Film Comment: The Box

The premise of The Box (2009) is simple. A nice couple's world is going nowhere. They (Cameron Diaz and James Marsden) are not poor but are having money troubles. Norma and Arthur Lewis are comfortable but not satisfied. They are in careers which do not bring them personal fulfillment. Then Mr. Steward, the always creepy Frank Langella) arrives with The Box and the proposition.

The box is just that, a wooden box, otherwise totally empty. On the top of the box is a red button. Mr. Steward explains the offer being made by his "employers." He opens a briefcase and shows the couple the $1,000,000 carefully stacked inside. All the couple has to do is to push the button. These are the conditions of the offer:

1. When you push the button someone whom you do not know will die.
2. Mr, Steward will hand you the briefcase and walk away.
3. You are not allowed to ask any questions.
4. If you say no, Mr, Steward will simply walk away with the box and the money.
5. If you tell anyone else about the offer, the offer is terminated.

Of course, the couple decides to push the button, not really believing that anything will happen.  Then Mr. Steward delivers the money.

When Norma and Arthur try to give back the money, Mr. Steward tells them, "I'm sorry, Mr. Lewis, the button has been pushed." And later, he says, "If you didn't want anyone to get hurt, you shouldn't have pushed the button." It is obvious that the only way to pass the test is by not pushing the button.

There are numerous ideas invoked by this film.

1. Mr. Steward can be seen as a type of the Serpent and Norma and Arthur of Adam and Eve.
2. Eternal damnation and the possibility of redemption are mentioned but there is no mention of Jesus.
3. Arthur and Norma are being held personally responsible for their actions but their actions also have global consequences.
4. The belief that "we" are somehow superior to some unidentified "other person." If we profit by their death but are not personally involved in that death are we in some way guilty? What if they were a "bad" person?
5. Is there any way we can undo the bad things we have done?

There are many criticisms which can be leveled at this film. One which bothered me very much as a Southerner was the totally awful attempt at a Southern accent by Cameron Diaz. James Marsden does not seem to have even tried to sound Southern.

This is not a Christian film. It is not even a very good film. Parts of it border on incoherency. The name of the polite and friendly "villain" is Mr. Steward, who is faithfully working for his "employers." The film hints at control of the Earth by an extraterrestrial group with the compliance and assistance of the American government. There is a hint that the Earth may face destruction if we are judged to have failed in this "experiment." This is somehow tied to a very amorphous and numinous idea of the afterlife. The idea actually works better in the original short story written by Richard Matheson.

Names in the Bible: Hosea

The name of the Hebrew prophet Hosea (8^th Century BC/BCE, ca. 780-725) is derived from the Hebrew word for “salvation.”  Hosea and his adulterous wife, Gomer, are seen by biblical interpreters as symbolic of Yahweh and Israel.  Just as Gomer ran away to another man, God declared that Israel was chasing after other gods.  The gods were affluence, Canaanite religions, sexual immorality, drunkenness, and magical practices.

Hosea named his daughter Lo-ruhama, meaning “not pitied.”  His son he named Lo-ammi, meaning “not my people.”  Both names expressed God’s displeasure. With Israel.

What happened next is also symbolic of God and Israel.  Hosea brought Gomer back and with love and patience, restored her to her proper place.  He remained true to her in spite of her unfaithfulness.  His love was redemptive.

Christians believe that what is taught of God and Israel speaks also to them, those grafted into the tree.  The relationship between redeemed man and God is seen as an ideal marriage.  Because of our limited ability to understand, God speaks to us in powerful symbols we can understand.

The names Joshua (Hebrew: Yehoshua) and Jesus (Hebrew: Yeshua) are derived from the same word as Hosea/Hoshea and ultimately mean “Yahweh is salvation.” 

Attitudes

Have you ever noticed that one person with a sour attitude can poison an entire group while one person with a good attitude can create a positive atmosphere in any group with which they are associated?  Christians have every reason to carry a positive and redemptive attitude and should question themselves if they do not.

Attitudes are contagious.  Does your attitude help pass on what C. S. Lewis called the "good infection "?

Film Comment: Beauty and the Beast

La belle et la bête (1946, Beauty and the Beast) is a black and white film created in France by the poet Jean Cocteau.  This is a truly beautiful film which shares its title with the children’s story but is decidedly for adults.

