Inkheart (Movie)

Have you read the book?  I have not, and I am a little curious as to if it is like the movie; how it compares.  I have seen the book out for a while and the movie too, but never really knew much about the story except that the characters come to life from story books.  In the world of weird, this seemed to be a bit so, but the concept intrigues me, and I do like creative things.  This seemed pretty creative to me... and Over time, seeing this over and over and over, I finally decided there were a lot of good reason to watch the film, so I did.

My personal "good" reasons to watch it were:
Intriguing concept and storyline
I kinda like science fiction... fantasy at times,
We bought a new TV recently and need to use it...
The movie is geared towards kids and I was wondering why I have not heard oodles of stuff about it.
Lots of kids and teens have seen it and I thought it would be interesting to see what message it has for audiences.

Well that is just a few I guess, but enough for me...
I thought the movie was pretty scary in the the beginning.  The bad guys looked stereotypically bad, like they about to do VERY bad things, and they were not very nice... but because they didn't actually kill anyone they threatened to, they seemed a bit like they were more bark than bite. 

I liked the fact that the goal of the film was to reunit the family that had been split up do to this problem of people popping out of books.  The love element and family element was keen.

I enjoyed the special effects and I thought the whole thing was rather creative.  When thinking about the movie after watching it, the word used to describe it was Interesting.  It was an interesting film.

One of the mmost interesting things is the obvious references to God, and creators...
and destiny being written and changed or altered. 

Interesting.


To get more details for your own viewing you might want to get some second opinions from others people.  One source that you may find helpful in determining if this is or is not for you is the Inkheart review, at Focus on the Family.  I didn't look at this before I watched this film, but I did afterwards, just to see what they had to say.

Don't Eat the Daisies (Movie)

This movie was made in 1960 and starred Doris Day and I had never watched it before.  I thought it was a funny film and enjoyed watching it late at night by myself when no one else was home. It was not a fantastic film or anything like that, but certainly it is cultural and had "family values" protrayed in it, which I appreciated.

See a Clip from this film.

I choose it because a long time ago I had gone to see a play that I really liked and someone told me it was based on this film, I never say this movie and now thirty years later after seeing it,"I a not so sure it was at all like the play I remembered seeing.

Plase dont Eat The Daisy's was about a man and his wife who live in New York and dream of living in the country.  They live in an apartment while he works as a drama critic writing reviews of show.  You see the two portrayed as a loving couple trying to survive life in the trendy Hollywood/Broadway scene.  As a critic he gets a little outspoken becomes a little famous and the next thing you know he wants to stay close to the excitment, meanwhile mom and wife still want to move to the counrty and finds herself moving and trying to hang on to their marriage and family life, and this with a family of 4 very busy boys and big baby dog.  I read somewhere that is was a book before it as a movie. After it made it big as a movie, it was a television series.

Doris Day was really cute and I thought it interesting that she was so popular film star.  She is  in her day.  I really do not know too much about her except that since she was born in 1922 she would be about 88 year old now.  She is still alive and lives in CA.

Having watched a few older movies of late, mostly Fred Astair dancing films, I think it is interesting how the goal of the characters in so many films was being a "star."  Many of the themse are built around show business. I really like the old dancing movies.  One of my favorites is Royal Wedding.

Back tot his movie review, I never really understood the title, though I do know that the line was in the film.   Any insight?


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The next movie on my list of things to view is Fireproof.  And I am almost done reading the Universe Next Door so I hope to review that one soon.  Other reviews of anything would be fun to read if anyone else is interested in keeping this page going.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

Never in a million years did I expect to be watching this movie, never in a million years. It just goes to show, "never say never," the next thing you know the very thing you never say never to, can happen to you. The way I see it, saying never is right up there with willing things for yourself... and sometimes God has a different plan that you do. This is how I felt when this movie was assigned as part of our film class. We would be watching this film for educational purposes, to analyze it discern what messages it had for the audiences... and we were warned, it would be subtle.

Subtle indeed is the witchcraft in the film, as one is transported into a sort of Narnia where witchcraft is abundant and considered quite normal. Yes, it's a place where witchcraft is quite normal, a kid even goes to school to learn their craft. It all fantasy, fantastical like the world of Oz, spells and magic much like the classic tales of Snow White and Sleeping Beauty, right?

