Books and Culture: The Top Ten Books of the Year
John Wilson shares the B&C picks...
What's the best book YOU read this year?
Steven Greydanus Finds a Fundamental Flaw in "Brokeback Mountain"
Many Christian filmgoers will condemn Brokeback Mountain because they will assume that it is evil due to its subject matter. That's the worst kind of reaction to it. It leads us to become reactionary and judgmental, and it prevents us from learning to be patient, to look closely, to discern.
What I like about Steven D. Greydanus's review at Decent Films is that, even though he gives Brokeback Mountain a failing grade, at least he did the work of thinking through it and seeing it for what it is, acknowledging what is well done and what is faulty, rather than merely judging it and ignoring it.
This is a powerfully written review, and I recommend you read it.
I also recommend that the U.S. Council of Catholic Bishops read it and compare it to their own official review. Who's really doing the necessary work of discernment and service here?
Here's a clip:
Brokeback Mountain is a work of art, more concerned with telling a story about characters than with making sure that the viewer feels a certain way about a moral issue.
That’s not to say that Brokeback Mountain doesn’t have a point of view. It does have a point of view — a profoundly problematic one, one that makes it potentially far more insidious than mere propaganda. All the same, it doesn’t commit the artistic fraud of shaping every single element in its story to move the viewer’s sympathies in one and only one direction. That sort of one-sidedness is increasingly the single thing that I find most quickly sabotages a film’s persuasiveness; nothing else so glaringly announces that the filmmaker himself hasn’t really put his own point of view to the test, and doesn’t trust the audience to see things his way unless he stacks the deck in his own favor.
Did Over the Rhine Put On a Good Christmas Show?
Did Over the Rhine put on a good Christmas show?
Are you kidding? Of course they did.
(Photos courtesy of Paul Armstrong at Wiseacre Design.)
What's Narnia about? Tilda Swinton tells us it's "anti-religious."
Tilda Swinton tells Christians they're "welcome" to Narnia and what it means. And what does it mean?
That good and evil should exist together in balance.
That righteousness is a dangerous idea.
That the White Witch isn't a threat to Narnia... she is Narnia.
And that the story is about the children finding strength in themselves, not in God.
Further, she's apparently unsure whether there is evil in the world.
"The Christians are welcome," [Swinton] says, with composed irony. "As everyone is welcome. Honestly, the connection had to be explained to me. And the more I got to know about Lewis ... I know he was a very devout Christian and that he was capable of writing, as he did his entire life, very obviously Christian tracts. This is not one of them."
Narnia is undoubtedly spiritual, she says, but its world derives from myths and legends that prefigure the religion of tracts. "In fact, if anything - and I cannot believe I am going to say this - I think it is almost anti-religious," she says.
"What I mean by that is that it's about children learning to draw not on any kind of dogma or doctrine but on their own resources, outside of the box. Outside their family, outside parental guidance, outside anything. The thing about Narnia is that it takes you to the heart of yourself, your own conscience and your own experience, and so I think it is so much wider than any religion could be, actually."
If there is evil in the world, she thinks it lies in the lack of doubt. "The incapacity to be compassionate, to be humane and changeable. I am very intrigued by the idea of the righteous. I am suspicious of it, being human. I think that human nature is so much more interesting than that; doubtlessness is not helpful to human beings. So to start the year as the Angel Gabriel in Constantine - and that is the film for the Christians, by the way, not this one - and finish it with the White Witch is a sort of little meditation for me on that idea."
If there is evil in the world. I know, looking at the headlines of the past few years, it's difficult to say if there's evil in the world. But if there is, surely evil lies in Christians and their lack of doubt. Yeah. THAT'S the root of all of our problems. I think Swinton should just go on tour, she could inspire people even more powerfully than Bono with speeches like that.
I mean, what was wrong with me? I thought the White Witch was the villain of the piece, the one Aslan needed to overcome. But Swinton sets me straight.
"The Witch is a force of evil and Aslan is a force of good and they are absolutely in balance one with the other. I am Narnia, in a way ... One of the things I enjoyed developing was the costume, because I was determined that her costume should not look as if it had been made. That it should look like Narnia, that her dress be the side of a hill or her crown should be made of ice."
Anybody else want to insist the film is faithful to the book, with its Aslan and its witch "in balance with one another"?
Narnia's Big Day
Yes, you've seen the trailer. You've even seen the movie.
But yesterday, YESTERDAY was the day we've all been waiting for.
The Narnia Happy Meals are available at McDonalds.
Please note the details regarding the toys included in the package:
Rounding out the elaborate collection is Peter Pevensie and Aslan’s Army. Peter leads his troops with articulated arms and legs, and the prelude to battle diorama features a pop-up satyr, unicorn, and horse Peter can ride.
I imagine it's difficult to lead an army if you don't have articulated arms and legs.
Personally, I think Aslan's idea of a Happy Meal is more along the lines of this...
Don't you hope they include this deleted scene on the DVD?
Farewell to John Spencer of "The West Wing"
A powerful actor, John Spencer, is dead of a heart attack at a young 58 years old.
Spencer won an Emmy in 2002 for his role as McGarry, who was the right-hand man to President Jeb Bartlet, played by Martin Sheen. Ironically, his character had suffered a heart attack that forced him to give up his White House job. This season, McGarry was running for vice president.
...
Before "The West Wing," Spencer was best known for playing quirky attorney Tommy Mullaney on the hit drama "L.A. Law."
Spencer's performance on The West Wing was one of the best reasons to watch television in the last few years. I'm very sad that I'll never see him play other roles.
Brokeback Mountain - Reviewed by Christianity Today
Christianity Today Movies has just published a review of Brokeback Mountain.
And that's just what it is... A REVIEW.
It's not a protest.
