The Hunger Games: Catching Fire -- December 2013

THE HO-HUM GAMES

In 2012 we had the first movie installment of The Hunger Games. This year we have installment #2: The Hunger Games: Catching Fire. There's no doubt that these two films are a sensation: The first entry in the series had earned $408 million domestically by January 2013, and Catching Fire has already earned $371.7 million in the few weeks since its release. So these movies are popular. But are they worthwhile? I saw the first item over a year ago and thought it had its good points. The second item in the series, however, is a rather different story. About 30 minutes into the film, after the action had been set up, I said to myself, "Oh no. Are we going to have to sit through these Games again?" By the end of the movie I was feeling really antsy.

A brief plot summary might be in order here. The time is perhaps 100 or so years in the future. Seventy-five years ago there was a rebellion which led to a civil war and then a military takeover. Since then the US, renamed Panem, has been divided into 12 districts and the government replaced by a dystopian dictatorship called The Capitol. Each year there occurs a major event called the Hunger Games, for which two young persons (a girl and a boy), called tributes, are selected from each district. The 24 tributes will fight things out in the Games until only one is left alive. From the government's point of view the purpose of the Games is to strongly discourage rebellion against the system while entertaining the populace. The Games are televised and extremely popular with the people of Panem – and reminiscent of bread and circuses in the Roman Empire. In the first picture, teenage protagonists Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark from District 12 both survived and "won" the contest – an outcome which had never happened before. Supposedly The Capitol will take care of Katniss and Peeta for the rest of their lives. No one ever really "wins" the games, though. The evil President Snow announces that for the 75th anniversary of The Capitol there will be a "Quarter Quell" which will require Katniss and Peeta to return to battle again with the other 22 tributes.

Thus the action of the second picture in the series is established, and the bulk of Catching Fire deals, tediously in my estimation, with Katniss and Peeta fighting for their survival with the 22 others. Does the film have any redeeming values? Perhaps. In an article in The Christian Research Journal (to be found on equip.org, the website of Hank Hanegraaff, the Bible Answer Man), Christian writer and apologist Holly Ordway discusses the import of The Hunger Games books, written by novelist Suzanne Collins. In a very interesting and erudite presentation, Ordway makes the point that Collins's novels (and perhaps by extension the films) can be used as a vehicle for literary and Christian apologetics. Ordway notes that there is no Christian worldview present in the stories -- God is unmentioned and apparently unknown – but Katniss and Peeta and some of the other characters make ethical decisions. Since there is seemingly no grounding for ethical beliefs, where do these actions come from? In-depth discussions of this question with aficionados of the novels and the movies might be very useful and rewarding. Interestingly, however, Ordway does make the comment that "The plot of The Hunger Games centers on what is essentially a live-action video game."

The picture is satisfactorily acted: Jennifer Lawrence is a credible Katniss, and Stanley Tucci has a nice turn as an amusing television Games emcee, as does Philip Seymour Hoffman as a government stoolie. Donald Sutherland, however, isn't nefarious enough in his role as the evil President Snow.

Bottom Line: Other reviewers have pointed out that both Hunger Games movies are about personal sacrifice, as exemplified in John 15:13: "Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends." There is certainly merit to this observation. In addition, the film's conclusion has a nice twist. For me, though, the video game quality of most of the action overpowers. But since there is no accounting for tastes, you should judge for yourself. See Ordway's article in the Christian Research Journal on equip.org if at all possible.

Film Rating: PG-13

My Ratings: Catching Fire: 2 ¼ stars

                    The Hunger Games (first installment) 2 ¾ stars

2013 Retrospective: Movies Seen in 2013

2013 Retrospective

One Man's Opinion: Movies Seen in 2013

Most Overdone	The Great Gatsby
Most Tedious	The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
Movie with the Foulest Language	American Hustle
Best Sports Movie	42: The Jackie Robinson Story
Best Movie with Music	Quartet
Most Exciting	Captain Phillips
Most Beautiful Visually	Gravity
Best Reflection of the Gospel	The Book Thief
Best Characterizations	Jackie Robinson and Branch Rickey in 42
Best Performances	Harrison Ford in 42; Johnny Depp in The Lone Ranger; Christian Bale in American Hustle; Maggie Smith in Quartet
Best Revisited Classics	Casablanca; Judgment at Nuremberg
Best Movie That Almost Nobody Saw (but worth a look)	Bless Me, Ultima
Also Worthwhile	The Lone Ranger Man of Steel The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug Emperor Prisoners Saving Mr. Banks
Runner-up Best Pictures	Gravity; The Book Thief; 42; Captain Phillips
Best Picture	12 Years a Slave

