Friday Five (Vol. 29) – Barbaric Yawp edition

— 1 —

Yesterday I exchanged a few comments with someone I’d never met before who blogs at Thread of Thoughts. She had kindly commented on something I wrote yesterday and I returned the favor by visiting her blog. I know nothing about her other than what she has written so far, but I’m impressed with how well she’s presented her thoughts to this point. On “Life is too short to be busy…” she posted a media file of a song she recorded of her playing guitar and singing. It fit the mood I was in yesterday. I enjoyed it. And I commented on it. We exchanged a few comments back and forth about how I have been wanting to learn to play before I pick up my guitar, long sitting in the corner of my room, when she said

You don’t have to wait to learn before you pick up and play.

And she’s right of course. And this brought to mind a song that has long been one of my favorites. The lyrics are below, followed by one of four italicized stanzas from Robert Herrick’s poem To the Virgins, to make much of Time. If you’re wondering where you’ve encountered it before (if you have), it was used in this scene from the movie Dead Poet’s Society.

So to that young blogress (and to anyone else no matter your age) I say Carpe diem quam minimum credula postero. Seize the day, counting as little as possible on tomorrow.

And remember the words of that immortal sage, Winnie the Pooh: You can’t stay in your corner of the forest waiting for others to come to you. You have to go to them sometimes. In other words, don’t wait to learn before you pick up and play.

Whether persons or goals, it is up to you to take the initiative. Or as Mr. Keating said in that movie, “Sound your barbaric yawp.” It’s never too soon to begin. It’s never too late to start.

— 2 —

I know a girl who was schooled in Manhattan
She reads dusty books and learns phrases in Latin
She is an author, or maybe a poet
A genius but it’s just this world doesn’t know it
She works on her novel most every day
If you laugh she will say…

Chorus:

Seize the day, seize whatever you can
‘Cause life slips away just like hourglass sand
Seize the day, pray for grace from God’s hand
Then nothing will stand in your way
Seize the day

*****

Gather ye rosebuds while ye may,
Old Time is still a-flying:
And this same flower that smiles to-day
To-morrow will be dying.

— 3 —

Well I know a doctor, a fine young physician
Left his six-figure job for a mission position
He’s healing the sick in an African clinic
He works in the dirt and writes home to the cynics
He says “We work through the night so most every day
As we watch the sun rise we can say…”

Chorus

*****

The glorious lamp of heaven, the sun,
The higher he’s a-getting,
The sooner will his race be run,
And nearer he’s to setting.

— 4 —

Well I know a man who’s been doing some thinking
He’s as bitter and cold as the whiskey he’s drinking
He’s talking ‘bout fear, about chances not taken
If you listen to him you can hear his heart breaking
He says “One day you’re a boy and the next day you’re dead
I wish way back when someone had said…”

Chorus

*****

That age is best which is the first,
When youth and blood are warmer;
But being spent, the worse, and worst
Times still succeed the former.

— 5 —

Well one thing I’ve noticed, wherever I wander
Everyone’s got a dream he can follow or squander
You can do what you will with the days you are given
I’m trying to spend mine on the business of living
So I’m singing my songs off of any old stage
You can laugh if you want, I’ll still say…

Chorus

*****

Then be not coy, but use your time,
And while ye may, go marry:
For having lost but once your prime,
You may for ever tarry.

Friday Five (Vol. 24)

— 1 —

Happy Kissing Friday! Well, at least according to my daily desk calendar Forgotten English:

On the Friday immediately following Shrove (Fat) Tuesday, English schoolboys were once entitled to kiss the girls in their classes without fear of punishment or rejection—a custom that continued at least as late as the 1940s.

Horton Cooper’s North Caroline Folklore (1972) reported these rules involving schoolchildren: “Boys shall not carry any girls in their arms or on their backs unless heavy rains or mush ice have made the creeks and branches impossible to cross because of flooded footlogs, and then, only boys who are barefoot or wearing boots may do so. No hugging, squeezing, or kissing shall take place while the girl is being transported across the water.”

No more touchin’? No squeezin’? Journey fans hardest hit.

