My favorite writer, Ted Dekker linked to an article entitled “Why Heathens make the best Christian Movies” on his blog last year. It raises tons of interesting points that those seeking to engage culture with Christianity through entertainment (books, film, music, etc.) should take to heart.
I don’t want to quote the entire article, but there is so much there that is worthy of an audience (especially with, but not exclusively, Christians). Here are some of the best excerpts:
Parables, Not Propaganda
Jesus began many of his parables with the phrase, “The kingdom of God is like …” (He used this construct twelve times in the Gospel of Matthew alone.) In the book All the Parables of the Bible, Herbert Lockyer explains, “Because of His infinity, God had to condescend to those things with which man was familiar in order to convey the sublime revelation of His will.” Jesus’s parables allowed his audience to understand heavenly principles in earthly terms. He would even respond to questions with parables—instead of stating the answer outright, he would allow his audience to make the connections themselves.Christian filmmakers seem to dislike mystery. Rather than using Jesus’s construct, “The kingdom of God is like … ,” their films often proclaim, “The kingdom of God is.” Nothing is left to the imagination. Audiences are not allowed to make their own connections; they are told what to think. In his book True Believers Don’t Ask Why, John Fischer characterizes this attitude as: “Jesus is the answer; therefore nothing can be left unanswered.” This approach, no matter how sincere, rings false to audiences and leaves them feeling manipulated.
“Do You Have Eyes but Fail to See?”
The film Joshua, adapted by Christian filmmakers from a popular Christian book, poses the question, “What if Jesus’s incarnation occurred in modern times?” Unfortunately the filmmakers’ answer seems to be “Jesus came to make nice people nicer” (to quote my friend and colleague Craig Detweiler). Christian artists seem more interested in propagating warm fuzzies than dealing with tough questions. (If King David were alive in twenty-first-century America, would his psalms make it past the gatekeepers of the Christian music industry?)Perhaps the problem can be attributed to the fact that many evangelicals believe it’s a sin to question God. But this notion is not scriptural. Jacob’s name was changed to Israel, one who struggles with God—after his all-night wrestling match with the angel at Peniel. We are allowed to wrestle with God. Yet where are our stories about people of faith who struggle with God?
The Wonders of God
Sometimes it’s difficult for those of us who grew up in the church to truly appreciate the wonders, ironies, and paradoxes inherent in our faith. God is the Creator of the heavens and the earth. Christ was both man and God. These are not small claims! But for those of us who believe them, they become so second nature that they sometimes seem like it.You can see this kind of wonder in The Prince of Egypt, an animated film from DreamWorks, a company owned by three secular Jews: Steven Spielberg, David Geffen, and Jeffrey Katzenberg. In one scene, we see the burning bush reflected in Moses’s eyes as he realizes for the first time that this is YHWH, the Great I Am, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The sequence is everything it should be: ethereal, beautiful, and mysterious.
The Need for Redemption
In our post-modern, relativistic world, non-Christians often deny the existence of good and evil and the notion of sin. Yet, non-Christians are often more successful than Christians at representing sin in film.This may be true because non-Christians are more likely to acknowledge the void within the human soul. French philosopher and mathematician Blaise Pascal wrote, “There is a God-shaped vacuum in the heart of every man which cannot be filled by any created thing, but only by God the Creator, made known through Jesus Christ.” C. S. Lewis used the German word Sehnsucht to describe a deep, inner longing for the “other.” Even such disparate sources as Jean-Paul Sartre and twelve-step recovery programs acknowledge this “God-shaped hole” in our hearts.
We Christians believe this void is the result of original sin, the rift in our union with God, and that our yearning for completion is a sign of our need for redemption, or reunification with God. Yet we are reticent to show this on screen. Our protagonists must be better than good; they are flawless, and inhumanly so. We are afraid that merely depicting sin is an endorsement of sin.
I could go for days on this topic – Evangelical Christianity’s obsession with mediocrity, our disapproval of any doubt or questions, our sanitized flannelgraph version of Jesus and our unwillingness to confront sin on any level, especially in our own life, except with a protest sign and a petition. However, I will avoid this temptation and let you come to and express your own conclusions to this topic. But whatever you do, please go and read the entire article.
