Religion and Film 2023

      This semester I also took a class on religion and politics in America. This source gave me a lot of information I already knew because of that class, and the movie I picked was strongly influenced by the class as well. I wanted to write about modern religion because the discussion in my political science class was so interesting to me, that I wanted an opportunity to expand on it. In the source, it was said that Biblical literalism has gone down incredibly in the early 2000s, but to expand on that, my other class taught me that secularism is now the largest identification in the United States. While our media and other people seem to talk nonstop about religion, I have learned that most people fall into the middle, where they are either not religious or are religious but are pretty private about it. I think that these statistics are important to remember. Whenever we get overwhelmed and think about the polarizing viewpoints in America, we need to remember that the v...

 My midrash source for my essay was very similar to the source that was available in class, but it was a little bit easier for me to understand which is why I picked this one. I used all of the evidence showing how Evan Almighty was an example of midrash and how it connects to modern audiences by showing a modernized Biblical story. Something I found super interesting in the essay was that Midrash is actually primarily Western. The idea was actually to explore culture, mostly Biblical, without becoming completely absorbed in the practice. This feature of midrash did not fit well into my essay but I thought that it was incredibly interesting, and thinking of midrash as a type of summary is a completely new way to think about it that I have never thought of.  Source:  Midrash and Indeterminacy, David Stern, Critical Inquiry 

 John Willis's "Ain't the American Dream Grand:" Satirical Play in Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto V explores Rockstar's depiction of a crime-ridden America to create a satirical play to expose the underbelly of American society and that is the result of the systemic failures within all levels of American government. Despite "Grand Theft Auto V" being a different medium for storytelling, a video game, it portrays similar violence also seen Scarface. Likewise, the game highlights the desire to escape poverty using crime. 

 Darren Aronofsky's The Fountain was hard to watch. The idea of a person wanting another the importance of living life is not new, but it can be fun. I do think The Fountain was capable of doing this; however, the science in the film is a nightmare. Arguably, there is relatively small population that would notice the research process in biotech and possible mistreatment of primates. Regardless, Aronofsky made a dizzying film on a dying wife's desire for her husband to take advantage of his life and being alive using a story that she wrote. 

 Profane Parables: Film and the American Dream     In this article, Joel Mayward reviews the book Profane Parables: Film and the American Dream by Matthew S. Rindge. This review suggests that Rindge explores the nature of the American Dream and the use of parable within secular American film to critique "the American ethos" (2016, 1). By defining parable as "narratives of disorientation, stories of subversion, in which conventional and cherished worldviews are demolished" (Mayward 2016, 1).  Modern films critiquing the American Dream and the, supposed, cookie cutter American experience, the auteurs are pulling back the veil on the deeply ingrained concepts of the American experience and distorting American exceptionalism.  The cyclical nature of American exceptionalism and the American Dream reinforces "the gospel of success" (Mayward 2016, 2). The perceived significance of Americas as a safe haven that promotes a capitalistic analysis of success.

Had I not had the knowledge I gained from this class, the movie The Fountain would have been completely and utterly lost on me (now it was only kind of lost on me). However, I was able to pick out many religious themes, especially Buddhism. Though the switching between timelines was confusing at times, I was able to understand that it was the same characters in each universe living out similar stories. I soon realized that it was Izzi telling the stories. Through her story telling she was trying to tell her husband Tom to let go as she was dying. However, Tom was not ready to let his beloved wife die. He spent his whole career operating on monkeys in hopes to find a cure for Izzi’s brain disease. It is not until she finally dies that he understands that it was time all along for him to let go.

I have never had the experience of going off campus for a class before. That was until I went to the movie theater for this class. It’s funny, AMC was the movie theater I always went to as a child, but it felt different this time. It felt more to me like a college town theater than my hometown one. The ticket was cheaper than I expected, only eleven dollars. But the water I got at the snack bar was much more expensive than expected, six dollars and eleven cents for one bottle of water! The movie was late, and I started to get tired while watching. However, the action-packed scenes kept me wide awake with my eyes glued to the scene. The story of a father trying to regain the trust of his daughter warmed my heart while the intense sword-fighting scenes made it race. I had no idea what Dungeons and Dragons were before I watched the film, it piqued my interest and made me want to play the game. I am glad I had the opportunity to see a movie in the theaters with my classmates.

       Another primarily philosophical reading I had to do for my term paper was an essay on why people do not believe in miracles as much as they used to. Simply put, science can now explain the majority of phenomena we see on Earth. Even heavily religious people now usually believe in most scientific facts because they were born into a world where science and God have to coexist for them. Believing in science no longer negates the belief in God.     Choosing whether or not you want to believe in a miracle or science has to do with a super fascinating concept involving weak and strong evidence. In the essay, it was said that weaker evidence cannot destroy stronger evidence. No matter what scientific explanations have stronger evidence due to their repeating nature and thorough explanations. God, on the other hand, cannot be proven false but cannot be proven true either. People's evidence instinct takes over and prioritizes the stronger evidence unless they...