— 2 —

A few months ago I picked up a few “bargain bin” books from my Catholic bookstore. One of them was To The Field of Stars, written by Father Kevin Codd, a Roman Catholic priest. Fr. Codd decided to walk the Camino de Santiago (The Way of St. James) while he was assigned to work as the head of a small American seminary in Belgium for a few years. Having gained an interest in the camino by reading about the film The Way (see #4 and #5 below) I bought the book for $4. I am currently around 220 kilometers in to what will be his walk of over 800 kilometers and am finding it to be a book rich in experience and insights. When he entered into Pamplona the city was swelling with revelers there to celebrate the Sanfermines, the city’s annual festival that runs for nine consecutive days in honor of its patron saint, San Fermin. This is also the time of the “running of the bulls.” He describes his arrival:

We pass through a park where hundreds of dirty, hung-over, and often fairly naked young people are camping out. The landscape is dotted with plastic sandwich bags hanging from tree limbs and cyclone fences; they contain fermenting feces of the human variety. How thoughtful of these young revelers to collect their waste from the grassy lawns and hang it up for the tourists and pilgrims to admire as they stroll by. I am feeling cranky at the end of this day and the scene that is greeting me here pushes to the surface a sour burp of cynicism about humanity.

Around 20 kilometers down the road Codd is approaching the summit along a ridge of mountains called the Sierra del Perdón, the Mountains of Forgiveness. Just before the final push up the summit he comes to a fountain called the Fuente Reniega, or Fountain of Denial, and while recalling the legend attached to the fountain he ruminates over the lessons he’s learned since Pamplona.

I think to myself that (the lesson from the legend) is surely a reminder from Santiago (St. James) of what a cranky ass I have been all morning. I have failed the test. With every step taken since leaving Pamplona I have denied the simplest tenet of my  faith to forget self and love others.

[snip]

In my aloneness…the image of those small plastic bags filled with human excrement hanging in the trees and along the fences of Pamplona’s park comes to mind for a brief few seconds: what a perfect image of all that we human beings do to ourselves! How silly we are! The waste that collects in our hearts in the form of animosity, vengeful feelings, unrighteous anger, cantankerousness; all of it is in itself a normal byproduct of living. Our great stupidity is that we don’t just dump it. Foolishly, rather than letting it go, letting it fall away from us so that the earth and wind and sun might quietly turn it into harmless dust, we seal it in bags, let it ferment within us, and even display it proudly for all to see. And the poor world suffers under the burden of so much merde. It is so ridiculous, but it also is so sad because the consequences are so disastrous for life. We are burying our world in our fermenting merde.

A more keen insight I’ve not heard in quite some time. And during this time of Lent a most appropriate one.

— 3 —

I’ve begun to seriously consider walking the Camino de Santiago as a pilgrim.

— 4 —

An surprise that came about due to my interest in the movie The Way was hearing the reasons given by Martin Sheen and his son Emilio Estevez for making it in the first place. I’ve read a few interviews they’ve both given, but am going to quote from one I read earlier this week:

TPC: You been quoted as saying that The Way is a pro-people, pro-life film. What precisely do you mean by that?

Emilio: If you look at the products, or the widgets, coming out of Hollywood these days, they are filled with violence and profanity. This film really runs counter to that. This movie is not anti-anything. This film celebrates life. In many ways, a lot of films don’t these days. This is an industry that tends to make movies for 16-year-old boys, and in many ways it’s a reflection of the juvenile nature of the men who run these studios.

TPC: The idea of a spiritual journey is prevalent in this movie, which combines a very human, communal sense of faith with some very institutionally religious Catholic elements. Was that purposeful, and, if so, what is the take-away message?

Emilio: Well, I like to say that none of characters in this film go out purposefully looking for God, but I do think that God finds them. I think that allows the film to be less preachy. I think a lot of times when you make a so-called faith-based film, you run the risk of turning people off. With this film, I wanted to be all-inclusive; I wanted it to be the type of film anyone could see themselves enjoying.

[snip]

I think that maybe the real theme of the film at the end of the day is that we are all wonderfully and beautifully imperfect, wonderfully and perfectly broken, and that is the way God is allowed in. God loves us in our brokenness, in our imperfections. He doesn’t want us to be perfect; He wants us to be who we are. That is where I believe all the characters arrive at the end of the movie, being okay being exactly who they are and being comfortable in their own skin.

Who knew that the kid from the Brat Pack of my youth would grow up so seemingly unjaded by his experience? Though his father returned to the Catholic Church, Emilio remains somewhat of an agnostic, and together they created something beautiful.

— 5 —

I’ve been waiting to see The Way since I first heard about it about a year ago. It never came to my city as the release was fairly limited. The DVD/Blu-Ray was released on Tuesday and I bought a copy on my way home from work that night. After our parish’s fish fry tonight I plan on sitting myself on the couch under a blanket, with either a cup of hot chocolate or a glass of bourbon at the ready, and watch this film. Buen Camino!

Next up: Teddy Roosevelt vs. Alien vs. Predator vs. Freddie

I blame the History Channel. Seriously, doesn’t this look like a special two-hour “documentary” they would feature on their mis-named channel?

