Movies with a strong Christian component

C

Cryptosam

Pigeon
Catholic
GodfatherPartTwo said:
Rewatched Beowulf (2007) and noticed a lot of Christian themes, which makes sense given that the poem is Christian. The movie changes things up from the poem, even flips it on its head in some places, but the message of human vanity and the redemptiveness of Christ remain intact.
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Beware, friend, Beowulf (2007) is a subversive film, not a Christian film.

-The murderer and abuser Unfirth becomes the head Priest of the Christian faith in this movie
-Beowulf scornfully says "the time of heroes is dead. The Christ god killed it"
-The coming of Christ is depicted as an end to a heroic age, and by going back to heroism they conquer the dragon, not through their love of Christ

I used to love this movie too, but the subversive elements of it are too strong. The average viewer would walk away feeling like Christianity is bad, and embraced by abusive power hungry weaklings, while the strong mourn the arrival of it, and succeed by ignoring it.

The epic poem Beowulf, on the other hand, is about 400 years old and well worth reading. Beowulf is a Christian who arrives in the land to kill Grendel and his mother, who are water based monsters who survived Noah's flood. The movie didn't depict this story.
 
GodfatherPartTwo

GodfatherPartTwo

Kingfisher
Protestant
Cryptosam said:
Beware, friend, Beowulf (2007) is a subversive film, not a Christian film.

-The murderer and abuser Unfirth becomes the head Priest of the Christian faith in this movie
-Beowulf scornfully says "the time of heroes is dead. The Christ god killed it"
-The coming of Christ is depicted as an end to a heroic age, and by going back to heroism they conquer the dragon, not through their love of Christ

I used to love this movie too, but the subversive elements of it are too strong. The average viewer would walk away feeling like Christianity is bad, and embraced by abusive power hungry weaklings, while the strong mourn the arrival of it, and succeed by ignoring it.

The epic poem Beowulf, on the other hand, is about 400 years old and well worth reading. Beowulf is a Christian who arrives in the land to kill Grendel and his mother, who are water based monsters who survived Noah's flood. The movie didn't depict this story.
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This was my thought too when I first watched it but on the rewatch, I saw this as an expression typical of the character, not the movie condemning Christianity. It's more nuanced than that. The movie is essentially saying Beowulf is Grendel and not to be glorified.

Indeed, the story is different. The Film Beowulf is vain and seeking glory and is later is filled with shame and regret after selling his soul to the devil. He blames Christ for killing the "time of heroes", a time that never really existed. This scene mirrors Anthony Hopkins, who plays another character filled with shame and regret after selling his soul, who also rejects Christ in favor of handling Grendel with a "hero". Beowulf eggs an enemy to put him out of his misery, another scene mirroring Anthony Hopkins goading Grendel into killing him. The film is not saying you should agree with these characters, the film is deconstructing these characters. Beowulfs moment of redemption comes in a Christ-like sacrifice for the ones he loves. He cuts off his left arm, which in a way, is his character admitting he is a monster like Grendel, who's left arm he torn.

The Poem Beowulf is more of a stand-up guy and so is Hrothgar. They have qualities that are to be admired, valued, and replicated. As a Christian, I see those virtues as coming from Christ and so I give Christ the glory. The film makes more of a point to deglorify Beowulf. The Poem makes more of a point to Glorify Christ. All in all, the Poem is a superior work of art but the film is vastly underrated because it dare take liberties with the source material, a lot of which were necessitated by means of the medium.
 
Christopher J

Christopher J

 
Banned
Passengers with Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence. Watched this recently. The reviews weren't very good but it is pretty entertaining. The whole movie felt like an allegory to Adam and Eve. Adam (Pratt) comes first, the only awake man on a spaceship, and he gets lonely and around comes the only awake woman. While the movie doesn't expressly mention God, the themes are always there, and it is a very lighthearted and peaceful movie as well.
 