Bad Day at Black Rock

WHEN IN DOUBT, FIND A CLASSIC

“So show your love for the alien, for you were aliens in Egypt.”
Deuteronomy 10:19


At the moment there’s nothing new out there that seems very appropriate for a Christian audience, so it’s time to look at a classic. Serendipitously, a few weeks ago I just happened to watch Bad Day at Black Rock, an old film I’d heard about but had never managed to see. I’m glad I finally did, though; it’s the kind of picture about which people say, “It’s too bad they don’t make movies like that anymore.”

The year is 1945. As the movie opens, we see a train streaking across the western desert, then gradually slowing, then finally stopping in the tiny village of Black Rock, located perhaps in southwestern Arizona, in the literal middle of nowhere. The few townspeople become alert and pay close attention, for it’s the first time the train has stopped in Black Rock in four years. Off the train steps a one-armed man named Macreedy (Spencer Tracy). Macreedy is dressed impeccably in a dark suit and carries only a briefcase. Saying he’ll only be in Black Rock for 24 hours, he proceeds to the town hotel and asks to rent a room. His reception is hostility on virtually all fronts, for Black Rock has a secret it is hiding.

Asked why he has come to Black Rock, Macreedy says he needs to find a Japanese man named Komoko who supposedly lives nearby in a place called Adobe Flat. The boss of the town (Robert Ryan) tells him that Komoko was taken to an internment camp at the beginning of the war. When Macreedy expresses disbelief, he incurs the boss’s wrath and before long finds his own life in danger. Not wanting to spoil your viewing pleasure, I won’t say anything more about the resolution of the conflict but will leave it to you to buy the DVD, get it from the library, or order it on Netflix. It’s more than worth it.

Black Rock is riveting, drawing you into the action almost without your knowing it. Not a scene is wasted. Released in 1955, it has a McCarthy era subtext. The film is about acquiring courage, about loving your neighbor, about making brave moral decisions. Tracy and Ryan superbly play the roles of hero and villain, respectively, and Ernest Borgnine and Lee Marvin are effective as slimy thugs. Walter Brennan as the town undertaker and Dean Jagger as the weak, alcoholic sheriff also perform well. Anne Francis does a creditable job at playing the town’s only visible woman. The scenery is amazing.

Anyone who likes movies should know Bad Day at Black Rock.

My rating: 3 ½ stars
    

Doubt; Slumdog Millionaire -- April 2009

ARE YOU CERTAIN, OR DO YOU HAVE DOUBTS?

It’s the year 1964. Sister Aloysius, principal of a Catholic school in the Bronx, runs a tight ship. Times are changing and standards slipping, she feels; the only antidote is strong discipline. Most of the students are terrified of Sister Aloysius, and that’s the way she wants things. Contrast her character with that of Sister James, a young nun who believes learning can be an exhilarating experience and tries to fill her classroom with joyfulness. Contrast both sisters with Father Flynn, a young, outgoing priest who loves his congregation and has sympathy for the students. Here we have all the ingredients for a collision course, and that’s exactly what we get in Doubt – in my view, one of the best pictures this year. Too bad it didn’t get a Best Picture nomination.

Here’s the key characteristic of Sister Aloysius: she’s absolutely certain about everything. One day Sister James observes Father Flynn in an action which might be inappropriate: he puts his hands on the head of Donald, the first black student in the school. Sister James reports this action to Sister Aloysius, and it isn’t long before the fireworks begin. Sister Aloysius is absolutely certain that a wrong has been committed and will stop at nothing, including lying and blackmail, to right this wrong. She arranges a confrontation in which she bullies Father Flynn with the question “What did you do to that boy?” Father Flynn reluctantly responds that Donald was caught drinking the altar wine and that he merely wished to protect him from incrimination and exacerbation of his already difficult situation: he is the only black child in a white school and is basically friendless. Sister Aloysius, of course, will not accept this; she’s too offended by Flynn’s lack of decorum in, for example, taking three sugars in his tea and keeping his nails long. Aloysius soon arranges a meeting with Donald’s mother, during which the mother tells the sister that her son does have some unfortunate “tendencies.” This closes the sale for Aloysius, who immediately begins agitating for Flynn’s removal.