Coming June 22nd:

Yes, it’s based on a book. Considering Lincoln had to go through several generals before he finally found one who would fight (Grant) I always figured he was battling zombies. But at least the vampires don’t freakin’ sparkle in this movie so maybe Hollywood is throwing us a bone.

I guess as long as we’re going to go this route with Abe we just as well get The Batman involved. Viva la bat!!

Be born in my heart

Remember then how our fathers worked out their salvation; remember the sufferings through which the Church has grown, and the storms the ship of Peter has weathered because it has Christ on board. Remember how the crown was attained by those whose sufferings gave new radiance to their faith. The whole company of saints bears witness to the unfailing truth that without real effort no one wins the crown. ~ from a letter written by St. Thomas Becket

Meister Eckhart once said: ‘What good is it that Christ was born 2,000 years ago if he is not born now in your heart?’

“Lord, we do far too much celebrating your actual coming in our hearts. I believe in God, but do I believe in God-in-me? I believe in God in heaven, but do I believe in God-on-earth? I believe in God out there, but do I believe in God-with-us?

“Lord, be born in my heart. Come alive in me this Christmas! Amen.”

(Living Faith, Vol. 4, # 3)

In his letter St. Thomas speaks of how many are needed to plant and water the faith that is spreading across the lands after the Incarnation. Eckhart, speaking more intimately to us as individuals, asks whether we can believe in our personal relationship with the babe. To kings and governments who see themselves as lords on Earth both thoughts are dangerous to their insecure grasping at power. History is replete with the results, and here are but two: Herod slaughtering babies in Bethlehem in order to kill the infant Jesus; Henry II inflaming four swordsmen to murder his former best friend Thomas in his own cathedral on December 29, 1170.

Today is the feast day for St. Thomas Becket (1118-1170). Becket was born in London and became a close friend of King Henry II. He was only a deacon when he was appointed chancellor of England. When he was ordained as archbishop of Canterbury, he underwent an abrupt conversion of life and began to defend the Church’s rights against the king. Becket had led a very debauched and worldly life and was placed into his position by his best friend Henry II in order to be a puppet of the state. Henry could not have foreseen the changes that his friend underwent once he became archbishop, however, and the two became enemies.

While the Christmas season is a time of unbridled joy, we need also recognize that not everyone shares our joy. Having the courage to follow the Holy Infant may gain you some enemies in this life. It is a courage that many lack as they love the opinions of friends or family more. Becket could have continued to live a long and easy life in the service of his friend and king. Instead he loved Christ; a love born in his heart.

If you’ve never seen it, you owe it to yourself to watch at least once the 1964 movie Becket. Peter O’Toole and Richard Burton are magnificent in bringing this story to life.

Harry and Me

On November 11th the last of the Harry Potter movies will be released on DVD/Blu-Ray, bringing to an end a wonderful chapter in epic storytelling. For while the telling arguably ended with the release of the seventh and final book Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows in 2007, I consider the movies to be just as much a part of the ride as the books were.

So much has been written and said about the phenomenon that was Harry Potter since J.K. Rowling introduced us all to him in the summer of 1997 that I won’t even attempt to provide links. Instead, I just want to focus for a little bit on the experiences I personally had with these stories.

Middle Earth, Narnia and Hogwarts
Before Harry Potter came along we had been very blessed over the past 100 years to have some of the greatest storytelling ever presented to us: The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien and The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis. I believe that Rowling’s achievement deserves to be included in this group. As with Middle Earth or Narnia, Rowling was able to create a believable world unto itself complete with characters and histories that wove it all together into the most marvelous tapestry of fiction. Since the advent of Harry Potter there have been a myriad of pretenders published, all hoping to capitalize on the hunger for reading good stories Rowling and her publisher helped to foster. None of them have even come close.

I was pretty oblivious to Harry Potter until the initial movie (Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone) was released in 2001. My oldest son was only five at the time and not yet reading much beyond Dr. Seuss or Captain Underpants books from school. I’d heard a little about the books in the infant blogosphere and already opinions were splitting between them being good books for children or works that promoted witchcraft and the occult. About the time of the second movie’s (Chamber of Secrets) release in 2002 it was becoming obvious that this was a major phenomenon that deserved a closer look.

