Movies, Mom & Me

1. Who's watched:  M & G, ad infinitum
2. Mentions:  *1* *2* *3* *4* *5* *6* *7*
3. Commentary:  For the most complete coverage of this series in our lives, best for you to click into the first Mention, above. Otherwise, suffice it to say that, as of this date, I still haven't been able to watch any of the episodes of this series (as I haven't since my mother's death), but refuse to pass these DVDs on to someone else.

Labels: drama, fantasy, mom-favorite, spiritual, TV

# posted by gail @ 13:31    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1*
3. Commentary:  Yes, Mom and I watched this movie a long time ago, when it first came out in video. Remembering how Mom enjoyed it (whether or not she believed in angels, I never asked her this, despite her interest in this movie and the Touched by an Angel series), when I noticed it on TV during our channel surfing episodes, if nothing else looked more interesting to her, I'd click into it. I watched the entire movie once. Although I was (an remain) impressed with the visualization of how the angels in the movie exist on earth, since I'd seen Wings of Desire long prior to watching this movie, became interested in this movie because I enjoyed the former and was sorely disappointed that the remake was sooooo much different than the movie upon which it was based, after my first watching, I subsequently paid little attention to it, except, I must mention, the panoramic shots of angels, which I continued to admire.
       Then, Mom died, and, well, the rest of the story of my relationship to this movie and why I decided to purchase a copy of it is contained in the link up there in the Mentions section. And, yes, I'm still embarrassed by my late-realized attraction to certain scenes in this movie. It is, for instance, with some chagrin that I'm labeling (below) this movie in the "spiritual" category. Objectively, it's not, really, but I have to say, reluctantly, that the effect of the angel-vision scenes on me after my mother's death is emotional-spiritual (probably the "emotional" aspect is more important than the "spiritual" aspect).

Labels: drama, fantasy, haunting, me-favorite, romance, spiritual

# posted by gail @ 12:24    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  Yes, this is yet another jesus dvd that is a Jesus movie. We rented it first. For some unknown reason, I had the idea that maybe we had enough Jesus movies for Mom and she'd consider this one overkill, but I was wrong, which is why I purchased it for her. We've watched it several times.
     I appreciate it for the explanation it contains of certain cultural customs to which members of "The Holy Family" would have been obligated, but, more than this, some of the oblique symbology of the birth of Jesus is explained, such as the signficance of the gifts received from "the wise men". There is strong enough emphasis on the importance of the visiting of the shepherds that I finally understood this aspect of the Jesus Nativity Story. And, the parallel story of Elizabeth and Zechariah is well woven into the presentation.
     My mother, of course, is enthralled with the movie. The more apparently realistic Bible movies are, the more she likes them. This one rang a bell for her. She even enjoyed the offhand comic relief of the three wise men.
     I may have mentioned this before: I'm not Christian, never have been, actually, even though I was raised in what would be considered a typical Christian household of the 50's and 60's, which is to say, only mildly religious but with a strong emphasis on morality and ethics, not necessarily connected to but often echoing Christianity in particular. Because my mother is deeply spiritual, though, and uses Christianity as her spiritual touchstone (and, for a few other reasons, as well), I spent a fair amount of time (still do, in fact) investigating and thinking about Christianity. I've been at the point, for some years, where I firmly doubt the existence of the historical Jesus as presented in Christianity (even the Christian gospels hint that the Jesus they present never existed) but, because much of the symbology and beliefs are ubiquitous in many theistic and nontheistic religious doctrines and practice, the entire area of spirituality bounded by religion fascinates me and Christianity, being the first religion to which I was introduced, thus the one with which I am most familiar, is a good jumping off point for me. This movie, in particular, is a succinct reminder of the power of the Jesus story, Jesus mythology and Christian dedication. As well, while I was absorbing Elizabeth's story alongside Mary's, I was suddenly struck by the importance of the mothers of gods, in stories such as these, always being in some way barren, or, in the case of the births of great leaders of a theistic religion, the birth itself or the baby being threatened, thus the birth of the god or the leader is usually (except, for instance, in the case of Abram/Abraham), somehow miraculous. I don't know why I never before paid attention to this.
     Soon after we watched this movie a few times and had some stimulating conversations about Christianity in particular and spirituality in general, I decided to rent The God Who Wasn't There so Mom could get a better idea of why Christianity interests me but doesn't cause me to "fall on [my] knees". No, this isn't a movie we'll be purchasing. I was familiar with most of the stuff in it when I originally saw it and don't need it as a resource. But, Mom found this movie interesting and worthy of discussion, although it didn't sway her belief in her religion. I didn't expect this. Even those of us who aren't swayed by beliefs in gods and the ritual detail of god centered religions often have belief systems that make no rational sense but hold sway over us, anyway. At any rate, something I realized when we discussed spirituality and religion from the point of view of The God Who Wasn't There is that Mom is firmly centered in life-here-and-now rather than death-in-the-sweet-by-and-by. This, I think, is the important difference between her spirituality and that of many people who consider and call themselves Christians.
      The Nativity Story is not nearly as spiritually powerful for me as, say, The Little Buddha, for instance, but it's provocative, nonetheless, and I can count on it to trigger interesting discussions about religion and spirituality between my mother and me.

