Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind... Romans 12:2
by Brian Godawa
Intervarsity Press, 2002
204 pages
Reviewed by Randy T. Mann
On my first date with my wife, we saw a movie. Later, I asked, "What did you think of the movie?" She replied, "It was OK," and I responded, "No, I mean, what do you think the movie was about? What was it trying to teach?" I believe that all communication, whatever form it may take, is trying to communicate a message and a worldview.
This book is about the worldviews that Hollywood promotes through the medium of cinema. The author, Brian Godawa, is a screenwriter who adapted the story that is the script for the movie, To End All Wars. As the subtitle indicates, Godawa hopes to assist people in viewing movies with "wisdom and discernment."
The book consists of three sections of eight chapters, a conclusion, and an appendix. The first section, "Storytelling in the Movies" contains chapters on "Stories & Mythology" and "Redemption." Godawa discusses the role that myth played in storytelling and in communicating worldviews (philosophies) and values. A movie intends to communicate the way the writer views the world. The chapter, "Redemption," reveals how the theme (the message, or "moral of the story") is communicated in the story. The theme is developed through a basic structure with a hero, the hero's goal, the adversary, the hero's character flaw, an apparent defeat, a self-revelation, and finally, resolution. Godawa says these are the basic elements of redemption, and he outlines various types of redemption. Godawa repeatedly illustrates his points with examples from movies.
The second section, "Worldviews in the Movies" consists of three chapters entitled, "Existentialism," "Postmodernism," and "Other Worldviews." Godawa argues that the philosophy of the academic world reaches the general public, often without self-conscious recognition by the masses, via the medium of popular arts such as songs, novels, and movies. After a brief overview of the role of the Enlightenment and the rise of existentialism, he focuses upon three emphases of existentialism in films: (1) chance over destiny (Forrest Gump), (2) freedom over rules (Pleasantville), and (3) experience over reason (Titantic). Postmodernism is defined in simple terms as "rejecting all absolutes of any kind whatsoever" (pg. 83). He notes the differences between postmodernism and existentialism before giving a detailed analysis of Pulp Fiction as a film that illustrates the postmodernist worldview. In the chapter, "Other Worldviews" he selects four other popular worldviews; fate (Cast Away), monism (Powder, Phenomenon), emergent evolution (Bicentennial Man), and neopaganism (Chocolat) for discussion.
The third section of the book, "Spirituality in the Movies" consists of three chapters, "Christianity," "Angels & Demons, Heaven & Hell," and "Faith." Godawa laments that Christianity is often lampooned in movies, with Christians portrayed as crazy, dangerous even murderous people (e.g. the character, Mason Verger in Hannibal). This anti-Christian portrayal teaches that Christianity leads to intolerance, violence, wife beating, the oppression of women, and murder (pp.132-33). Yet some films affirm the Christian faith (Chariots of Fire, Les Miserables). Certainly, even the adapted Lord of the Rings movies still contain numerous redemptive images.
Many movies have less than biblical portrayals of heaven and hell, angels and demons, and also often reflect a specific "interpretation" of eschatology such as The Thief in the Night (1972) and Left Behind: The Movie (2001). Godawa, thankfully, injects a word of caution about the theology behind this popular movie. The final chapter on "Faith" contains a brief discussion of what is meant by faith, and its relation to facts before proceeding to examine films that portray faith in a variety of ways, including facing doubt (Shadowlands).
In the conclusion Godawa comments that not all films are worthy of our time and stresses the value of getting a preview of a movie's content before watching it. Godawa notes the difficulties that often arise in discussing movies due to a propensity to classify movies simply and passionately as "good or bad" and thus overlook the positive and negative qualities found in all movies. He also addresses issues concerning whether to watch certain movies and the role of one's Christian liberty.
The appendix on "Sex, Violence & Profanity in the Bible" reminds us that Bible translations sometimes "sanitize" euphemisms and expressions found in Scripture. Godawa maintains that the Bible contains material that would be "R" rated so we can't simply ignore such movies. He seeks to differentiate between movies that exploit sex, violence, and profanity, and movies that make a moral exhortation while containing these elements. He calls for a balance between total absorption and total avoidance of movies. We are not obligated to watch any movies. Film critics who do reviews enable us to know enough about a movie's content to interact with our culture without having to actually watch the movie. The "apologetic" purpose shouldn't be used to justify watching "all or any" movie. Sex in the bible is not "visual" as in the movies and we must recognize the impact that visual sense can have on our thought life and behavior.
This book provides important principles for watching movies with wisdom and discernment!
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