I had grown up completely oblivious to The Lord of the Rings and Narnia. Somehow I’d missed reading either series while growing up or attending college. When the first LOTR movie was released in 2001 I was not too interested as I knew next to nothing about it. It wasn’t until I got together with some buddies from college and listened to them talking knowledgeably about an entire world and its characters that I had never heard of that I realized I’d missed the boat. Before the release of The Two Towers in 2002 I decided I had to rent The Fellowship of the Ring. I did, was absolutely blown away, and have never looked back. I even dragged my then-pregnant wife along to see The Two Towers in the theater with friends when it was released. Being very pregnant and tired she slept through half of it; I couldn’t take my eyes off the screen. And when my assistant pastor called me on opening night to ask if I wanted to see The Return of the King with him in late 2003 I leapt at the chance. My almost 8 year old son was really upset that I wasn’t taking him as by then he was hooked on the movies, too. “I can’t take you tonight,” I explained to his hurt expression. “But I promise we’ll go together soon.” It was a promise I kept, and one that carried over to the Harry Potter films as well. Our little Golden Age of movie-going was about to take off.

Reading the Books
Meanwhile, Nolan began to read the Harry Potter books. My wife and I had heard the arguments that these books were really getting kids to read and how can anything be bad that gets kids to read, right? I finally began to do some research to see what other parents and child experts were saying, especially amongst Catholics. I read the arguments on both sides, but ultimately it was my own priest who convinced me they were ok. Fr. B had been reading them due to the furor surrounding them and told me that he found them tremendously enjoyable. That was good enough for me, though a friend of mine who is a committed Evangelical Christian could not believe that I was opening the door to the occult so easily to my son. Harry was sure creating a lot of strong feelings in people.

And so Nolan began to devour the soft-cover books, telling us he “had a lot of catching up to do.” By then the first four were already in soft-cover and with money tight at the time we wanted to avoid the expense of hard cover editions. I don’t think we’d anticipated how quickly he’d read them. On a weekly basis for a month he would finish a book and stack it on my dresser telling me “Dad, you’ve got to read this one! It’s an incredible story!” For months he’d repeat this to me every few days, and there they’d remain: on my dresser collecting dust. The truth was I was avoiding them off for fear of becoming hooked on Harry. Didn’t my son know I didn’t have time for that stuff? I was too busy. Sure I was.

Book five, The Order of the Phoenix, was the final book we were able to purchase in soft-cover. It was huge, over 800 pages if I recall, and I thought it would finally slow Nolan down. I was wrong. He read it in 2-3 days and once again set it on the tall stack and begged me to read about Harry. We had by then seen the first two movies on DVD and I really did like Harry and the rest of the gang at Hogwarts. I finally relented and read the first book.

This Muggle’s Addiction
I was right of course. My worst fears were realized and I got hooked! I tore through the first five books much to the delight of my son for we now had common ground to discuss. And in 2004 Nolan and I began a movie-going journey together when I took him to see Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban in 2004. With Rowling’s narrative so thoroughly ingrained I knew I wasn’t going to wait for the soft-cover edition of her next books, of which we learned there would be two more. So much for saving money.

I actually wound up buying two hard cover copies of that sixth book. On the day of its release on a 105 degree day in July 2005 some friends of mine and I helped move a family of five across town to their new home. I knew that Tom and Lynn’s oldest daughter Jessica was a junior high-aged Harry fanatic, often reading the books in a single sitting before re-reading them several more times. With each truck of boxes and furniture we moved, I’d pause to talk about Harry with Jessie. I learned she was upset because they were not going to be able to purchase The Half-Blood Prince that day for her to read due to the busyness of the move, a story corroborated by her parents later. When we finally finished the last load of boxes Tom told me they were going out to a family dinner to celebrate the move. Knowing they would be gone (and having Lynn confirm that they would not be stopping at Barnes & Noble to buy Jessie the book) I got an idea: since I would be going to B&N to get a copy for Nolan I decided to get two. I left the book with an anonymous note in the front door of their new home. I learned later that Jessie shrieked when she found the book and that it took them a few days to figure out who’d left it for her, but that she enjoyed her first night in the new house, reading late into the night. Jessie graduated from high school last May and is now a freshman in college. When I saw her this fall at home high school football games we’d catch up and still occasionally talk about Harry.

And so the cycle continued. I bought a copy of the final book The Deathly Hallows in 2007 the day of its release. Nolan read it first, and I read it soon after. I think I’ve read it four times. When Warner Brothers announced that the final book would be split into two movies I was happy, because not only did I take it to mean they were going to work hard to get most of the story into the film, but it meant I was going to get to go to the movies two more times with my oldest child who by now was a freshman in high school. Our little tradition got an extension.

I think the luckiest generation of Harry fans were the ones that literally “grew up” with Harry, Ron and Hermoine as the books were written and released on an almost yearly basis. As the characters grew from age 11 to 18, the themes became more mature and at times more dark. If Nolan were to begin reading the books now at the age of eight I would be more wary of him reading all the way through in a few months.

