERN FAMILY (ABC)
Twentieth Century Fox Television
e. THE OFFICE (NBC)
Universal Media Studios, Deedle Dee Productions, Reveille LLC

19. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES –
COMEDY OR MUSICAL
a. TONI COLLETTE UNITED STATES OF TARA
b. COURTENEY COX COUGAR TOWN
c. EDIE FALCO NURSE JACKIE
d. TINA FEY 30 ROCK
e. LEA MICHELE GLEE

20. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES –
COMEDY OR MUSICAL
a. ALEC BALDWIN 30 ROCK
b. STEVE CARELL THE OFFICE
c. DAVID DUCHOVNY CALIFORNICATION
d. THOMAS JANE HUNG
e. MATTHEW MORRISON GLEE

21. BEST MINI-SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION
a. GEORGIA O'KEEFFE (LIFETIME TELEVISION)
Sony Pictures Television
b. GREY GARDENS (HBO)
Specialty Films and Locomotive in association with HBO Films
c. INTO THE STORM (HBO)
Scott Free and Rainmark Films Production in association with the BBC and HBO
Films
d. LITTLE DORRIT (PBS)
Masterpiece/BBC Co-production
e. TAKING CHANCE (HBO)
Motion Picture Corporation of America and Civil Dawn Pictures in association
with HBO Films

22. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MINI-SERIES OR MOTION
PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION
a. JOAN ALLEN GEORGIA O'KEEFFE
b. DREW BARRYMORE GREY GARDENS
c. JESSICA LANGE GREY GARDENS
d. ANNA PAQUIN THE COURAGEOUS HEART OF IRENA
SENDLER
e. SIGOURNEY WEAVER PRAYERS FOR BOBBY

23. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MINI-SERIES OR MOTION
PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION
a. KEVIN BACON TAKING CHANCE
b. KENNETH BRANAGH WALLANDER: ONE STEP BEHIND
c. CHIWETEL EJIOFOR ENDGAME
d. BRENDAN GLEESON INTO THE STORM
e. JEREMY IRONS GEORGIA O'KEEFFE

24. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A
SERIES, MINI-SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION
a. JANE ADAMS HUNG
b. ROSE BYRNE DAMAGES
c. JANE LYNCH GLEE
d. JANET McTEER INTO THE STORM
e. CHLOË SEVIGNY BIG LOVE

25. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A SERIES,
MINI-SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION
a. MICHAEL EMERSON LOST
b. NEIL PATRICK HARRIS HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER
c. WILLIAM HURT DAMAGES
d. JOHN LITHGOW DEXTER
e. JEREMY PIVEN ENTOURAGE

Film Seeks 'Honest Debate' on Abortion

by Mark Moring

The film, according to its website, tells "two dramatic stories about unplanned pregnancies along with sound bites of passionate pro choice and pro life advocates. . . . Through fast paced clips from documentary interviews with a wide range of political, scientific, legal and cultural experts who passionately share their views, [director Bruce] Isacson assembles sound bites like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle to accentuate the labyrinthine nature of the situation faced by each young woman. The emotional conclusion of each story leaves audiences with a profoundly new understanding of a woman’s right to choose."

Director Isacson says, "I made the decision not to manipulate the audience with my personal opinions, but to allow moviegoers to reach their own conclusion about a 'woman’s right to choose' after viewing the film."

At a recent screening for 1,000 high school girls in Los Angeles, the majority spoke out against abortion, according to The Los Angeles Times.

The film, which is eyeing a 2010 release but has not yet found a distributor, is being promoted by Motive Entertainment, which previously has handled promotion for such films as The Passion of the Christ, Expelled, and the Narnia films.

Here's the trailer:

A Film That Gets You Thinking About Heaven

by Mark Moring

The film, based on Alice Sebold's novel of the same name, centers on the brutal murder of a young teen girl (Ronan), who now finds herself looking down on earth from some sort of "in-between place" which she also calls her "personal heaven."

Sebold's book and the film, directed by Peter Jackson, take a theologically inaccurate view of heaven and the afterlife, but at least it's started discussion about what comes next--and not just among moviegoers. Ronan herself is thinking about it.

"It was the first time I looked at a heaven as a possibly real place," she told USA Today recently.