Doubt was directed by John Patrick Shanley, who also adapted the screenplay from his own Doubt: A Parable, which won the 2005 Tony award for best drama. The acting is uniformly excellent: Meryl Streep plays Sister Aloysius, Philip Seymour Hoffman Father Flynn, Amy Adams Sister James, and Viola Davis Mrs. Miller, Donald’s mother. It is sometimes said that if we hate the character portrayed by an actor, that actor has done a creditable job. Well, I hated the character of Sister Aloysius. Streep is nothing short of brilliant.

Doubt gives no easy answers; in fact, it gives no clear answers at all as to what really happened or whether or not Father Flynn is guilty. The recent sexual abuse scandals involving Catholic priests are part of the backdrop of the picture but not its main focus. The film is really about the interaction of doubt, faith, and certainty and might seem at first glance to be suggesting that doubt and faith are at odds. Shanley appears to be saying the opposite: that doubt and faith go hand in hand, and there is a pernicious danger in slavish adherence to certainty. As Proverbs 3:7 says, we are not to be wise in our own eyes.

This movie will make you think, at the very least.

Film Rating: PG-13
My Rating: 3 ½ stars
Highly Recommended

    

I can’t resist some brief comments about Slumdog Millionaire, which recently won the Academy Award for Best Picture: In a nutshell, Slumdog is about Jamal, a young Muslim man (and an orphan) from Mumbai, India, who is on the verge of answering the final question in India’s version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. The show’s producers have him arrested, though, because they think a “slumdog“ like Jamal could not be this knowledgeable and therefore must have cheated. In a series of flashbacks during the police interrogation, Jamal recounts events in his life that illustrate how he knew the answers to the questions. This riveting and touching movie is one of the most original pictures in some time.

HOWEVER: Strong cautionary note: It is rated R, is quite violent, and is not appropriate for children or younger teenagers.

My Rating: 3 ½ stars.
Highly Recommended

The Book Thief -- November 2013

WORDS ARE LIFE

Time: the late 1930s. Place: Nazi Germany. Situation: 11-year-old Liesel has just been transported by train to the town of Molching – a fictional name for a real town on the outskirts of Munich. The State has recently taken her away from her mother, reputedly a Communist fleeing for her life, and Liesel has watched her brother die on the train and be buried next to the tracks. The authorities have arranged with salt-of-the-earth citizens Hans and Rosa Hubermann to be the new "parents" of Liesel, in return for a governmental housing stipend. The Hubermanns are disappointed that they are only going to get half of the money, but they have little choice but to take Liesel in. Given her initial reception, it appears initially that Liesel is going to be jumping from the frying pan into the fire, but we soon see that Papa Hans has a big heart and will treat Liesel kindly. Mama Rosa seems like a dragon lady at first, but we eventually learn that her crusty, gruff exterior conceals a much warmer heart. But then there are Liesel's problems: She's numb from all she has witnessed, and she comes with a great deal of mental baggage. Most seriously, she is illiterate. She is frightened and at first refuses even to communicate with her new parents. Things look grim for Liesel, who has nowhere else to turn.

Thus we have the framework for a new movie entitled The Book Thief, based on a novel by Markus Zusak and directed by Brian Percival, best known for his helming of the PBS TV series Downton Abbey. Those familiar with the TV series will recognize the same sort of draw-the-viewers-into-the-story quality present in The Book Thief. The picture stars Geoffrey Rush (of The King's Speech) as Papa Hubermann, Emma Watson (of War Horse) as Mama Hubermann, thirteen-year-old Canadian actress Sophie Nelisse as Liesel, and American actor Ben Schnetzer as Max, the Jewish refugee the Hubermanns take in and hide in their cellar.