Quite frankly, after hearing all the scuttlebutt for years about the horrors of Harry Potter in the minds of children, I was surprised I did not find the whole thing to be much more offensive. And after viewing it, I would say it was much like many other make-believe stories... like Wizard of Oz, Narnia, and Sleeping Beauty, it is a movie in which the element of magic and witchcraft was definitely there. Much like these other stories we can see it separated out as being used for both the evil side and for the good. This all has me wondering just a bit, what it is that makes Harry Potter so much different then the rest.

Take a look at Harry the Hero. He is humble... courageous and before your eyes you see kids ho want to do well in "school" and who are willing to sacrifice themselves for one another. You see honesty and integrity rewarded, dishonesty condemned. Harry, not only loves his parents whom he has never met, but he has all the makings of a "hero," he even resists the evil forces and defeats them. It's obvious, the world of real witchcraft and magic, is not Harry Potter's world.

So, what can be wrong with all of that?

Me thinks the problem is quite subtle. You see, Harry Potter is the hero...a nd now all the little boys and girls want to be heroic like Harry too. They all want to emulate him, learn the things that he did, even venture out into the forbidden places they are told they are not to go, because that is what this hero did. They now see nothing wrong with being or wanting to be a wizard or a witch, especially if such a thing can be used to produce good.

The mean "muggles..." (as presented in the movie) believe that witchcraft is bad or evil... but the movie and the hero, just proved to them it is not. Now, having no idea what exactly they may be getting into when they playfully learn all the ins and outs of "magic," when they emulate their hero, wear black hats and draw pentagrams or maybe even cat some spells, because they love an imaginary hero... they obviously venture forth unafraid or unaware, into something God has clearly warned about, perhaps even something their own muggles do not like, or prefer to keep "hush-hush" about.

I tend to think the degree to which a person loves or hates this movie is multidimensional. I think a great part of it hinges upon how one views the literalness of the Word of God, particularly in regards to the issue of witchcraft and magic.

A couple of observations are:
Harry's Name

Now, what does hair mean is the scripture. Samson was Hairy.... and God is the potter, we are the clay. So what is with the name.. Harry Potter. What kind of a hero is he?

I note that his name is known everywhere. The script to the movie relates that he is even prophesied about... "This boy will be famous. There won't be a child in our world who doesn't know his name."

In the movie, drinking the blood of a unicorn is a "monstrous" thing to do, "only one who has nothing to lose, and everything to gain, would commit such a crime. The blood of a unicorn will keep you alive, even if you are an inch from death, but at a terrible price. You have slain something pure and defenceless to save yourself, and you will have but a half-life, a cursed life, from the moment the blood touches your lips." Voldemort, the "bad guy" does this.

Strangely and perhaps to no particular reasoning, I related this to Jesus, the pure and holy one being slain for our sins.. and saying, you must eat my flesh and drink my blood...

I wondered why Voldermort the bad guy, does this,, and why the blood of the unicorn is so powerful... and yet a curse... I wonder if Christian children make the connection too, as they maybe make their first holy communion, or hear about how the blood of Jesus saves and partake in the blood of the lamb, believing that through JEsus Christ, the sinless one of God who was slain for our transgression , for their salvation.

Children learn in the movie, how to tell if a person is a wizard, or has magic capabilities. In fact Harry is a wizard and he can know this is true if " things happen that you cannot explain when you are angry or scared."

Other interesting things to note in the presentation...

Wizards like Harry can talk to animals... snakes in particular

The sorcerers stone is guarded by a three headed dog

Harry gets to be a "seeker."

When the children are in the "devils snare..." (caught in a strangling plant) all they have to do is relax to escape. (I likened this to maybe resting in Jesus, but ask, "why would you rest in the devil's snare.") One boy does not relaz and magic is done to create sunlight, the sunlight shines on the devil's snare and the boy escapes. Devil's snare hates son light,, oopps I mean sunlight.

Aside from the various spiritual dynamics, which are rather hard to truely discern, Harry Potter is a painfully childish kid's adventure movie that has gruesome elements but portrays some of the "good character qualities" we would like kids to pursue. On the surface it can be a seemingly harmless film with good morals and values, and it is hard to really find fault with a film that is like so many other films, unless of course you are convinced in your own mind that witchcraft is evil.