Coming Soon: A Lifesaver of a Movie

by Mark Moring

Coming in January, To Save a Life, a church-made film for teens. It addresses, among other things, faith, friendship, cliques, self-image, depression, and suicide. Here's the trailer:

Is Glee "Anti-Christian"?

by by Laura Leonard

It shouldn’t have come as a surprise, however, that a show conceived by Ryan Murphy, the man known for pushing boundaries on Popular and the controversial Nip/Tuck, would quickly generate controversies of its own. Call it “the ick factor”: the show’s two main story arcs center around Mr. Schuester, a teacher/choir director who’s stuck in a marriage so bad you find yourself rooting for him to leave his wife for the perky guidance counselor, and Finn, a quarterback-turned-baritone who accidentally got his cheerleader girlfriend pregnant. Did I mention that she’s a committed Christian (who interrupts their make-out sessions to pray) and the president of the celibacy club? And when her very religious parents find out about her pregnancy, they kick her out of the house. Ick, indeed.

If a show portrays Christians in a negative light, is it "anti-Christian"? This is the question Nancy Gibbs asks in her Time article, “The Gospel of Glee: Is it Anti-Christian?” While acknowledging the show’s reinforcement of negative stereotypes, she ultimately argues against the thesis: “It insults kids to suggest that simply watching Characters Behaving Badly onscreen means they'll take that as permission to do the same themselves. The fact that Glee is about a club full of misfits already makes it ripe gospel ground; Jesus was not likely to be sitting at the cool kids' table in the cafeteria.” She’s right; what we need to worry about is kids seeing characters behaving badly without repercussions. But this is not the case in Glee; its portrayal of struggling teenage parents offers an embodied, complex exploration of the consequences of sin.

She goes on to conclude, “The point lies in the surprises that jostle us out of our smug little certainties and invite us to weigh what we value, whatever our faith tradition.” It makes me uncomfortable to find myself rooting for even a fictional married man to leave his wife, but still I find myself struggling to reconcile my own beliefs with the action unfolding on screen. Is this cause for alarm with the show, for portraying a complicated situation without an easy resolution, or is it in myself, for being exposed in my baser instincts? I’m helping the show make its point—I am the “hypocritical Christian” it critiques. We can be quick to jump on obvious red flags, but it’s often the subtleties of a well-made work that draw out the true message. They don’t make for easy sound bites, but they’re often there if we’re willing to do the work.

Glee airs its fall finale tonight at 9/8c on FOX. Are you still watching? What do you think about the idea that the show is “anti-Christian"?

Yes, Virginia, There Still Is Good News

by by Brett McCracken

In The Messenger, Woody Harrelson and Ben Foster play a pair of U.S. Army officers recently back from combat who are assigned to the Army’s Casualty Notification service. They bring the death notifications to the fallen soldiers’ next of kin. It’s a horrible job, but somebody’s got to do it.

In Up in the Air, George Clooney plays a seasoned professional “terminator”—hired to fire employees for bosses too chicken to do it themselves. In the film, Clooney’s character, Ryan Bingham, partners with an intrepid young “terminating engineer” named Natalie (Anna Kendrick), and the two spend their days flying from city to city, leaving a trail of the devastated and newly unemployed in their wake.

Both films are about the tidings of bad news… news of the death of a loved one, news of the end of employment. It made me think about how utterly prevalent bad news is in our world. Our lives are so marked by disappointment and discouragement. The world is so abuzz with the communication of negative messengers. Whether it’s as direct as bringing a death notice to a next of kin or as subliminal as a clothing advertisement communicating the unimpressive flabbiness of any non-model’s body, negative news is not hard to find.

Here we are at the end of 2009—at the end of the first decade of the 21st century—and what is it we remember? 9/11? Katrina? Iraq? Afghanistan? It’s almost all negative. Turn on the news and what do we see? Glenn Beck bitching about healthcare? Keith Olbermann moaning about Sarah Palin? More bad economic news? New Tiger Woods mistresses? There’s hardly anything encouraging coming in to our ears.

That’s why Advent—that’s why Luke 2:10—rings out with such startling power.

“I bring you good tidings of great joy,” said the angel to the shepherds, “which shall be to all people.”