Labels: bible movies, Christmas, drama, jesus-dvds, mom-favorite, period, spiritual

# posted by gail @ 12:28    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1* *2*
3. Commentary:  Again, another movie in which the "mentions" say it all; except for an update: We've watched this movie a couple more times since I purchased it. Each time, I question Mom on her one preferred memory. Each time, she comes up with a variety of memories but still can't decide which she'd keep and which she'd allow to be blocked.
     One other thing: I noticed, when I received our purchased copy, which came in a DVD case with, you know, the usual info sleeve, that my interpretation of the movie, that one relives their chosen memory for eternity, is exactly the way the sellers of the movie to the U.S. interpret it. Here is the specific part of the cover blurb: "With the help of dedicated caseworkers, each soul is given three days to choose one cherished memory from their life that they will relive for eternity." Interesting that the English subtitles for the movie don't exactly explain this. Makes me wish I was fluent in Japanese, so I could tell if the original script for the movie suggests this. I wonder if this interpretation is strictly a U.S. cultural interpretation or if the movie is meant to communicate this and does so in the Japanese dialogue. Comments from anyone who is fluent in both Japanese and English in regard to this mystery would be welcome.

Labels: drama, dream, fantasy, film-art, haunting, shared-favorite, spiritual

# posted by gail @ 18:10    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1* *2* *3*
3. Commentary:  I noticed, in the mentions, one of them states that Mom always thinks she wants to see this movie, then she gets bored with it. This is no longer true. It is now one that she asked after the last time we did a "jesus movie" festival, so, this year, I purchased it.
     For me, as well, the more I watch the movie, the more I like it. I tend, now, to ignore the discontinuities, like yet another Nordic Jesus, Harvey Keitel as a red-headed Judas and Barbara Hershey's bee-stung lips. Especially since I've read the book, I tend to appreciate the story more for what it symbolizes rather than what it portrays.
     I think what Mom likes about it is the gritty realism and the startling detail, like how the crosses are made. We watched this movie again, recently, right after I ordered it and just after a couple of other Jesus movies. It seems that each movie has its own version of how crucifixion crosses are constructed, which mom noticed this time around, which led to yet another Jesus movie festival.
     The only disappointing aspect of this movie was that it promised subtitles and they may exist but they aren't listed in any of the menus so I'm not sure if listing this as a feature was an error or if there is an Easter Egg technique to cuing them. I need to check this out. It does not feature Closed Captioning. I was afraid this would be a problem for Mom but the first time we watched it after receiving it, Mom had no problem with it. This is, at any rate, primarily a visual feast for her, so I guess that's why it doesn't matter. As well, the dialogue is not mumbled or distorted by other sound tracks.

Labels: bible movies, drama, fantasy, haunting, jesus-dvds, period, shared-favorite, spiritual

# posted by gail @ 12:24    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  Mom and I have caught this at least three times when it's showed on PBS during their funds drives. For both of us it's the Cosmos of philosophy/spirituality.

Labels: documentary, shared-favorite, spiritual

# posted by gail @ 17:07    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  I bought this because we never caught the entire show on PBS and it intrigued both Mom and me. We haven't had it very long but have watched it twice. After the second watching I ordered the book. I'm sure it will be one that she and I will read aloud together. Although my mother considers herself a Christian and has a grounding in and much respect for C. S. Lewis' theology, both times we've watched this, during some of the explanation of Freud's thought journey to atheism, my mother has said, "You know, he's got a point, there."

Labels: documentary, shared-favorite, spiritual

# posted by gail @ 17:06    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1* *2*
3. Commentary:  Although this is neither a movie nor a show, it is a DVD production with which to be reckoned and deserves mention. This production has some technical faults such as not being able to pause and fast forwarding/rewinding is painful. But the voice and voice variants are excellent and Mom and I are both fascinated with watching the bible and listening to it being read. We've picked up a companion explanation bible to consult.