Are the movies flawed? I suppose for hard-core enthusiasts they are, but I find that most book adaptations lose a lot when transferred to film. The creators of the Narnia films have absolutely wrecked the original Lewis books as far as I’m concerned, especially after a somewhat promising start with the first one in 2005 (my original review is here), though my family and I still go to them because compared to what else is available they are gold. Peter Jackson did a very good job in recreating Middle Earth and pretty much set the gold standard amongst these three franchises. But Harry sure came close. Very close.

I’ve purposely avoided writing about my favorite characters or scenes or lines. I don’t know that I could as there is such a vast richness to choose from and I’m assuming that my readers have a familiarity with the story. When we first meet Harry living under the stairs at the Dursley’s I’m reminded of Cosette from Les Miserables (judging from an article I just found I’m not the only one to make this comparison). And then Hagrid pays him a visit to celebrate his 11th birthday and the rest is history.

Stories and Symbols
I love a good story. I crave it. When I find one I latch on to it. As a Catholic I’m prone to enjoying symbolism and these books are rife with symbolism. Rowling did not invent the story telling template. She pumped it full of air and took it on one hell of a ride that I’ve enjoyed taking with my son, my other children, my friend Jessie, and others. I’m grateful to her for that. Was it great literature? Probably not. But it was epic storytelling.

I had a friend once who is herself a brilliant writer and huge fan of the series. We used to talk about Harry all the time, and one of the last things she ever wrote to me was, unbeknownst to her, one of my favorite passages from near the end of The Deathly Hallows. It seems a fitting ending to this farewell to my journey with Harry and the child-like wonder he invoked. Thank you Harry.

“And he set off. The dementors’ chill did not overcome him; he passed through it with is companions, and they acted like Patronuses to him, and together they marched through the old trees that grew closely together, their branches tangled, their roots gnarled and twisted underfoot. Harry clutched the Cloak tightly around him in the darkness, traveling deeper and deeper into the forest, with no idea exactly where Voldemort was, but sure that he would find him. Beside him, making scarcely a sound, walked James, Sirius, Lupin, and Lily, and their presence was his courage, and the reason he was able to keep putting one foot in front of the other.”

Addendum: The first of two Peter Jackson-directed films from Tolkien’s book The Hobbit is due to be released in December 2012. Perhaps it’s time I took a cinematic journey that didn’t involve a Pixar film with my younger son…

October Baby

At the core of every good story is a great story. What I mean is that in order for a piece of art, whether a book, movie, song or painting to hold our attention for more than a fleeting moment it has to have its origins in a great story, usually involving a human drama. It also must be told well. That is why I say a good story has to contain a great story. Too many great stories get watered down by the vessels/artists that attempt to share them, such is the frailty of humanity. But if they are great to begin with they can still shine through.

Human drama stories that we will surely see more of in the future are those like Gianna Jessen. We live in an age where a single sperm donor is responsible for over 150 children without a clue who their biological father is. It is also an age of the “failed abortion”, a term so surreal that it’s difficult to wrap our minds around it. Many can’t and choose to pretend it doesn’t exist.

I have seen Gianna speak. I can’t remember where or when. I believe she came to our diocese a few years ago and that it may have even been at my parish that she spoke. I don’t recall the venue, but I do remember her and her message. One cannot be met with such a visible image of love and acceptance and not be affected by it.

There is a movie in limited release right now (Alabama, Mississippi and Tennessee) that is set for a wider release in the spring of 2012. October Baby tells the story of Hannah, a 19-year-old college freshman who discovers not only that she was adopted but also the survivor of a failed abortion. Seeking answers, she embarks on a road trip with a few of her friends in search of her biological mother. On Virtuouspla.net, Rachel Howell writes:

The Film is produced and co-directed by Andrew Erwin, alongside his brother Jon. They heard a girl named Gianna Jessen speak who is an abortion survivor with cerebral palsy [due to her premature birth from the attempted abortion] and were so arrested by her testimony that they had to do something with the information they had learned.”

Judging from the trailers and the stuff I’ve read about their film on their website, I’d say they did a compelling job with that information. It is a great story and appears to be told well.

I’ve embedded two videos below. The first is the trailer for October Baby. The second is an interview with the directors and Gianna. The lady can sing, too.

The Facebook page for October Baby Movie is here.

Nature, Grace, and The Tree of Life

It’s not often that I’m fortunate to watch a movie that renders me speechless. I don’t just mean that I’m silent during the movie. I try to be quiet during all the movies I watch for the first time. What I mean is speechless for an extended time after the movie is finished. My benchmark for this was Dances With Wolves in 1991. When my roommate Tim and I went to that movie in Fremont, Nebraska, thirty minutes from our apartment, we sat through the credits, silently walked to the car, and didn’t speak until we were five minutes from home. That’s what I mean by speechless. Schindler’s List had the same effect.