ALL people. GOOD news. GREAT joy. And it wasn’t just a toothless platitude. It was legit. The best news the world ever received.

As I ponder the painful process that is the bearing (and receiving) of bad news, I’m heartened by the reality that Christ has come, and he’s overcome the world. Joy has won. Good news will overcome.

I’m also challenged, as a Christian, to not contribute to the chorus of complaining and to not get caught up in the endless stream of negative messaging. Rather, I want to spread the good news—the Gospel—which is ultimately the only thing that will pull us out of this quagmire of nature and negativity.

A Savior has come to rescue us, in the midst of our cancer and credit card debt, popstar Propofol overdoses, swine flu fears and VMA rants. In the middle of our moaning for more love and aching for less pain, a little baby came and funneled it all toward a singular point in the heavens. A star that represented hope.

Joy to the world indeed.

These Christmas ‘Shoes’ Keep on Walkin’

by Mark Moring

I expected something cheesy with a bit of eye-rolling schmaltz, especially since it was destined for the Lifetime Network. And though the flick certainly is guilty on both counts, it's also a sweet, loving story of redemption, forgiveness, and second chances. It kept my attention all the way through, and I cared about the characters at the center of the story, even when things were predictable. How could you not care about a recently orphaned little girl who has no place to turn for Christmas?

Some of the direction and swelling music is emotionally manipulative, but hey, this is the Lifetime Movie Network. But it's 99 minutes well spent for the family, and good fodder for discussing how we might care for the lost and lonely, the widow and the orphan at a time we're celebrating Christ's birth, live, and gift of love.

The Christmas Hope premieres Sunday, Dec. 13, at 8 p.m. Eastern--immediately following a 4 p.m. screening of The Christmas Shoes and a 6 p.m. showing of The Christmas Blessing, parts 1 and 2 of VanLiere's popular holiday stories.

Watch Lifetime's 30-second preview here:

The Babies Are Coming!

by Mark Moring

As the official website says, "From Mongolia to Namibia to San Francisco to Tokyo, Babies joyfully captures on film the earliest stages of the journey of humanity that are at once unique and universal to us all." Can't wait. Check out the trailer:

Radar Love

by Mark Moring

Burghoff, shown here with Daniel's Lot co-star Dominick Shaw, is a Christian who says that after reading the script for the film, "I prayed and the Lord told me to do this. I respect what they (the Faith and Power Worship Center of Apopka, FL) are doing very much."

The filmmakers describe Daniel's Lot as "a love story of faith, obedience, redemption, and salvation." It's the story of "a down-and-out office worker and his struggle to come to terms with his loyalty to his late father, personal problems within his own family, and a newfound obedience to God which provides the deliverance he needs."

Sounds like something right up Father Mulcahy's, er, Hawkeye's, er, Radar's alley.

I Need More Expensive Designer Shoes!

by Mark Moring

In his new documentary, More 4 Me, Fenner gets answers ranging from designer shoes from well-heeled babes on a city street (one respondent says she has "about 50" pairs) to the simple life-giving necessity of water, from a person in the slums of Nairobi.

Fenner, who is looking for a distributor, visited seven countries on five continents to interview everyone from actors and models to orphans and street sweepers. New York, London, Los Angeles, Singapore, Perth and Tokyo are juxtaposed with a Kenyan orphanage, the slums of Nairobi, and remote Cambodian villages.

Looks like a great lesson in what we value most. Here's the trailer:

Darwin Fever Making Us Sick?

by Mark Moring

But the new film isn't a celebration of the anniversary, but instead a debunking of Darwin's theories of naturalism and evolution. A film crew, including Dr. John Morris, president of the Institute for Creation Research, visited the Galapagos earlier this year to make the movie.

"The world has Darwin fever, and we think it's making our culture sick," says executive producer Doug Phillips. "Because of the implications of his famous theory of evolution, Darwin was perhaps the most influential man for evil in the last 200 hundred ideas. His ideas have contributed to the rise of Nazism, the proliferation of racism, Marxism, the horrors of eugenics, and abortionism."

The Darwin-Nazism connection was also explored in Expelled a couple years ago.

Watch a trailer for The Mysterious Islands at the official website. And you can order the DVD here.