To save her father from the imposition of a death sentence by a frightening werewolf-like beast , a beautiful young woman must agree to substitute herself as the beast’s victim.  When she gets to know him, she realizes that the beast is actually not beast-like at all; he is a sensitive caring being.

Unlike the Disney studios version, this 1946 fairy tale film was never intended for viewing by children.  The visual and poetic beauty of the film cannot obscure  the fact that it deals with many adult themes such as familial duty, longing, frustration,  the real possibility of sudden deadly violence, and a strong undercurrent of repressed sexuality.  The film also has as one of its main characters an animal.

We may not like to acknowledge it, but, biologically, we are animals.  The lesser animals are innocent in their selfishness, but we are not.  We are a mixture of the Law of the Jungle, survival of the fittest, and of our higher impulses.  By our own power, we cannot overcome our self-centered natures (the true essence of sin and separation from God).

In the film, the Beast is redeemed by the pure self-sacrificing love of the Belle.  We are redeemed by accepting the gift of Jesus’ sacrifice and sanctified by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

“That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts;   And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;   And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.” Ephesians 4:22-24

Notes on the film:

Some of the very creepy visual effects may be frightening for children.  Some more conservative viewers may object when they learn that the beast (Jean Marais) and the film’s director, (Jean Cocteau), were longtime homosexual lovers.

Other films:

Beauty and the Beast (1987)  The pilot film for the same named romantic fantasy television series.

Beauty and the Beast (1991)  The animated musical version made by the Disney studios. 

Christ Figures in Films

On of the recurring images in film is that of the Christ Figure, a character who in some ways resembles Jesus Christ as he is depicted in the Bible.  This is often an entirely conscious technique used to create a "heroic" character or to create a character who seems "familiar."  The creators of the characters are quite often not Christians, but they use Christian symbolism.  Many are atheists or agnostics.  They use the religious symbolism for the emotional effect it will produce in their viewers.

The Christ Figure usually exhibits several of the characteristics associated with Jesus, though he is not always a hero.  Sometimes he is an antihero, even a villain.  Sometimes he is a woman.  Sometimes he is an animal.  Sometimes he is a machine.

The characteristics of the Christ Figure may include: mysterious or obscure beginnings, followers surround him,  he teaches, he redeems situations and people, he rights some sort of wrong, attempts are made on his life while he is a child, he is perceived as "normal" until his mission begins, he performs miracles, he confronts authority figures, he is seen as alien or as divine, blood is in some way involved, he questions his mission, he searches for his true identity, he is killed or punished by the authorities, he returns from death (or from banishment, a long absence, etc), he heals, he forgives, he is guided by his father or a father figure, and he (or his ideals) are triumphant in the end.  Not all filmic Christ Figures exhibit all of the these attributes and some film characters can be classified as Christ Figures only by a very elastic use of the term.  None of these characters are the real Christ; instead they are side flashes, faint after-images, flittering glitter, echoes, imitations, and sometimes, exact opposites, like photographic negatives.

Just a few of the characters who are universally recognized as film Christ Figures:
Uncle Tom, in Uncle Tom's Cabin (1927)
Freder Frederson, in Metropolis (1927)
Jean d'Arc, in The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928)
Sydney Carton, in A Tale of Two Cities (1935)
Jim Casy, in The Grapes of Wrath (1940)
Bambi, in Bambi (1942)
Klaatu, in The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
Luke Jackson, in Cool Hand Luke (1967)
Ben, in Night of the Living Dead (1968)
Ben Richards, in The Immortal (1969)
Alex DeLarge, in A Clockwork Orange (1971)
Randle Patrick McMurphy, in One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest (1975)
Claude, in Hair (1979)
E.T., in E.T. the Extraterrestrial (1982)
Kevin Flynn, in Tron (1982)
Mr. Spock, in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982) and Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984)
Glenn, in The Next One (1984)
John Connor, in Terminator (1984)
Paul Muad 'Dib Atreides, in Dune (1984)
Alex Murphy/Robocop, in Robocop (1987)
Preston Tucker, in Tucker: The Man and His Dream (1988)
Virgil "Bud" Brigman, in The Abyss (1989)
Ellen Ripley, in Aliens 3 (1992)
Kenshiro, in Fist of the North Star (1995)
William Wallace, in Braveheart (1995)
Babe the Pig, in Babe (1995)
Thomas A. Anderson (Neo), in The Matrix (1999)
Frodo Baggins, in The Lord of the Rings trilogy (2001, 2002, 2003)
Nameless, in Hero (2002)
Joshua, in Joshua (2002)
T-800, in Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines ( 2003)
Peter Parker, in Spiderman 2 (2004)
Optimus Prime, in Transformers (2007)
Aslan the Lion, in The Chronicles of Narnia Series (2005,2008,2010)
Sam Flynn, in Tron: Legacy (2010)