Fiddler on the Roof (Movie)

This film is about a poor Jewish milkman in Russia who is forced to deal with the unconventional marriages of three of his five daughters and the changing politics under Soviet czarist rule.

We watched this for our film class recently, but it's a movie I have seen before. It has been out since 1971. I will admit, I never actually thought about "reporting" on it or much of any other book or movie, I never thought much about writing reviews or reports on books and movies myself until recently. Usually, I read reports and reviews my kids write, or that I see in the paper or magazine, but is new to me to not only write such things, but to think about what I viewed enough to write about it, and to post them for someone else to read.

We have always loved this movie, which is a musical. We love the songs, the photography and the fiddle too. Also we have always also enjoyed both the Jewish aspect of the film with all it's references to "God. " It's a long movie though, almost too long, but most enjoyable.

It was timely to watch it too, as the Broadway version just visited Spokane with the original actor who played the part of Tevye, (Topol) playing the role he did long ago on stage. I didn't go, thought I do like theater, and I wondered how long the staged version was compared to the movie. It is definitely a popular work; it's message time enduring. As I watched the highly acclaimed, award winning film this time, I took a deeper look at what was being presented to the masses of people who have watched this film, or seen the Broadway show, over the years.

What was/is the message?

First, let me mention here that we watched the film for our (incredibly interesting) worldview class, and I can tell you it is full of the concept of deism, (God is not personal) but more noticeable than that, (and you probably already know this if you have seen it) the message is one of "change," the theme could even be "love" or the evilness and injustice of religious "intolerance."

We see the sadness of poverty, homelessness and unjust suffering due to violence of the soldiers, we witness the religious faith of a Jewish man, his struggle with doubt, his personal struggle to hold on to "tradition" in times of change. We are privileged to hear his candid conversations with God, and watch as he accepts God's lot for his life, his existence. From this aspect it's an endearing film. But, on the other hand.... I could not help but hear also another message.

This other message is two-fold, first, it is something to the effect of:"Children, you have your own life to live, a better life than that of your parents, and you obviously know so much better than your parents do, See..., their traditions are such that they do not even understand "love," (but you do.) Go ahead you Jews, marry who you want to, marry outside your religion, (?priest?... ?rabbi?.. they are all the same,) Do what you want to in life, follow your dreams... be willing to fight for and embrace "change." And to Jews and to parents,it's something to the effect of:"Your exclusive, useless religion and traditions is killing you, it is your useless tradition and the God of your tradition, who is not even answering your prayers, that causes you problems... poverty, (If I were a rich man) and as you can see, homelessness. Embrace change and do away with your old outmoded useless tradition."


(The message is also that there is more to life than the "good book" says, for we observe that Newspapers are being read for information, but the old Jewish Rabbi, insists to them that the Good Book is the only stories that they really need. )

The "good book" is of course, the Bible (in this case the Torah, or old testament) and the main character, Tevye is a man who believes in God; though he he doesn't really know his "Good Book," very well... he likes to quote it; "As the good book says,..."

We like him a lot as the audience because he is very much like most of us and he confides in us. We even sympathize with him a bit because like him perhaps we have our struggles, even maybe, we doubt God and get our bible heroes and examples confused. Perhaps like him too, we wish we were rich, but we are not, and feel like we too are in a bit of a rut. Perhaps are a lot like Tevya too, just following our own religious "tradition," clinging to something outmoded and outdated, as the world around us changes.


I kinda wondered as I viewed it, if and how messages like this influence the masses of people caught up in the emotional aspect of the film. After attaching ourselves to the characters and their plights, what we do when change is all around us? What useless religious traditions will we ultimately hang on to, what new ideas and religion will we embrace? (Note: the Jewish mothers goes to the Christian "priest" who is an old white haired sage like her own rabbi...for answers) Perhaps more importantly, how wise and worthy do we perceive some of the words of wisdom, in the film, particularly the ones that make us smile?

Great film! Pretty pictures and likable characters too. I just wonder about the message of a deistic sort of God, and the injustices and intolerances people like the Jews seem to have toward "change."

Here is an interesting study guide on the movie that I found on the internet... One I would consider useful for examining the film's elements. It is for Chinese students who are learning English and found at http://www.krigline.com/Fiddler.htm

Beauty and the Beast (Movie)

The story began, "Once upon a time, in a faraway land, a young prince lived in a shining castle. Although he had everything his heart desired, the prince was spoiled, selfish, and unkind. But then, one winter's night, an old beggar woman came to the castle and offered him a single rose in return for shelter from the bitter cold..."

