Attend the Tale...

I just came back from seeing Sweeney Todd:  The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, and my heart is still racing.   At the time I'm writing this, the movie has earned an 87% rating at Rotten Tomatoes, and personally, I think that's a bit low.  Before seeing Sweeney, I suggest that you remember a few simple points.

First, Sweeney is a musical.  A very different musical, but a musical nonetheless.   There are some people in this world who can't stomach musicals. Having grown up with wonderful shows like The Sound of Music and Oklahoma, I don't understand this, but there it is.   If you can't abide musicals of any kind, you might want to pass on Sweeney Todd.

Second, Sweeney is not The Sound of Music or Oklahoma.   Julie Andrews will not sing about her favorite things. Shirley Jones will not vocalize about love.   This musical is about the depravity of man, the loss of hope, insanity, murder and mayhem.   It is very dark, intense and gory.   The film is bloody.   Think the Black Knight from Monty Python and the Holy Grail, make it realistic, and raise it by a factor of a hundred.   Lots of arterial action.  If you have a weak stomach, you may want to pass on Sweeney Todd.

Third, Sweeney is a movie.   If you saw the musical on Broadway or the film of the national tour, expect some differences.   Theater is more removed than film.   Theater is fantastical.   Although the movie did not significantly deviate from the script, the medium is much more realistic, more personal, far more intense.   Expect a different experience from the stage production.

The performances were outstanding.   Vocally, Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter give respectable performances of Stephen Sondheim's music, but it was their acting that distinguished them.   Their performances are intense, manic, powerful.   The best musical performances were by Jayne Wisener (Johanna) and Ed Sanders (Toby).   Along with Jamie Campbell Bower (Anthony), these young actors light up the screen.   Alan Rickman was predictably wonderful as Judge Turpin.   Timothy Spall (Beadle Bamford) was good, but I kept wondering how Wormtail ended up in 19th century London.   Sacha Baron Cohen did a good job as Signor Pirelli.

My biggest disappointment was that the Ballad of Sweeney Todd was not sung.   The greatest improvement was the direction for the song By the Sea.   That song never worked for me in the stage production, but in the movie, it's very funny and effective.

I have seen several theatrical productions of Sweeney, and at one time, I owned the soundtrack.   Knowing what to expect did little to lessen the tension.   If you ride a rollercoaster several times, you may know when to expect the drops and loops -- but anticipation only heightens the excitement.   Sweeney is very bloody, very graphic, very, very dark and intense.   It is a total thrill ride.   It's poignant, frightening, funny, gross, and sad.  Director Tim Burton is a genius at telling dark, quirky, surreal tales -- and Sweeney is no exception.  I give Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street five sanguineous stars.

Count Your Blessings

When I'm worried and I can't sleep
I count my blessings instead of sheep
And I fall asleep counting my blessings
When my bankroll is getting small
I think of when I had none at all
And I fall asleep counting my blessings
I think about a nursery and I picture curly heads
And one by one I count them as they slumber in their beds
If you're worried and you can't sleep
Just count your blessings instead of sheep
And you'll fall asleep counting your blessings.

Name that movie.

1954.   Vera-Ellen.   Rosemary Clooney.   Danny Kaye.   Bing Crosby.   The above song, written by Irving Berlin, was nominated for an Oscar.   Too easy?   It should be.   White Christmas.

I love that movie.   As far as I'm concerned, if there were a Canon of Christmas Movies, White Christmas would be among the greats – along with the Miracle on 34th Street (1947, Maureen O'Hara, John Payne, Edmund Gwinn and Natalie Wood), It's a Wonderful Life (1946, James Stewart, Donna Reed), Scrooge (1951, Alistair Sim), A Christmas Story (1983, Melinda Dillon, Darin McGavin, Peter Billingsley) and Christmas Vacation (1989, Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo).

I love Christmas Vacation.   It's everything our celebrations generally are.   Lights that tangle and don't light.   Relatives that bicker.  Children that complain.   Kitty-Os in the jello salad.   Crazed squirrels.   (Or is that just my house?)   Clark Griswold is my soulmate.   We both have expectations we can never hope to meet.

Ellen: You set standards that no family activity can live up to.
Clark: When have I ever done that?
Ellen: Parties, weddings, anniversaries, funerals, holidays, vacations, graduations....

Clark Griswold has watched White Christmas too many times.

White Christmas is 1950s Utopia in Vistavision.   Vera-Ellen looks more put together in her flannel pjs after sleeping on a train or after sweating from a strenuous dance routine than I did on my wedding day.   She and Rosemary Clooney wear the most gorgeous dresses throughout the film, and they never get wrinkled or spill hot chocolate on themselves.  