A case can be made that Dexter Morgan, the serial killer of the 2006-2011 cable television series, Dexter, is an extremely (very, very extremely) twisted and dark form of the filmic tradition of the Christ Figure.  You do not need to have seen this series to know that there is nothing of the true Christ in Dexter Morgan.  He is better described as an Anti-Christ Figure.

The most overt instance of the Christ Figure in literature and film is Superman.  The character was created in 1932 by two Jewish men, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, and sold to Detective Comics Incorporated (the modern DC Comics) in 1938.  Superman (born as the Kryptonian Kal-el) is of extraterrestrial origin and was sent to Earth by his father, Jor-el. "El" just happens to be the Hebrew word for "God."  At the end of a word, it means "of God." Kal-el means something like "voice of God."

The 2006 film, Superman Returns, is overt in its religious symbolism.  The film, Superman: The Movie , is even more explicit.  Superman's Kryptonian scientist father, Jor-el, declares, "Even though you've been raised as a human being you are not one of them ... They can be a great people, Kal-el; they wish to be.  They only lack the light to show them the way.  For this reason above all, their capacity for good, I have sent them you, my only son."

Good Can Come From Tragedy

Regardless of anyone's opinion on the death penalty (and sincere Christians worldwide are divided on the issue), a beautiful thing happened during the 16 June 2011 execution of Eddie Duval Powell at the prison in Atmore, Alabama (USA).  Duval was executed for the brutal 1995 rape, sodomy, and murder of seventy-year-old Mattie Wesson during a home robbery.

Duval died by lethal injection, holding the prison chaplain’s hand.  Before the execution, he was described as talkative and calm.

Executions in Alabama may be observed by the victim's family and by the family of the person being executed.  Before the procedure began, Duval turned his head toward the observation room and said, "I would like to say I'm sorry for all the pain I've caused to my family and the victim's family. I've made peace with myself and God and hope everyone can move on from this situation." 

"While nothing can ever replace our Mother, Mother-in-law, Grandmother or Aunt, or replace the times we've missed, we take comfort in knowing that justice has been served in this case.  We would like to offer our condolences to the family of Mr. Powell. We truly understand the grief they are experiencing. It is our prayer that Mr. Powell has found forgiveness from our Lord Jesus and that he will spend eternity in Heaven."  The statement was signed by Mrs. Wesson’s sons and their family members.

There are consequences for actions, but even in horrible situations there can be forgiveness and redemption.

“Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.” Luke 15:10

More About the End of the World Group

It intrigued me that Harold Camping could so easily ignore what is plainly stated in Matthew 24:36, "But of that day and hour knoweth no [man], no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only." Περὶ δὲ τῆς ἡμέρας ἐκείνης καὶ ὥρας οὐδεὶς οἶδεν, οὐδὲ οἱ ἄγγελοι τῶν οὐρανῶν οὐδὲ ὁ υἱός, εἰ μὴ ὁ πατὴρ μόνος. He ignores it because he identifies the Son (υἱός in the original Greek) with the devil, "the son of perdition."  He does this because, as he says, "To say "Christ does not know all things" is to say Christ did not have the Spirit of God in Him.  This is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit."  Is that so?


Well, actually not.  It is an odd reading of the text to insist that Jesus was not referring to Himself as the Son; he clearly did so in other places.  Also, to insist that Jesus did know the day of the end of the world when He said He did not not comes dangerously close to saying He was not really human, a sort of quasi-Docetism.  Orthodox Christianity insists that Jesus was fully Human and fully Divine.  As a man He could not know more than we can know; "But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:" ἀλλὰ ἑαυτὸν ἐκένωσεν μορφὴν δούλου λαβών, ἐν ὁμοιώματι ἀνθρώπων γενόμενος· καὶ σχήματι εὑρεθεὶς ὡς ἄνθρωπος.  The Greek says he "emptied" (ἐκένωσεν) Himself. Philippians 2:7


This is important because if Jesus was not really a human, not really a man, then he could not have died in our place for our sins.