I’ve set a new benchmark. I watched a piece of art Saturday night that not only rendered me mute for the rest of the night, but over twenty-four hours later I still don’t know how to describe it or what to say about it except that visually and audibly it is perhaps the most stunning film I’ve watched.

I’d first heard of The Tree of Life about a year ago, and then again in the early part of 2011. I knew that it starred Brad Pitt and Sean Penn (neither of whom a huge draws for me to see a movie) and that it had won some awards in Europe and at Cannes. I’d also heard that it was a BIG movie. Big in its ambition. Big in its scope. BIG. And then I began to hear about people walking out of the theaters when it was played, or even booing. Not everyone was appreciating the vision of its creator Terrence Malick apparently. Undeterred I waited for it to come to Lincoln, which it finally did except it was during a weekend at the university at a time I was unavailable to attend. So I had to wait until last week when it was finally released on Blu-Ray / DVD.

This is a big film. I still don’t know what to say about it except that when I am asked to list my favorite movies or top ten list of films from here on out I will have to include this one. It is absolutely fantastic. It is a film made for viewing on a large screen with a big sound system. I have a large flatscreen combined with a surround sound system that I wired into my basement when I remodeled it a few years ago, so I had a bit of an advantage I suppose. When I pressed play one of the first messages to appear on the screen after the obligatory FBI piracy warnings was a message telling the viewer to turn the sound system up loud.

I loved that. Never had that message so explicitly stated before.

I know why many people walked out. This is a movie that you will either love or you’ll hate. Ok, perhaps hate is too strong a word. But I’m going to use it because so much of what I see passing for discourse or conversation in society today is a hatred for things not understood. And I think a lot of people just do not understand this movie. I don’t completely understand it, which is why I plan to watch it again and again and again.

There is little dialogue spoken on screen. What spoken words you do hear are mostly whispered thoughts or prayers by each actor. It is their own internal dialogue with God, much the same that many of us have or have had during our lifetimes. Here are four, for instance:

• Brother. Mother. It was they that lead me to your door.
• Where were You? You let a boy die. You let anything happen. Why should I be good? When You aren’t.
• Lord, Why? Where were you? Did you know what happened? Do you care?
• I didn’t know how to name You then. But I see it was You. Always You were calling me.

Indeed, the first image on screen at the start of the film is a passage from Job: “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the Earth, when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?” Job 38:4,7

There is so much symbolism in this film that it is frankly overwhelming at times because you find yourself over thinking it a bit. Malick introduces you to the main characters he will use to steer you through the big questions he is posing, the O’Briens (played by Brad Pitt and Jessica Chastain) and their three young boys. And questions are ultimately what are raised here. Malick does not try to answer them, but instead does what all of us do internally when we actually slow down and think about life and its events instead of filling every possible moment with something.

And that is, I believe, why so many people “hate” the film. It asks questions. It wants you to think. Don’t get me wrong or think me a snob for saying this. I love a good action film, too. Sometimes you do go to the movies to escape. But not every single blessed time. Not me anyhow. I want more.

I could go on and on, but I’m still not quite sure how to describe what it is I saw. I plan to watch it again this week. The acting is perfect from top to bottom. One who elevates herself above the rest though is Jessica Chastain, playing Mrs. O’Brien. In one of her first voiceovers, she says:

The nuns taught us there were two ways through life – the way of nature and the way of grace. You have to choose which one you’ll follow.

That is what her character represents in the film: grace. Grace as a counter-balance to her husband’s representation of nature. She continues:

Grace doesn’t try to please itself. Accepts being slighted, forgotten, disliked. Accepts insults and injuries. Nature only wants to please itself. Get others to please it too. Likes to lord it over them. To have its own way. It finds reasons to be unhappy when all the world is shining around it. And love is smiling through all things.

In my opinion Chastain gives one of the most compelling onscreen performances since Mia Morgenstern’s portrayal of Mary, the Mother of Jesus in Mel Gibson’s Passion of the Christ. Morgenstern said very little in that film, but portrayed everything with her eyes. Chastain does the same here.

Imdb.com had the following brief description of the film posted and perhaps I should have just cut and paste it instead of using my own fumbled words:

The impressionistic story of a Texas family in the 1950s. The film follows the life journey of the eldest son, Jack, through the innocence of childhood to his disillusioned adult years as he tries to reconcile a complicated relationship with his father (Brad Pitt). Jack (played as an adult by Sean Penn) finds himself a lost soul in the modern world, seeking answers to the origins and meaning of life while questioning the existence of faith.