Shortly after Liesel's arrival at her new home, Mama Hubermann takes her to school, where she is immediately humiliated. The toe-the-line teacher asks Liesel her name and then insists she go to the blackboard and write it. Liesel is unable to do this because she can neither read nor write. Most of her classmates laugh mercilessly at her and begin calling her "dummkopf" ('dumbhead,' 'dodo,' etc.). She makes one friend, though, a young neighbor named Rudy, who stands up for her. At home Papa shows he is in Liesel's corner by promising to help her learn to read, telling her that he really doesn't read all that well himself and that they will help each other. Liesel is fascinated by words and extremely motivated to learn. Papa shows her a dictionary that he has begun to write on the cellar walls, encouraging Liesel to write down every new word she encounters. This privilege is exactly what Liesel needs, and she starts to make fast progress in conquering the mystery of the written word. She's soon borrowing books illicitly from the wife of the town burgermeister, sometimes without telling her – hence the book and film's title.

One night shortly thereafter the Hubermanns hear an insistent knock on the door. On opening it, they discover a young man who identifies himself as Max. It seems that in the previous war Max's father saved Hans Hubermann's life, and thus Hans vowed he would always be there for his friend's son. Max is running from the authorities, so the Hubermanns must give him refuge in their cellar. It isn't long before Liesel and Max become fast friends. Max makes a big impression on Liesel, telling her that not only must she continue to read but must become a writer herself. "Words are life," he tells Liesel, and those words become Liesel's watchwords. When Max becomes very ill, Liesel helps to keep him alive by reading aloud to him, day after day.

The picture is full of a great many other interesting happenings which I'll leave for you to discover on your own. Be assured, though, that The Book Thief is riveting, touching, and substantive. The performances by the principal actors – indeed, by the entire cast – are compelling. Above all, the movie is about personal sacrifice for the good of others. As the Apostle Paul tells us in Philippians 2:3-4, we are to "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others."

Film Rating: PG-13 – largely for war violence

My rating: 3 ¼ stars
Highly Recommended

Gravity -- October 2013

LOST AND FOUND

Picture yourself in this situation: You're 200 miles above the earth in a space shuttle, accompanied by one other person, and you're involved in the task of servicing the Hubble Telescope via space walk. He's an experienced career astronaut named Matt Kowalski; you're a medical engineer who's new to space and inexperienced. He's an outgoing, jolly sort; you're anxious and somewhat bitter. Your daughter died in a school accident some time back, and you really don't have much of a plan for the rest of your life. But now you realize that you and your cohort are in deep trouble. A few hours ago the Russians tried to shoot down one of their own satellites, but their plan went awry. It caused a chain reaction resulting in great quantities of debris being released into space. The debris hit the shuttle you and your partner were in and disabled it, making it necessary that you and he somehow get to the International Space Station, where you can find solace and safety. The trick is, you have to do it without any kind of spacecraft to take you there.

If this were you, you'd be Dr. Ryan Stone, an unmarried woman in a most precarious situation. You'd be the main character of a new picture entitled Gravity, a film which shows a marvel of cinematic effects along with a compelling plot and spiritual underpinning. The picture was directed, co-written, and co-produced by Alfonso Cuarón. With its stunning special-effects-treatment of navigating in the weightlessness of zero gravity and its gorgeous shots of Earth and other celestial objects, Gravity is a strong contender in the upcoming Academy Awards.

Matt and Ryan decide they must attempt to make the 60-mile trip to the International Space Station using thrust packs while tethered together, and they have only 90 minutes to do it. While they're en route, they talk about Ryan's life, the loss of her daughter, and her lack of plans for or faith in the future. They manage to make it to the ISS but on doing so discover that it has been evacuated. What to do? They hit upon the idea of traveling to the Chinese space station because there are two modules there that they can use to take them back to Earth. They set out to do this, but when they arrive they find that the Chinese station has also been evacuated, and there is only one operable module. Through a series of unforeseen events, Ryan and Matt become separated, and Matt drifts away into space. Ryan is now alone without really knowing what to do. Almost out of air, she resigns herself to a slow death by asphyxiation, but when all looks the blackest, a visitor comes to help her. I won't say any more about the plotline but will leave it to you to discover the outcome on your own.