      For my Evan Almighty essay, I had to look into a lot of philosophical concepts. This is only the second philosophy class and because I am not well versed in the subject it was a little hard to keep track of, but that is not to say that there weren't nuggets of information that I was able to use in my essay.      I wanted to answer the question: How does a person's reason out weight a person's faith, and why does this happen to faithful people? The answer, in essence, is actually more simple than I thought. Essentially, knowledge is commonly described as what is true, however, believing in God is not unreasonable because His truth cannot be proven. This makes sense and it is an argument that it is used commonly by both believers and non-believers alike. This shows that reason and faith are not at odds with each other but are intertwined. So now my analysis changes from why did reason 'beat' faith, to why did the people not believe now as a product of e...

     I honestly was not sure if I was going to like the new D&D movie because I don't play the game and I wasn't sure what to expect. I have sat in on campaigns so I know a little, but I did not think that my knowledge was extensive enough to enjoy the film. The movie ended up being absolutely fantastic and the actions and changes led by the characters were quite consistent with a real campaign. It is incredibly hard to create a plot-heavy, fast-paced movie and to make it make sense, but D&D was able to do it. They simultaneously gave enough information to newer audiences while giving die-hard fans Easter eggs to enjoy throughout the movie.      One film series that was absolutely horrible at pulling this type of storytelling off was Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. These newer Harry Potter films are the first thing I thought of comparing this movie to. This franchise could have used some of D&D's methods of fast but simple narration wit...

I took this class because I needed a writing intensive to fulfill a liberal learning requirement. The only writing intensive in my major was full so I needed to find one outside of my field of study. I saw the title “Religion in the Movies,” thought it sounded interesting, and signed up. I did not consider that I have never really been a person who enjoys movies. Before this semester if I watched a movie I did so for mindless enjoyment and an escape from reality only. I certainly never saw film as an art form. This class has taught me to watch movies from a new perspective. I have learned how to analyze and find the deeper meaning that I did not know was there before. Through watching the movies, our in-class discussion, and doing the readings, I have learned how to appreciate the art of filmmaking. I now consider movie watching a new hobby that challenges my mind.

In his book the four loves CS Lewis outlines four different types of gloves. The first is a desire which correlates with eros love desire is sexual and Erotic. The second love is stroge love. Storge love is similar to affection and it is the love that is shared between a parent and offspring. Both desire and affection are needed for human survival. Humans must desire each other to reproduce and then have affection to rear their offspring. These last two types of love are not needed for biological survival, but they are still important, nonetheless. Charity is related to agape love which is an expression of love that has to do with sacrificing yourself for someone or something else. Philia is friendship which is something not everybody in life experiences but it's still important because it brings a great deal of joy to those who do have it. Lewis, C.S. The Four Loves. Geoffrey Bles, 1960.

The story of Narcissus shows how Aphrodite uses water as a medium to spread love. Narcissus was a man in Greek mythology who was so in love with himself that he thought no woman was good enough for him. This vanity angered Aphrodite. In order to teach him a lesson Aphrodite used water to make him fall in love with himself. When Narcissus saw himself in the water he instantly fell in love with himself. Though this self-love was unhealthy and eventually turned Narcissus insane. not only does this story show how Aphrodite uses water but it warns against vanity. “Switch - Myths - the Love of Narrcissus,” BBC (BBC), accessed March 28, 2023, https://www.bbc.co.uk/switch/myths/static/episodes/the-love-of-narcissus.s

Eros love is a sexual and erotic love that is often associated with romance. Many people in America associate the sexual nature of eros with sin. Verses such as 1 Cor 7:2 “But because of sexual immoralities, each man is to have his own wife, and each woman is to have her own husband.” Support that idea. However, Plato argued that eros love itself was neither good nor bad, it was just neutral. Since love was the desire to possess something beautiful and good it cannot itself be beautiful or good. “Love… is neither beautiful nor good (though he does not mean it is ugly or bad, either). Love cannot be beautiful because it is the desire to possess what is beautiful, and one cannot desire that which one already possesses. ” I think this is an interesting way of thinking about love that challenges our modern idea of it. Levy, Donald. “The Definition of Love in Plato’s Symposium.” Journal of the History of Ideas 40, no. 2 (1979): 285–91. https://doi.org/10.2307/2709153

The number three is a very significant part of the gospels. There are three synoptic gospels, Peter denies Jesus times, there are Jesus is dead for three days, and there are three parts to the trinity. The number three is also significant in The Jacket. Just like there are three parts to God there are three doctors who experiment on Jack. Jesus was dead for three days and Jack travels to the future three times. Peter denies Jesus three times and Jack goes to three different places asking for answers about his death. In both the Bible and The Jacket three is a very symbolic number. I think the director purposefully places the number three in the movie to mimic the Bible and add to the religious symbolism.

I was slightly frightened before watching The Jacket based on the description. I thought it would be similar to Apocalypse Now. I was expecting something psychological, disturbing, cruel, unusual, and gory. Based on this assumption, I was sure this film would be with Apocalypse now at the very bottom of my movie ranking. However, I was completely wrong. I really enjoyed this movie. In Fact instead of being tied for last, it is tied with Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind for first place. If there is one thing I always fall for, it is a heartwarming story, and shockingly, that is what this movie gave me. I found it very touching how Jack helped Jackie in a vulnerable state and in the future, though not really by choice, Jackie was there to help Jack in his. I will definitely be recommending this movie to my friends and family.