I totally agree with the sentiment "parables, not propoganda." As Frankie Schaeffer said in his landmark 1981 book Addicted to Mediocrity, most xian music isn't artistry, it's sloganeering. That is less true now of xian music, but it is certainly true of the xian film industry – it's still very immature.
Can we say "unbelievers" instead of "heathens"? I only like to use that term for evolutionists ;)
Yeah, put heathen in quotes, because I don't like the negative connotation it brings, but I think the author was using it purposely not as a jab to unbelievers, but as a poke at Christians who call things "heathen."
It strikes an ever harsher chord with Christians when you say "heathens make better films" than when you say "unbelievers make better films." I take it as a slap in the face to Christians to wake up and actually imitate the way Jesus interacted with the culture.
I fear I have intimidated people. There is no nudity or blood in this movie. There is violence but it's not graphic. Remember, made in 1960.
LOL! In a room full of intimidators, I doubt you have scared any of us away ;)
Well, perhaps the film is too obscure to discuss, though Ingmar Bergman is required study at film school. I felt the movies mentioned in Parham's article were a bit run of the mill crowd pleasers. I know Parham did this purposefully so that regular movie goers would have some sort of reference to movies they have seen. I didn't feel that many of these movies were thought provoking though.
Parham didn't mention any serious directors until…
An Exception to the Rule
There is one exception to my argument that non-Christians make the best Christian films. A particular group of Christians has excelled in its craft during the past century of cinema. This fraternity includes Frank Capra, Francis Ford Coppola, John Ford, Alfred Hitchcock, Martin Scorsese, Andrei Tarkovsky, Lars Von Trier, and Krzysztof Kieslowski. All operate (or operated) in the mainstream rather than sequestering themselves in a subculture, and all came from a Roman Catholic background.
Can we discuss Gattaca?
Has anyone seen this 1997 film with Ethan Hawke and Uma Thurman? I think its a wonderful movie about the human spirit that should appeal to Christians and Secularists alike. It's one of my favorite Sci-Fi films and the future it portrays is not far fetched at all.
"There is no gene for the human spirit." This is the TAG line of the movie Gattaca, a film that searches deep within the heart of man.
gattaca is a great movie. It shows one of the possible realities of genetic engineering of humans – the creation of sub and super-classes of humans.
I don't see any way to avoid it – I mean, the rich will be able to engineer their children, the poor won't. The rich will have a "purified" genome. But do we really know what we are doing? That's the subject of many sci fi movies.
It was also the subject of Jeremy Rifkin's excellent book Algeny, in which he discusses social Darwinism's ideal of the "perfect, enhanced human." The title of the book is taken from the term "alchemy", where people tried to make gold out of other elements. His point? Alchemy didn't work, and only God (or nature) can create gold.
There is no doubt that we can try to use genetics to remove problems and enhance or select for certain qualities. Just like our fiddling with the environment, there will be some horrible mistakes, as well as real improvements. It's gonna be interesting and scary.
I have to put in plug for Eric Rohmer. I don’t know if you ‘ve seen any of his films, they’re not very popular in the US. I’m guessing Cineaste has….?
No drama, long takes, deep focus, all conversation, not overtly religious at all. Yet the messages in the films are radical – all the more so when you realize that Rohmer (a founding member of Cahiers du Cinema) is a deeply religious Catholic filmmaker. Many of his films are eventually about what it means to live Christian values in a world filled with temptations. My favorite is Chloe in the Afternoon.
I’d stack Roher up against a “heathen” director any day; I bet many cinephiles would agree.
I would probably like a lot of the artsy movies that are being discussed, but I don't have time to watch many movies. If I do I usually play it safe and get something I have heard about because it is a precious moment for me to watch a movie. With a four-year-old and one-year-old, the wife and I don't have many nights out at the movies or really any nights we can go to Blockbuster.
I did see Gattaca and I did like it. I thought the film supported the value of life for all individuals and raised questions on the issue of classes that would result from "designer babies."
Another movie that I thought had a fantastic premise and raised interesting questions was The Island, but unfortunately it was a Jerry Bruckhiemer (sp?) movie which made the plot an excuse to have stuff blowing up and a nice car chase.
If I do I usually play it safe and get something I have heard about because it is a precious moment for me to watch a movie.