In her depths of despair before the encounter with the miraculous visitor, Ryan ponders her empty life, which has never been imbued by faith. "Nobody will mourn for me. Nobody will pray for my soul," she muses to herself. "I've never said a prayer in my life. Nobody ever taught me how." But then the mysterious visitor arrives, scolding Ryan and causing her to regain her drive and courage. As the visitor leaves, she says, "Give her [my daughter] a big hug and a big kiss for me … You tell her that I love her so much."

Gravity is an impressive picture indeed. In a basic sense it has a similarity to shipwreck stories such as Robinson Crusoe, Cast Away, Swiss Family Robinson, and the like, but in other senses it is unique. It's about the human will to live and the need to live one's life forcefully, no matter the hand one has been dealt. Sandra Bullock and George Clooney play the roles of Ryan Stone and Matt Kowalski with skill, but to my mind it's the spiritual dimension that really makes the movie. I found myself desiring more, wanting the story to go on after its conclusion, but on reflection have decided it's just fine as it is. The only negatives are some unfortunate language. You won't go wrong in seeing it -- in 3-D if you can.

Film Rating: PG-13

My Rating: 3 ½ stars

Captain Phillips -- November 2013

NOT THE PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN

Moe: Hey Joe, guess what? For once I've got a movie to recommend to you – if you haven't already seen it, that is.

Joe: Well, good. What movie is it?

Moe: Captain Phillips – it's the one about that American ship that was commandeered by Somali pirates about four years ago.

Joe: Oh, yeah – no, I haven't seen it, but I've been wanting to. So tell me about it. What did you like about it?

Moe: It's really intense – and exciting. It never slows down so you can catch your breath. Great performances, too.

Joe: So what happens? I know basically what it's about, but give me some details.

Moe: It's based on a true story that happened in April of 2009. Richard Phillips was the captain of a cargo ship called the Maersk Alabama. Their task was to take the cargo from Oman on the Arabian Peninsula to the port of Mombasa in Kenya.

Joe: Did they have any idea they'd be attacked by pirates? Were they prepared?

Moe: Yeah, they were more or less prepared. They had water cannons that were supposed to repel pirates if they attacked, and Captain Phillips was a stickler for preparing the crew. Actually, most of the crew members were reluctant to go through drills, but Phillips insisted. And then it happened. A group of four Somali pirates managed to board the ship and take it over.

Joe: So how in the world did they manage that? This was a gigantic ship, right? How big was the Somali boat?

Moe: It was just a skiff – but the pirates were really determined. The State Department found out later that they were all 17 to 19 years old, so I guess it had to do with the impetuosity of youth. They probably thought they were invincible. And the Maersk Alabama was so big it couldn't maneuver quickly. The water cannons weren't really effective either.

Joe: What happened once the pirates commandeered the ship?

Moe: Well, I'm not going to tell you everything; if I do it'll spoil your viewing. The pirates do succeed in capturing the captain. It appears they don't want to kill anyone; one of the Somalis says, "This is just business." They demand an astronomical amount of money. 
Eventually the U. S. military enters the fight.

Joe: You said the performances are good?

Moe: They sure are. Tom Hanks does his usual solid job of acting. And the guys who play the Somali pirates are really strong. The one who plays the lead is a Somali actor named Barkhad Abdi. He's pretty amazing. At the end of the movie the credits say that the Somali communities of Ohio, Minnesota, and London were part of the filming.

Joe: Any reservations about the movie?

Moe: Well, it's pretty violent in places, and there's some offensive language. Some of it is painful to watch. The other thing, though, is that I'd like to have seen more of a historical context. There are some scenes of pirates planning the raid in Somalia, but I wish there'd been at least a little more about Somalia and why the pirates were so desperate and how piracy got started there. Even so, it's really worth seeing. Hanks plays Captain Phillips as a committed family man, and he comes off as a real hero.

Joe: Well, Moe, can I take the kids?

Moe: It's rated PG-13, so I guess it'd be OK to take your teenagers. I don't think I'd take anybody younger.

Joe: What kind of rating would you give it?

Moe: Let me think – I guess I'd give it 3 ¼ stars.

Joe: OK, you've convinced me. Thanks, buddy.