This is a timeless tale! (It's probably as old as Europe.) You probably already know the story, maybe even have seen the movie a time or two, but since I did watch this movie lately for a film class that Nate and I are involved in, (one where we have to watch movies, and this movie was one of them,) I thought I would give it a review.

We watched the Disney version... the one made in 1991. You might remember that the film was nominated for best picture, which was a "Hollywood first" since it was animated. You can get a bit of a refresher here on you tube if you need a bit of one. Also, if you remember, the film was nominated for Best Picture, which was a Hollywood "first," this because it was animated. It also won two Oscars as well as other awards, so it's a movie with a lot of mass appeal. It was rated G, for general audiences so you can bet a lot of kids have seen it, but it did have some rather scary parts which I thought should make it quite frightful for young kids.

It was fun discussing this film with a group, talking about it's elements and the message it presents to the viewers. It was decided that this film has a bit of a Christian worldview portrayed to the audience as well as some positive elements and here are some of the things I found particularly interesting.

First of all it's a very artistic and entertaining film with a Phillipeans 4:8 type of goodness to it. There are indeed some lovely, praiseworthy, virtuous things to consider as one watches this film. A humble, yet beautiful young girl who is charming and witty, loves learning and loves books, loves her daddy, and doesn't buy into the lies of conceited men like Gustav and knows how to put them in their place politely is to say the least, quite admirable.

The overriding theme is a message of the transforming power of love which I relate it to the verse about how love covers a multitude of sin (1 Peter 4:8) I think we see this played out mainly as the Beast is transformed back into a human being, and not a beast anylonger, because of love's power and his submission to it. Another theme, a quite obvious one at that is that you cannot tell a book by it's cover.. seen in handsome Gustav and of course the Beast who really is a young man, caught in his sin of refusing to respond kindly to what he thought was nothing but an old hag.

There are other examples of love's power too, as Belle loves her father so much that would sacrifice herself, take his place in the punishment doled out by the Beast for trespassing on the Beast's turf. Belle stays in the dreadful castle, so he can return home as he is very ill. I also enjoyed the faithfulness of the Beast's servants to their master and found their apparent love for him to be quite notable in this regard too, although my son said that he thought they couldn't help themselves for they were under the enchanter's spell like the Beast was .


Some other things of note are:
How the Beast comes into the light so Belle can see him, before she agrees to stay...

How a rose is used to determine a set time...

The love of Belles father for his daughter... although he is portrayed as a rather foolish man... and yet she loves him.

When discussing the various elements of the film as a group, we discussed how (true to the Christian understanding of the world) Belle, in her seeming perfect life, (yet monotonous) yearned for something more than her world alone could offer... (but little did she know it would happen in such a way as this!) We also talked about and how the transformation that took place with the beast could be contrued as a type of "resurrection."

In simply discussing the movie at home, we kinda like the fact that in this movie the woods were not portrayed as the perfect place to live, (as they are in many cartoons and animations.) They are protrayed as dark and scary, quite scary in fact for little children as I mentioned. The wolves appear surprisingly out of nowhere and after our heros in their savage aggression.

We wondered about the very likable character, Lumiere's sexual obsession with women. We noted that one character gets jabbed in the behind, ( is this base humor?) and there was also the male character who falls into the drawers of a dresser and comes out of the wardrobe dressed in a skirt... (What exactly would be the point of that in a movie for kids?...Was it humor, and good to laugh at this? Was it simply just the reality of life? or Was it just plain wrong? )

This film certainly had a lot of subtle, "Christian" concepts... (or what can be construed as Christian concepts") in it. It even portrayed in many ways had a bit of what one might consider to be a "Christian worldview." However, it's subtlety can be construed in different ways. Our film group's discussion on this topic left me wondering what it was that did or did not make a "Christian" movie, or make a movie Christian. Could it be that what "makes a person a Christian" is quite possibly the same thing that makes a movie a "Christian" movie.

I have to admit, I am not big on spending a lot of time watching movies, however, I do enjoy a good movie now and then. I have to say too that I enjoyed this particular movie especially as an artistic endeavor. It was very creative that's for sure. And yet, I would not recommend it for little kids because it's scary, I think that's a bummer since it is a "G" rated film. Like Bambi, it has some elements to deal with emotionally, and particularly in this case, fear of dogs and wolves.