Labels: audio-visual, jesus-dvds, spiritual

# posted by gail @ 02:21    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  This movie is seductively misleading. Many of the ideas are tantalizing to contemplate, but there are inconsistencies and contradictioins that show that this movie is more a travelogue for New Age Meta-Physics. It is colorful, though, and provocative to watch. Much less so, though, than, say, Cosmos.
     The most glaring problem is that the movie doesn't live up to its hype and does not fulfill even the blurb promises. I bought it sight unseen (stupid move, always) on the recommendation of someone whose knowledge of me and opinion, especially in these matters, I value. Unfortunately, it is one of those recommendations that casts an uneasy light on the value of the recommender's opinions.
     The second problem lies in its hazy way of some times including what we think of as the inanimate world in on the "you create your own reality" scenario, then explicitly excludes it. Example: The narrative cites the experiment done in Japan that involved an experimenter writing descriptions of feelings on pieces of paper, using them to label jars of water, then doing what I imagine is a combination EEC/MRI on the cells of the water; the water, of course, mirrors the state written on its label. This experiment begs several questions, not the least important of which is, what about the reality of the water?
     This movie is not going to change anyone's life, I don't think, not directly, anyway, but it's fun to watch. I haven't decided, yet, whether I'm going to keep it or eventually trade it in.
       The third is that, in the end, the movie is a promo for a movement. Makes the viewer wonder about the involvement of each of the cast members. Always a bad idea, except in historical perspective.
     Mom enjoyed it, especially the sessions with the 35,000 year old basketball hustler.

Labels: fantasy, science, spiritual

# posted by gail @ 07:21    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  I'll bet we've seen this movie, on cable, at least four times. When we notice it, anywhere, commercials or not, we watch it. We forget it between being seredipitiously reminded, though. It is a movie that fascinates us at several levels, though.

Labels: biography, historical, political, spectacle, spiritual

# posted by gail @ 10:35    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  This movie was recommended to me by another customer looking for movies as Valentine's Day gifts. She and I explained to one another what we were looking for. I had a list...she did not. But, she suggested this movie, and another, which I'm going to return as, after I came home I remembered Mom and I had 'tried' the movie on cable and couldn't get into it. Not even with Gena Rowlands, who we'll usually watch in anything.
       Anyway, I remember being suspicious of this movie when it first came out, around the time that John Edwards became very popular. Not that I didn't find him fascinating, too, for awhile, and my mother was hooked on his shows, but, for some reason that I can't remember, I dismissed the movie without seeing it.
       So, neither of us has seen it, it should be interesting, and I don't know if we'll be keeping it or passing it on to someone else.
       2/14/05: We watched this movie last night. We both found the special effects fascinating, although we made the mistake of watching the movie mid-late afternoon and we definitely have a sun and glare problem in our living/dining area.
       Mom had trouble keeping in her head that most of the movie was taking place in "heaven" and most of the people were dead. First, too, when she oriented herself, she thought Cuba Gooding, Jr. was god, then Max von Sydow (who played Jesus in one of her beloved Bible Movies). She also noticed that Robin Williams mugs his way through the emotional scenes in serious pictures. I'd never noticed this, but she's right. He does. He has an "emotional scenes mask" that is clearly detectable. I remember it, some, from a very obscure picture her made: Being Human; less so, interestingly, in Good Morning, Vietnam.
       She also has her own very specific and very liberal ideas of "heaven"; some of which dovetail with some of the ideas in the movie...some of which don't.
       I found the theology/spirituality interesting, considering that it is being put forth before the public (which wasn't all that risky in 1998; I don't think this is why the movie didn't do all that well), but not as daring as my own. Truth is, I'm not sure whether we'll watch this one again.

Labels: drama, fantasy, romance, spiritual

# posted by gail @ 10:32    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G, many times
2. Mentions:  *1* *2* *3* *4* *5* *6*
3. Commentary:  This is a sort of "grahsshoppah" movie, for me, but of a somewhat more serious vein, like listening to Alan Watts tapes.
       Mom enjoys the movie, as well, as adult religio-spiritual fairy tale. We actually view this movie, or parts of it, a lot.

Labels: drama, dream, shared-favorite, spiritual

# posted by gail @ 14:59    0 comments    email......this post