This is why I am recommending Ponette to you :) I don't want people to waste their time with something mediocre. This may sound sentimental but when a stranger watches a movie that I have recommended, and it makes an impact on them, I feel as if I have accomplished something in this world. Maybe the accomplishment is small and my movie recommendation made someone smile or think for only a moment. Maybe it was a big accomplishment and the movie changed their life. If the movie changes a person, they will think of the guy who recommended the film to them, even when I have passed away. In any case, it's my little attempt at sharing, making the world a better place and making a difference. Personally, there are films that have shaped my world view and it seems selfish to keep this knowledge to myself.
Here is a link to my film blog Movie Masterworks if you are interested. I need to add reviews of Ponette and The Virgin Spring next.
I'd stack Roher up against a "heathen" director any day; I bet many cinephiles would agree.
RationalSean, you know your French movies :) I liked Chloe in the Afternoon too. Pauline at the Beach was one of my favorites from him.
How can you leave Contact out of this list? Carl Sagan (master of the Cosmos), acknowledging that some things have to be taken on faith? Not artsy or French, but it is one of the more mainstream movies to challenge the athiest view.
I thought Millions was a well done movie also – the portrayal of both past and modern “saints” was really nice, as well as the childlike faith of the boy.
I found a good article at http://www.christianitytoday.com about Spiritually Significant Films called One Bold List
The preceding article is excellent and speaks directly to Aaron’s point in this thread. There are only a few films of these 100 which I have not seen but I some of theme are truly cinephile movies like #2. The Passion of Joan of Arc which is a 1920’s silent film, so I won’t recommend it. If anyone has any questions about films on this list I would be happy to help. Some of the films I would recommend (I’ll note of they are secular, Christian, existential etc) are…
#3. The Decalogue – This is a 10 part series that aired in Poland in the 1980’s. Each 1 hour episode deals with a modern take on one of the ten commandments. Excellent.
#10. Ikiru – My Review Existentialist
#8. Babette’s Feast – One of the best movies about food and religion :) Delightful. I feel women would like this.
#17. Jesus of Montreal – I saw this one on College :) What if an incarnation of Jesus came to us in modern times? How would society receive him?
#38. Ponette – How does a 4 year old cope with grief and God? This made me realize how unimportant adult problems can be compared to a child’s formative experience.
#50. Breaking the Waves – Devastating Christian love story. Only for the strong of heart, no children.
#64. Tokyo Story – My review Secular, considered by many to be the greatest movie ever made. My favorite.
Lonnie, Contact is why more people should classify themselves as agnostic rather than atheist. If there is a supreme being, it don’t think it will be anything like our conception of him, including biblical.
Seeker, I’ve never seen Millions but I promise you, I will get it from NetFlix now.
Wrapping up, I think The Arts&Faith list is an opportunity to explore movies and life issues you may missed out on otherwise.
If you want to explore and wrestle with spiritual issues and questions in the wide world of international filmmaking…look no further than the annually revised list of 100 spiritually significant films published at Arts & Faith.
—Jeffrey Overstreet
Christianity Today Movies,
Looking Closer
[The Top100 list] is a monument to a history of people speaking a different language about eternal concepts, testing this new grammar of light, texture, and rhythm as it contacts the contours of faith and reality. The list honors artists in tune with the human condition, putting human faces on high-concept theological realities…simply put, the list is a guide to spaces of insight and reflection that exist off the beaten track of tried and true spiritual practices.
—M. Leary
The Matthew’s House Project
…an incomparable resource for anyone interested in exploring transcendent themes in the movies…a great starting place for an incredibly rich journey that combines entertainment and eternity for those with ears to hear and eyes to see.
—Ron Reed
Christianity Today Movie
Babette’s Feast – I found Chocolat to be a better, modernized version of Babette’s feast. BF was good but a little slow for me.
Yes, Chocolat was geared more to American audiences, Babette’s Feast was not. Other good food movies are Big Night and Like Water for Chocolate. I tried to recommend movies from the list that I thought would be palettable for most tastes. For example, I didn’t recommend the #1 movie Rosetta because even though it’s a great movie, the style, which is hand held camera and slow pace, wouldn’t appeal. I can’t gaurantee that you will like the selection but I can guarantee that they are masterpieces :)
One of my favorite food movies is Tortilla Soup. LWFC was also a very good movie.