Or better yet, watch this three minute synopsis on YouTube.

All I know is this is a movie that is big. It’s big because it asks the big questions and let’s you come to your own conclusions. It’s not preachy. It simply is. Just as the universe is.

I believe that every man or woman should have a library of books in their home, whether a five-foot shelf or several bookshelves. But no matter the size of their library they should have at least one book of classic philosophy or theology that asks the big questions. I believe the same is true of our video library. Might I be so bold as to recommend you add this one to your own. This will ensure that, while it won’t be the most widely watched of your library, it will be there for you to dust off now and again when you are needing something more. You may sit through it the first time and shrug your shoulders and cuss at me for a perceived waste of time. But if you give it a second chance or more, have your handkerchiefs ready. Because when you get it, it gets you.

I was still meditating on this film while I was sitting outside this morning with my coffee and, as is my routine on weekends, praying the Liturgy of the Hours. Right away was a reading from the first psalm that in essence states “there are two ways a man may take.” And later, in an excerpt from Saint Augustine, we read: The deeper our faith, the stronger our hope, the greater our desire, the larger will be our capacity to receive that gift, which is very great indeed. No eye has seen it; it has no color. No ear has heard it; it has no sound. It has not entered man’s heart; man’s heart must enter into it.

I think Terrence Malick is on to something.

One last thing. The music, slandered as pretentious by those who do not enjoy being asked the big questions, is brilliant. The original soundtrack you find at Amazon.com or in stores is not representative of the pieces included in this movie. I’m going to have to go through iTunes to purchase them individually and compile them I suppose in order to have the soundtrack. Few things are worth the trouble, but this is an instance where it would be merited. If you’re interested in doing the same a reviewer at Amazon has compiled the list here.

“The Way” to good films

After this year I can no longer say emphatically that good movies are not made anymore. I’ve ranted and railed against Hollywood for the past few years about the dearth of great movies. Can you blame me? Endless sequels, comic book movies filled with noise and CGI, or stupid comedies involving mall cops or the Fokkers. The only movies I’ve gone to with any regularity and interest are the Narnia films, the Harry Potter series (which ended this year), or the occasional Pixar film with my younger children (Get Low, released a year ago, was very good). I got so desperate to see something a year ago that I went to my first action movie in ages. Yes…I went to The A-Team. For two hours I had my senses assaulted and tucked my intelligence away, but I admit I had a good time. It was mindless fun and I was familiar with the characters having grown up watching the original television series in the early 80s. But day-umm that movie was LOUD.*

*(I realize that I am beginning to resemble Abe Simpson in my mannerisms. I can assure you I enjoy a movie that’s well done, including action films. Most of the public I suspect goes to the theater to escape the drama of real life. I go to the theater seeking a little more.)

The past year, however, has seen the release of movies that are much, much better.

• The 5^th Quarter
• Of Gods and Men
• The Tree of Life
• There Be Dragons
• Life In A Day

Sadly, nary a one of them came to a movie theater within 50 miles of me, some coming no nearer than an art house theater in Kansas City. If you missed them, you may want to catch them on DVD/Blu-Ray/Netflix. They are based upon true stories (The 5th Quarter, Of Gods and Men); real people (There Be Dragons, Life In A Day); or upon themes that transcend our every day lives and stretch the philosopher in all of us (The Tree of Life).

Of the following, I have the first two on DVD. So far I’ve only had time to watch Of Gods and Men. It is without a doubt one of the most poignant and beautiful movies I’ve ever seen. It is the anti-action film, which is probably why no one saw it. I plan to write more about it soon but I want to watch it at least one more time before I do. I’m very much anticipating the release of The Tree of Life on Oct. 11. Few movies have intrigued me more than this film by Terrence Malick.

Another that caught my eye was Life In A Day, which arrives on DVD on November 8. A unique film put together by Ridley Scott in partnership with YouTube, this film is a representation of what all of “us” were doing on one day, July 24, 2010. Judging from the reactions of those who saw it, especially the naysayers, I will have more to say about this film once I see it.

I await word of the DVD-release date for There Be Dragons, released in May 2011.

This leaves the final release for theaters this year: The Way. This film project is a labor of love between real life father and son Martin Sheen and Emilio Estevez. Tom (Sheen) is an American doctor who goes to France following the death of his adult son (Estevez), killed in the Pyrenees during a storm while walking the Camino de Santiago, a Christian pilgrimage route to the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia, Spain, also known as the Way of St. James. Tom’s purpose is initially to retrieve his son’s body. However, in a combination of grief and homage to his son, Tom decides to walk the same ancient spiritual trail where his son died in order to understand his son better. While walking The Camino, Tom meets others from around the world (three in particular), all broken and looking for greater meaning in their lives.