It's not someone spewing bile about Hollywood's "homosexual agenda."
It doesn't include any slurs like "Sodomites in the Saddle."
It's a review of a work of art. Written by Lisa Ann Cockrel, this piece is going to do readers a whole lot more good than a rant about "Hollywood's gay cowboy movie." Christianity Today Movies' editors should be commended for refusing to ignore a picture that is going to be a popular subject of discussion at water-coolers, in schools, at family dinner tables, and in churches across the country.
On the other hand, some Christian journalists seem unable to mention the movie without sneering or nicknaming it something foul. If that's the best way for Christians to treat films in which characters engage in inappropriate behavior, why single this movie out? Why not be consistent? Where was this "righteous bile" when Man on Fire topped the box office? Why are we singling this film out as especially heinous for its characters' immoral behavior when a great many character dramas show characters engaging in sins of all stripes every single week? People are drawn to Christ through many endeavors, but they are not drawn to Christ by listening to Christians speak hatefully about homosexuality. There is a difference between speaking powerfully about sin and speaking hatefully about it. Christ never referred to Magdalen as "that dirty whore." In fact, one of the few times he used direct and bitter language, it was in reprimanding the self-righteous religious judges of the day.
The CT review is not a recommendation. It is not a rave. It compliments what is good about the film, informs us about its volatile content, and encourages us to be discerning viewers. For those who do go see it, the review provides these helpful questions:
1. The tagline for Brokeback Mountain is, "Love is a force of nature." Do you agree? Do we get to choose whom we fall in love with? Do we get to choose our sexual orientation? Why or why not?
2. Scripture says homosexual sex is sinful (Lev. 18:22, 20:13; Rom. 1:26-27; 1 Cor. 6:9-11). How should the church engage those who hold different beliefs about homosexuality? Should Christians expect all people to be heterosexuals? Why or why not? What does this mean for how Christians should treat gays?
3. Ennis' parents died when he was young. Do you think the loneliness he experienced as a child played into his attraction to Jack? If yes, how so? When he got married, why didn't Alma's love satisfy his need for companionship?
4. Do Ennis and Jack love each other because they're gay, or are they gay because they love each other? Explain. Had they never met, do you think one or both of them would have happily lived a heterosexual life? Why or why not? What does that say about the nature of sexual orientation?
5. Ennis and Jack determine that their bond is no one else's business. Can love—gay or straight—stay secret and be and/or remain healthy? Why or why not?
6. How should Christians approach films that depict gay relationships? What, if anything, can we learn from such movies? About the gay culture? About ourselves?
I'm proud to be a part of Christianity Today Movies, and I'm looking forward to the feedback that the editors receive for this review. It will be quite revealing.
Specials: Glen Workshop 2006! Narnia strudel. "V for Vendetta" trailer
Thursday's specials:
JOIN ME AT THE GLEN WORKSHOP, 2006
From the new Image Update:
Announcing Image’s Glen Workshop 2006
“Love and Affliction: Grace, Suffering, and the Artist”
July 30 – August 6, 2005The Glen Workshop is an illuminating conference on the arts and religion, where participants practice and strengthen their craft and vision in community. This weeklong event combines the best elements of a workshop, an arts festival, and a symposium. By exploring this year’s theme, “Love and Affliction: Grace, Suffering, and the Artist,” participants will share a common ground for discussion during the week. Morning workshops are small enough to allow the faculty to give close attention to each participant—to beginners as well as those advanced in their craft. This year’s faculty includes illustrator Barry Moser, playwright Arlene Hutton, poets Scott Cairns and Jeanine Hathaway, Linford Detweiler and Karin Bergquist of Over the Rhine, fiction writer Bret Lott, mixed-media artist Barry Krammes, porcelain artist Ginger Geyer, and others. Afternoons and evenings at the Glen feature faculty readings, lectures, and presentations. Each evening concludes with an ecumenical worship service that incorporates the arts. This year’s musician-in-residence, Pierce Pettis, will be giving a concert as well as playing during worship throughout the week. Free time offers participants opportunities for writing, conversation, hiking, and exploring the stunning scenery and cultural treasures in and around Santa Fe. Surrounded by the stark, dramatic beauty of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, the Glen is hosted at St. John’s campus and is within easy reach of the rich cultural, artistic, and spiritual traditions of northern New Mexico.
Look for the 2006 Glen web pages—including registration information—in January. A brochure will be printed and mailed in early February. If you are on the Image subscriber list, you’ll automatically receive a brochure. If you’d like to have one mailed to you, send us an e-mail: glenworkshop@imagejournal.org.
Over the Rhine will be there. Scott Cairns will be there. Pierce Pettis will be there. Greg Wolfe will be there. With a starring cast like that, you'd better believe I'll be there.
Will you?
NARNIA STRUDEL
A wonderful message from my friend Russ:
Here's the only substantive comment I can make on NARNIA, as I haven't seen the film: This morning I was sitting down to eat two apple Toaster Strudels and the individual icing packages had the NARNIA logo and plot trivia printed on them. On the icing packages. The icing packages.
CONDONING TERRORISM?
Here's the trailer for the new film from the makers of The Matrix... V for Vendetta.
Who Would You Pick to Direct the Narnia Films? Or The Lord of the Rings?
Many recent comments have raised this question.
Please don't use this thread as a chance to bash Jackson or Adamson. We've got enough of that going elsewhere, and frankly, I'm fairly pleased with both directors and I'm tired of focusing on the negatives.
But if both Middle-Earth and Narnia were coming to the big screen AGAIN... who would you pick to direct them? What directors have the right sensibilities to elevate these transcendant works of literature to transcendant works for the screen?
While we're at it, if you have any creative ideas about re-making OTHER great films with the participation of alternate directors, what would you like to see?