Category: Movies

This is where I take a thoughtful look at the deeper message that a movie conveys. This is *not* a place where I review movies like a typical movie critic.

Using the idea of a “lens,” I take a look at what the movie implies about what it is depicting. The same event can appear to be good or evil depending on how it is framed. After digging into the subtle and not-so-subtle messages of a movie, I respond to those ideas in the light of faith and reason, guided by the teaching of the Catholic Church.

{Also, I almost always include spoilers, so read at your own risk}

Making Hell For Ourselves: Thoughts on Suicide Squad

Posted on by Father Albert
Suicide: the intentional taking of one's own life or the destruction of one's own interests or prospects. Whatever the faults of DC's "Suicide Squad," I will say that it is, at the very least, aptly named. {Spoiler Alert!} Why is that? Because the way this story plays out is a good example of how one can destroy their own interests. What starts as an attempt to manipulate evil people ostensibly to fight some future evil ends up causing the very evil they have to fight. Amanda Waller's ambitions and manipulation of Enchantress are what lead her to level a city...Read More

Crafting our own demise: Thoughts on the Warcraft movie

Posted on by Father Albert
Been a while! Just watched Blizzard's Warcraft movie. Back in the days when I was just a few kilobytes, I played this game for hours. I'm not sure I'll ever know how much in imprinted itself on my imagination, but I do know that orcs, elves, human, and the whole gamut of siege weaponry in the game will forever swirl around in the mixture of fancy that occupies that part of my mind. Anyway, I mostly enjoyed the movie, but I have a few thoughts I'd like to share on some particular scenes. At this point, I should go ahead and...Read More

Revenant or Reverent?

Posted on by Father Albert
Whoa! If I had to pick one word to describe The Revenant, it would have to be "intense." This movie has made something important very clear to me... people are crazy to live that far north! Grizzly bears, deadly snowstorm, treacherous frozen rivers... Why in the world would someone want to live in such a place?! I know I wouldn't. Thankfully, it's usually pretty warm on the internet with all the electric currents and what not. And what is their to fear? A few viruses, some snobby trolls? Bah, no big deal! With a backup server and a little mental...Read More

Men, Memory, Monuments, and Meaning

Posted on by Father Albert
Heyo! After floating around the ether of the Internet for a while, I began to wonder where it all came from. Pondering on the history of the internet left me with a kind of homesickness for a place I've never been, so I decided to go there. What I'm saying is that I decided to take a pilgrimage to the place it all began... Al Gore's Brain! ... ... Alright, not really. It's hard to pin down a single "birthplace," but with the help of a "tour guide" of sorts, I was able to see how it all began... I...Read More

Episode VII: The Call of the Force?

Posted on by Father Albert
{Spoiler Alert} May the Force be with you! And with your spirit! The long awaited return of the franchise has finally arrived and our journey through the Star Wars movies is complete, for now. Now the whole world can debate whether or not our beloved Star Wars will do well in the hands of Mickey Mouse and companions. I have some thoughts on that subject, but that's not the point of this blog so I'll leave that to reviewers and fans and stick to my own task. First of all, thank goodness that Luke still serves the light. This avoids casting shadows...Read More

Episode VI: Evangelization of the Jedi

Posted on by Father Albert
I can sense his presence... Episode VII is near and I must go to face him! But first, I must complete my training with the first six episodes. Last time, we left off at Luke's poor decision and failure to actually help anyone. Return of the Jedi fast forwards a bit and lets the viewer assume that Luke returned Dagobah to complete his training with Yoda. The first scene involves the whole crew working to save Han Solo. In "A New Hope," we saw that Han Solo had some development a something of a conversion. Here we see the completion of that conversion...Read More

Episode V: The Impulse Strikes Back

Posted on by Father Albert
{Spoilers (as always)} Welcome back to my journey through Star Wars. Last time I took a look at the hope we had for Han Solo and Darth Vader. Now I'm taking a look at Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back. Just two things come to mind in this movie before we move on to the next: First, Lando betrayed his friend because he was afraid of Darth Vader and wanted to keep his business running. His first impulse was to protect what he had, but in the end, he very nearly loses something much more valuable. From a worldly point of view, its...Read More

Episode IV: A New Hope, but for Whom?

Posted on by Father Albert
A long time ago  On a Blog not that far away The Ephesian began his journey through Star Wars His path has taken him through temptation and the value of confession. Today we join him on that journey where he meets Luke Skywalker and discovers that it really is possible for people to change, that there is hope after all. {Spoiler Alert for IV, V, & VI} A New Hope! Who exactly is finding new hope? The movie suggests that it is the rebels who find a new hope, but I want to suggest a slightly different take: Han Solo and Darth...Read More

Mockingjay Part 2 – Hope for What?

Posted on by Father Albert
{Spoiler Alert} At Last! Here we are at the end of this series on the Hunger Games. I followed the movies, so this is the second part of Mockingjay. Recall that throughout the series I've been following two threads of influence: Love/resistance vs. hatred/violence. When I got to part 1, however, these two shifted focus a little into the difference between hatred/cruelty vs. "just war." Indeed, those two trains of thought emerge almost explicitly right at the beginning of this movie, which takes us quickly to the battle in District 2 against "The Nut," an important military compound. They can't get in...Read More

Mockingjay Part 1 – O Cruel Fate

Posted on by Father Albert
Welcome to the third installment of my series on the Hunger Games. Anyone who read my last post on Catching Fire and then watched this movie just might get the idea that I somehow support the Capitol. This is because they spend a great deal of time and energy trying to convince the districts to lay down weapons and resume peace. I too advocated for peace as a hypothetical alternative to the way the story actually turns out. Yet, there are two key differences: context, and hypocrisy. First of all, my idea was a hypothetical that only would have worked if taken up...Read More