I do think there are some very good lessons in the presentation, (Philipeans 4:8 kinda things) and think that as far as movies go it has some good messages we could all stand to consider, particularly how we should not be so quick to judge something by the way it first appears to our sense of sight, and most certainly the redemptive power of this thing called "love."

The Inheritance

As I was down sick with the flu this past week, I found quite a bit of time on my hands. I took this time not to read because the vision was a little fuzzy....but, to watch movies. I always have my few favorites that my family seems to only tolerate when I am sick. So I had my son pull out my favorite movie, "The Inheritance". "The Inheritance" was written by Louisa May Alcott, the authoress of "Little Women". It is set in mid 1800s England and the main character, Edith, is my idea of a "Christian" woman. She is quite intelligent in a well-rounded manner. Her manners are flawless and she shines forth beauty from the inside as well as her outer appearance. At the end of the movie, they give subtitles as to the other characters and what became of them, so I thought this story might be based on some historical fact, but I cannot determine that that was the case. I did, however, find that a lot of people view this as a very light-hearted movie, in other words something not so very deep. I find myself in a completely opposite position. I think this movie speaks highly of what and who we are to be as Christians. The restrictions that were set on people simply because of bloodlines, who they knew, who they didn't know, I find very relevant because I find it very hypocritical. And in all of this, our heroine, Edith, who recieves blessings upon blessings after enduring hardship upon hardship, but never letting the adverse circumstances causing her to become anything less than who she already is....Although this movie is not Christian, I find it be very challenging to run the race as Paul encourages us to do. I always come away from it feeling happy but encouraged to keep on keeping on standing in Christ, trying to follow the Lord as best I know how by His leading and that I have a whole lot to work on in trying to become more of a 'lady'.

The Truman Show (movie)

The Truman Show produced in 1988 didn't get watched by me until about 2005. (I was a little late I guess.) It came recommended to me by a friend who loaned me a copy of the movie.

The film was an huge financial undertaking by Paramount Pictures who I read spent over 60 million dollars on it's production. It is rated PG, written by Andrew Niccoli, directed by Peter Weir and stars Jim Carey. In the film, Carey plays a character named as Truman Burbank, a major television star, and the catch is, even though he is so very famous, even though he is a so famous and the whole world watching his every move on TV, he does not even know it.

An unwanted pregnancy, his birth broadcast is on television and he is adopted by a corporation and then his whole life is aired to to the world, captured on film as his whole existence is lived out on a sort of Hollywood film set. Everything he has ever done, every emotion he has experiences as been done for "reality" TV, filmed by hidden cameras.

He lives out his life captive to a world created just for him by the creator/ director and it is as if everything is planned, scripted for him as the camera shows the watchful eye of a curious John Q. Public, his life. Even the weather is controlled by the director.

At the age of 30 though, Truman is catching on to the oddities of his captive life in his constructed world. Realizing things are just a bit weird and out of his control he begins to wonder and we watch as he begins the inward journey of discovering the world he has always known is not what he thought, in fact he strangely feels like he is always being watched. Meanwhile, outside his world, in the "real world of consumers" people are in fact watching him, on TV's. Producers are trying to keep him oblivious to reality, worried he night find them out and the show would be over and Truman fans are rallying for his escape.

My friend recommended the movie because of it's presentation of religion. The movie is an obvious commentary on television and how we view reality which is interesting to me too, but I must I too was impressed with the profoundly religious connotations that left me considering their 60 million dollar message to the viewing world.

For example the director of the Truman set is Christof, who by the way, lives in the "moon."
With a director named Christof... you have to wonder at the connotation... does the director and creator of Truman's world represent Christ, (God) or Anti Christ? Since this "God" figure lives in the "moon" you have to wonder how does this relate to perhaps a "moon God"?

And what reality is Truman escaping from? What reality is he escaping to? What is there really beyond his universe or the universe of television viewers everywhere? Is Truman rejecting God or Satan as he appears to walk on water and climb a stairway to the real world outside of his set which he finds at the edge of the universe, the only universe he has ever known. The analogies... spiritual, philosophical, psychological, cultural.. are nearly endless in this film and quite intriguing.