Into the Wild

Posted on March 3, 2008 at 8:04 pm

Every one of us at times hears the call of the wild, to match the wild of the outdoors to the wild that is inside us, to leave behind all of the petty complications of civilization and test ourselves down to the deepest essence, to test our nature, in both senses of the word.
In 1992 Christopher McCandless left behind everything — family, friends, jobs, money, even his name, and went on a journey to find something that felt authentic to him. Actor Sean Penn has written and directed a superb film based on the best-selling book about his journey and its tragic conclusion.

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Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium

Posted on March 3, 2008 at 5:12 pm

There’s nothing harder to get right in a movie than whimsy. And there are few clumsier crashes when it goes wrong. What could have been a charmingly whimsical children’s book becomes an arch and sugary movie, its failures of tone and timing hitting its lightweight storyline like a blast of cold air on a fragile souffle. This is one flat souffle.

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Family Issues Fantasy

Religion in film: characters, themes, resources

Posted on March 3, 2008 at 8:00 am

Beliefnet’s Kris Rasmussen has a list of 10 positive Christian characters in recent films. I was pleased to see Amy Adams’ performance in Junebug included, though for me the most spiritually touching moment in the movie was when Alessandro Nivola, as her character’s highly secular brother-in-law surprises his new wife by getting up at a church dinner to sing a hymn. The list is an excellent one, including historical characters like Sophie Scholl and James J. Braddock and fictional characters like Spider-Man‘s Aunt May.

An online film festival called “One Nation, Many Voices” announced the winners of its competition for authentic, non-stereotyped portrayal of Muslim-American characters.

Adherents.com has an excellent spiritual guide to movies that includes the religious affiliations of the most influential film-makers and critics’ lists of the best Catholic and Jewish movies.

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Spiritual films

Penelope

Posted on February 29, 2008 at 9:27 am

Lowest Recommended Age:	Middle School
MPAA Rating:	Rated PG for thematic elements, some innuendo and language.
Profanity:	Mild language
Alcohol/ Drugs:	Drinking
Violence/ Scariness:	Tense emotional confrontations, some mild violence
Diversity Issues:	None
Date Released to Theaters:	February 29, 2008

This off-beat and uneven fairy tale has something in common with its heroine — an uncertain incongruity. That heroine is Penelope (Christina Ricci), an educated, wealthy young woman with a loving heart and the nose of a pig. More of a snout, actually. While it is actually kind of cute, Penelope’s prospective suitors are so horrified by it that one after the other they leap out of her mansion through the window, wanting to get away so fast they do not have time to take the stairs and leave by the door.
The pig nose is the result of a generation-spanning curse. Knowing that the curse can be broken if Penelope is loved and accepted by her equal, her parents (Richard E. Grant and Catherine O’Hara) keep her hidden away and parade dozens of suitable suitors in front of Penelope’s two-way mirror. If they can just keep her indoors until the curse is broken, they think she can have a normal life.
But being kept inside like a hothouse flower (the production design includes bell jars and a terrarium) is not normal. And so, as all captive princesses in fairy tales must, she runs away. And as all romantic comedy leading ladies must, she meets a prince with a secret (James McAvoy).

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Fantasy Movies -- format Romance

Song of Bernadette

Posted on February 27, 2008 at 1:06 pm

The anniversary of the shrine at Lourdes is a good reminder of the lovely performance of Jennifer Jones in “Song of Bernadette,” the story of the young girl who saw “a beautiful lady” and became Saint Bernadette Soubirous.