During his travels, Tom discovers the meaning of one of the last things his son said (in a flashback) to his father: that there is a difference between “the life we live and the life we choose.”

Recently both men sat down with Tim Drake of The National Catholic Register for a brief interview and talked about the film and their faith.

Was it difficult to do a movie that looks favorably on God?
Emilio: It wasn’t, for me. For others, it was. When we pitched it to studio representatives, you could see their eyes glaze over. They’d say, “It’s about spirituality.” So we decided to shoot it digitally and independently. I believe this movie plays between Glenwood and Newark. Beverly Hills and New York can take a walk. Hollywood makes a lot of garbage. We know because we’ve been in some of it. There are less and less movies to go to — films without overt sexuality and language that won’t make me blush. We’re all tired of what’s coming out of Hollywood. Word of mouth will help this film make it.

What was the genesis of your reversion to the Catholic faith, Martin?
Martin: It began after my illness in the Philippines while filming Apocalypse Now. I began going to church because I was afraid of dying. Then I stopped going for a long time. My eyes were first reopened when I was in India filming Gandhi. Then, in 1981, while in Paris, I read the book The Brothers Karamazov. I had been given the book by director Terrence Malick. The book kept me up. After reading it, I went to see a priest and told him I wanted to come home. He looked at me with eyes that said, “This is what I do.” He told me to return the next day at 4pm, as he had a wedding at 4:30pm. He told me not to be late. I went to confession with him and wept. I came back to a Church that was very different. I left a Church of fear and returned to a Church of love.

What do you see as the film’s key message?
Emilio: We live in a culture that’s dominated by a media which tells us we need to be richer, thinner and prettier. What I love about this film is that these characters reach land’s end, and they are fine being who they are. They are imperfect and broken, but God loves them exactly as they are.

Martin: The genius of God is to dwell in the deepest recesses of our being. When we realize that we are loved and belong to this community and understand that we are truly loved exactly as we are, then we’ll discover fire the second time — only we’ll own the fire.

I guess I need to amend my original statement. After this year I can no longer say emphatically that good movies are not being made. They just aren’t shown in theaters anymore.

Another movie to watch for: The Way

I’ve sent out more than one email to friends regarding new movies being released lately, such as Of Gods and Men, There Be Dragons and Cristiada. It seems that the editors at Mere Comments have noticed the same trend and pointed one out today that I hadn’t heard about before: The Way. It’s being released in the US in September 2011 and looks pretty darned good.

Worthy of note, also, is the current run of the film Of Gods and Men about the Trappist Monks of Algeria who were slain not so long ago, the coming release of There Be Dragons, about Christians in the Spanish Civil War (including the priest-founder of Opus Dei) and Cristiada, a film about the persecution of the Catholic Church by the government of Mexico in the 1920s. And, also, a recent film by Emilio Estevez starring Martin Sheen called The Way, about a father who takes up the pilgrimage on Camino de Santiago, The Way of St. James, across northern Spain when his son dies there on the pilgrimage. I do not know the spiritual content or “message” of each film, but do suspect that they at least take faith very seriously. Many are wondering if they know The Way.

The movie’s site also has a bunch of links regarding the Way of Saint James (The Camino de Santiago).

A film review by the online journal of the British Jesuits.

The 5th Quarter

I have been meaning to write more about this film, but have not had the time. Yet I wanted to be sure I posted it here just in case someone who had yet to hear of it reads this. I can remember the 2006 season that surprising upstart Wake Forest had. They had been picked to finish last in the ACC yet somehow won the conference championship, went to the Orange Bowl and finished 11-3 and ranked #17 in the country. But I never knew the back story.

The 5th Quarter looks to be a powerful movie. Aiden Quinn…Andie MacDowell…a true story. It is also, however, my worst nightmare as a parent. My getting through the previews and information I’ve read have been difficult enough. The movie may well kill me. Yet I plan on taking my soon-to-be-a-driver-himself eldest son. I don’t care if he watches his dad turn into a puddle of sobbing goo next to him in the theater. Maybe it will reinforce the messages from the film.

A few links:

The film’s website and official trailer.

A six-minute featurette on the making of the film.

The Luke Abbate 5th Quarter Foundation. As this is a film about the consequences of teen driving as well as the gift of organ donation, this site is an excellent resource for parents.

There’s more. More interviews, more stories, etc. I don’t know why this movie has such a limited initial release, but I’m hoping it spreads to more theaters and areas of the country soon.

I’ll just end here with the extended trailer for the film.