Christopher J

Christopher J

 
Banned
My pastor mentioned the film Ghost and the Darkness, about two man eating lions in the 1800s. Val Kilmer plays an engineer tasked with building a bridge but these lions keep killing his crew. My pastor talked about it because the Bible mentions Satan as a roaming lion looking for people to devour. This is the best way to watch the movie, with the idea that the lions are a metaphor for sin/Satan. I believe that was the intent as the film is full of Christian references. Anyway, I really loved it and one scene in particular as Val Kilmer gets so fed up with the lion/Satan and feels he has nothing to lose, and subsequently starts to get very bold and just be a total badass.
 
F

FactusIRX

 
Banned
I bought the Criteron Collection of Au Hassard Balthazar because it’s one of my favourite movies. What pissed me off was the essay included in the release argued Bresson was actually an atheist and the film was an condemnation of religion. Of course, the essay was written by a Jew. He claimed this despite Bresson stating numerous times he was a devout Catholic, and Au Haasard Balthazar is clearly an allegory about Christ. The pacing of Bresson’s films are clearly designed around the cyclical nature of the liturgical calendar. These communists must ruin everything they touch.
 
PaulC

PaulC

Robin
Christopher J said:
My pastor mentioned the film Ghost and the Darkness, about two man eating lions in the 1800s. Val Kilmer plays an engineer tasked with building a bridge but these lions keep killing his crew. My pastor talked about it because the Bible mentions Satan as a roaming lion looking for people to devour. This is the best way to watch the movie, with the idea that the lions are a metaphor for sin/Satan. I believe that was the intent as the film is full of Christian references. Anyway, I really loved it and one scene in particular as Val Kilmer gets so fed up with the lion/Satan and feels he has nothing to lose, and subsequently starts to get very bold and just be a total badass.
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The Tsavo lions were real. They are on display at the Field Museum in Chicago.

Colonel_Patterson_with_Tsavo-Lion.jpg
 
P

parrotman

Chicken
Lavabis Me said:
Some are just okay movies that I kept because of a scene or two that I considered strongly Christian; one example is the "I give you back to God" scene from "Les Miserables", a movie that I do think is pretty good and well worth watching:
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Have you seen the newer Les Miserables, with Hugh Jackman and such? That was my introduction to the musical, and still the only one I've seen. Haven't read the book or anything, but... at least for that version of the musical... I thought the whole movie was explicitly Christian start to finish, with many Christian references, themes, and images.

For example, the whole main contrast between Valjean and Javert is one of the central questions Paul addresses: what saves us, Love or The Law? In the musical it's even clearer that this parallel is being drawn on purpose because of parallelisms in the music and lyrics between these two characters.

Then there's the whole "side" story of the political revolution, which also saves no one, putting in mind false hopes of political salvation. Many characters' personal stories lead to a noble sacrifice. Everything culminates in the big marriage feast—and the wicked Thenardiers are thrown out... All sorts of stuff.

Subtle things, too. Valjean's factory makes... rosaries. And this is referenced in an extremely low-key way later, when Javert, threatening him with fresh imprisonment, says, "You'll wear a different chain." The Thenardiers use the name "Jesus" flippantly while also cynically invoking the Lord's name out of greed: "It's no more than we Christians must do."
 
M

MusicForThePiano

Ostrich
Trad Catholic
Reposting this from the other Christian movie thread. This film isn't out yet, but it looks good. I don't know much about the Greek Orthodox historical figures but it seems this man St. Nektarios was under a lot of scrutiny by worldly forces for the good he was doing.



The title in English means "Man of God"
 
D

Dixie Expat

Sparrow
Chariots of Fire. Real life story of a devout Protestant Scottish runner who couldn't compete in a race for team Great Britain in the Berlin Olympics. So he ran a different event and won the gold. As he had dedicated his life to God prior to being a runner he went to China as a missionary and later died in an internement camp there during the Japanese occupation of ww2.

There is another movie, i forget title that is about his time in the internment camp, another good one.
 
Emperor Constantine

Emperor Constantine

Kingfisher
Children of Men is really solid. In it, nobody has had a kid for about 20 years and no one knows why they can't. Finally this British chick gets pregnant and needs help getting to a safe haven since the government is not trustworthy. The movie has a strong pro-life theme, and some of the side characters who help along the way are quietly Christian - you see icons in their home or someone making the sign of the cross. The movie was clearly made for a mainstream audience and I don't think anyone actually mentions Christ by name, but the message is decidedly Christian and you see Christians living out their faith.
 