Film Comment: The Magic Christian

The Magic Christian (1969) is Terry Southern's sarcastic and nihilist bite at hypocrisy, self-righteousness, and pretensions of altruism. This satire of the modern consumer culture skewers the rich, lawyers, social snobs, the church and just about everyone else. An underlying theme during the film is that the hypocrites are running about doing their lives while social unrest burns around them, totally unnoticed by them. The novel (also titled The Magic Christian) on which the film is based was considered by many to be obscene and was banned in several countries. Think of Monty Python with a knife.

Sir Guy Grand (Peter Sellers) is a multi-bazillionare ("I have enough for everyone.") One day, on a whim, Sir Guy adopts a smelly and unkempt vagrant (Ringo Starr, of the Beatles) whom he meets in the park, and names him Youngman, Youngman Grand. "It's grand to be Grand."

Sir Guy takes Youngman out into the world to teach him the ultimate truth; Everyone has a price, everyone can be bought.  Spreading around his fortune with wild abandon, Sir Guy stages absurd situations to expose snobbery and greed and everyone responds exactly as he predicted they would.  Youngman gets into the spirit of his lessons, becoming ever more cynical by the second.

The Magic Christian of the title is a luxury ocean liner which caters only to the ultra-ultra-rich. Sir Guy arranges for the only available food on the ship to be potatoes.

Unless you are a Peter Sellers completist, this is not a film you probably wish to see. It is more sarcastic and angry than funny. When I say angry, I mean bitter. The bitterness comes to full fruition in the ending of the film.

THIS IS A SPOILER!  DO NOT READ THIS NEXT PARAGRAPH IF YOU PLAN TO SEE THIS FILM! SKIP TO THE ENDING OF THIS POST! The film ends with an iconic but disgusting scene in which Sir Guy drives home his point. He hires a waste disposal company to fill a large swimming pool with animal blood, urine, and feces and then, while wearing a gas mask, scatters millions of pounds (this is a British film) into the pool. He and Youngman then stand back as all the men in expensive suits dive in to grab up as much money as they can. Everyone can be bought, everyone has a price. Not money itself, but the love of money is the root of all evil (1 Timothy 6:10) because it is actually the love of self, the glorification of self above everything else, the root sin.

Christians may not realize it but they also have a price. Instead of allowing themselves to be bought by the world, they belong to Christ. Their love is of Christ who is of inestimable value.

"Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:" Galatians 3:13

"For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's." 1 Corinthians 6:20.  

 The price was the life of Jesus, who is fully human and fully God.  How much is God worth?  

Book Comment: If the Church Were Christian, Chapter 2, Part 1

If you are joining this book review series mid-stream , you can read the comment from the beginning by going to the LABELS section following the last post on this page and clicking on PHILIP GULLEY.

Gulley, Philip, If the Church were Christian. Rediscovering the Values of Jesus (New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 2010)

CHAPTER 2: Affirming Our Potential Would Be More Important Than Condemning Our Brokenness

Pastor Philip Gulley says,”I am weary of the church’s efforts to manipulate and shame me.” He believes that the church is a shame-based culture which uses embarrassment and disgrace for control of its followers. “For God to be good, we must be sinners in need of redemption.” This elevates “God at the expense of humanity.“

In his excellent (I highly recommend it) book, After You Believe, Bishop N.T. Wright talks about the type of religion against which Pastor Gulley is in revulsion: a Rules-Based religion in which you are saved by grace and then immediately go back under the Law, trying to live up to your new position as “saved.” People in this type of faith live in constant dread of inadvertently stepping out of line, of any small lapse of protocol and watch other people’s behavior for lapses which they can point out. They think God has a little scorecard He keeps on each of them.

Pastor Gulley calls this a mental illness. Bishop Wright wouldn’t say that, but he would agree, as I do, that it is a perversion, a total misreading of the purpose of the Christian life.

Pastor Gulley insists that salvation is not about “going to Heaven” but is about how we live here and now.  Well, salvation ultimately results in eternal physical life in a place prepared by the Lord (look it up), but Pastor Gulley does have a point.

This is part of a continuing chapter-by- chapter response to this book. More to come.

Jesus Didn't Come To ...

"...when Jesus died on the cross he didn't do so because he wanted to "shift my paradigm." He didn't come to help me "realize my full potential" and "unpack my baggage." Or "overcome my hang-ups." Or "recalenderize my Q1."
Jonathan Acuff in Stuff Christians Like, p.60.