P

Pacífico

Pigeon
Protestant
Knight of Cups(2015) by Terrence Malick is a very good movie loosely based on Pilgrim's Progress. It has some scenes that might encourage lust so it is best viewed once you get rid of that. It is also very experimental, if you like non linear stories and visually appealing films you might like it. Might post more recommendations once I watch them.
 
Chains of Peter

Chains of Peter

Woodpecker
Catholic
GodfatherPartTwo said:
This was my thought too when I first watched it but on the rewatch, I saw this as an expression typical of the character, not the movie condemning Christianity. It's more nuanced than that. The movie is essentially saying Beowulf is Grendel and not to be glorified.

Indeed, the story is different. The Film Beowulf is vain and seeking glory and is later is filled with shame and regret after selling his soul to the devil. He blames Christ for killing the "time of heroes", a time that never really existed. This scene mirrors Anthony Hopkins, who plays another character filled with shame and regret after selling his soul, who also rejects Christ in favor of handling Grendel with a "hero". Beowulf eggs an enemy to put him out of his misery, another scene mirroring Anthony Hopkins goading Grendel into killing him. The film is not saying you should agree with these characters, the film is deconstructing these characters. Beowulfs moment of redemption comes in a Christ-like sacrifice for the ones he loves. He cuts off his left arm, which in a way, is his character admitting he is a monster like Grendel, who's left arm he torn.

The Poem Beowulf is more of a stand-up guy and so is Hrothgar. They have qualities that are to be admired, valued, and replicated. As a Christian, I see those virtues as coming from Christ and so I give Christ the glory. The film makes more of a point to deglorify Beowulf. The Poem makes more of a point to Glorify Christ. All in all, the Poem is a superior work of art but the film is vastly underrated because it dare take liberties with the source material, a lot of which were necessitated by means of the medium.
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I absolutely loved the Christian passages in Beowulf. The film's attempt to "re"-paganize the source material stank.
 
berserker2001

berserker2001

Robin
Protestant
An0dyne said:
“Silence” has a fair portrayal of Catholicism. I don’t think it glorifies the faux “conversion” at all.

On the horror side, “The Witch” is an utterly chilling look at a Puritan family’s fall from Grace.

For a more positive film, Mel Gibson’s recent film, “The Professor and the Madman” is on point with great Christian themes of redemption and forgiveness.
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I found "The Witch" repulsing because 1) it is yet another example of a modern film which promotes witchcraft as "cool" especially to teen and young adult girls (who are most susceptible to such programming), and 2) at the end, whether by gimmick or not, it appears to show underage female nudity which is seriously messed up to normalize in a film
 
GodfatherPartTwo

GodfatherPartTwo

Kingfisher
Protestant
Chains of Peter said:
I absolutely loved the Christian passages in Beowulf. The film's attempt to "re"-paganize the source material stank.
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Still not convinced that the film is more pagan than the poem. The poem has a a lot of irony and tragedy regarding the Christian v. Pagan conflict that I think a lot of people are glossing over. Beowulf is not a Christian hero. Notice how in the poem Beowulf pays lip service to Christ but still basks in the glory and riches of his conquests.

At the heart of the poem, there's a strong sense of the Nords wanting to embrace the new ways of Christianity but finding it difficult to let go of their old pagan ways. Similar to how we Christians embrace Christ but find it hard to kill off our old sinful ways.
 
An0dyne

An0dyne

Woodpecker
Other Christian
berserker2001 said:
I found "The Witch" repulsing because 1) it is yet another example of a modern film which promotes witchcraft as "cool" especially to teen and young adult girls (who are most susceptible to such programming), and 2) at the end, whether by gimmick or not, it appears to show underage female nudity which is seriously messed up to normalize in a film
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Nothing about “The Witch” struck me as glamorizing witchcraft. Quite the opposite of most recent films/series in the genre. It was disturbing to say the least.
 
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