In White Christmas, even World War II looks clean.   Patriotism is the norm.   Democrats in Vermont are rare.   {Giggle}   Dashing Danny Kaye dances into Vera-Ellen's life.   (The best things happen while you're dancing….)   White knight Bing Crosby croons his way into Rosemary Clooney's heart.   Soldiers from all over the country fill the lodge to honor of General Waverly, the boys get the girls, and the long-awaited snow falls to the strains of, what else, White Christmas.   I love a good romance.

What does any of this have to do with being thankful even in difficult circumstances?   I believe that if you look hard enough, you can find wisdom anywhere – even Hollywood.

When you're worried, depressed, or troubled, count your blessings.   Think of all the good things in your life.  Or as Paul wrote,

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. – Philippians 4:8

When times are trying, remember when times were rough before – and how you came through them.   In the Old Testament, God's people are constantly instructed to remember, to repeat what God has done in their lives.   It's not that God needs our constant praise (although He deserves it) – it's that we need to remember who He is and what He has done in our lives and in the lives of others.   Remembering His faithfulness gives us courage to live.

Don't have unreasonable expectations.   Real life is more Family Vacation or A Christmas Story than White Christmas – which becomes very apparent when you dress up four children and try to keep them clean and looking at the camera for that family Christmas photo.   Strive for perfection in the areas that are meaningful – in love, in forgiveness, in humility, in faithfulness – and be flexible with all the other stuff.

Even when things aren't perfect, when circumstances aren't what we expect, when Cousin Eddie arrives unannounced, parks his RV in your front yard, and empties his chemical toilet in your sewer, you can still find joy.   When life hands you lemons, make lemonade.   Or to borrow from A Christmas Story, when the Bumpuses's hounds steal the Christmas turkey, find a Chinese restaurant and discover Peking Duck.   (Fa ra ra ra ra ra ra ra ra.)

Remember these things, and you'll find joy and thankfulness.

Oh, and one more thing – don't eat Aunt Bethany's jello.

Inspired by End of the Spear

Our family finally saw End of the Spear last night. Reviews for this production have varied widely, so if you aren’t completely confused, here is mine.

End of the Spear is an independent film based on the true story of missionaries and their contact with a violent tribe in Ecuador. Many of the negative reviews seem to center on the story itself. Several reviewers appear to critique the film with an anti-religious, anti-missionary bias. They seem to want the movie to give what they consider an even-handed account of what missionary contact has done to indigenous peoples – even-handed meaning that the account paints missionary contact as misguided and/or evil.

Desson Thomson in his Washington Post review wrote:

Although the film invests time among the tribesmen, it never really explores the idea that one man's missionary work is another's ideological aggression.

Allison Benedikt of the Chicago Tribune writes:

That "End of the Spear" is a no-holds-barred Christian movie is not necessarily a bad thing, just something to consider when you're surfing Fandango.

What is necessarily a bad thing is that "End of the Spear" is a childish and visually repetitive movie, ham-fisted, proselytizing and overtly simplified.

Many of the critics seem upset with the story itself. They don’t want to hear a story about Christian missionaries going to an indigenous people and improving their lives. They don’t want to hear about Christians at all.

The film is a relatively low budget, independent film. The production budget was $10 million dollars according to The Numbers . (King Kong had a production budget of $207 million.) The film did not feature famous actors, but the cast was large, and the production budget allowed for limited filming on location. I went in with high hopes but not high expectations for the quality of the film. I was pleasantly surprised. I thought the acting was decent, and the cinematography was often breathtaking.

Far from being heavy-handed, this proselytizing movie never mentions the name of Jesus. Instead, God is referred to by His Waodani name. The missionaries’ spiritual lives, how they received their calls, and why they did what they did are virtually ignored. The focus of the production is the Waodanis. Nick Saint does tell his son that they would never kill the Waodanis, even in self-defense, because the Waodanis aren’t ready for Heaven, but the missionaries were. At one point, Dayumae, a Waodani who had been living with missionaries, explains that God has a Son who was speared, but did not spear back, so that those who spear can live a better life. The Waodanis are encouraged to follow God’s carvings on the trail. In two hours of film, that is the extent of the religious discussion that takes place. Christians may be disappointed by the lack of a clear presentation of the Gospel or any deep discussion of salvation.

Unlike the documentary Beyond the Gates of Splendor, the Waodanis in the movie wear some clothes. Violence is depicted, but it is not extremely graphic in nature. Our nine-year old daughter loved the film, although she clung to her father’s arm through several parts. Some of the script is in Waodani with subtitles, but the story is less dependent on subtitles than was the documentary. The pacing was at times a bit slow. The filmmakers could have safely edited out 10-15 minutes and had a tighter film. Be sure to stay for the credits – you’ll see the real Steve Saint and Mincayane and some fun clips from the documentary.

The film was “power released” in over 1,100 theaters and on its first weekend grossed $4.3 million. It needs to earn at least another $17.7 million to cover the production and advertising costs. According to the film's credits, half of any profit will go to help indigenous peoples like the Waodani.

If any story was worth 2 hours of your time and $7.00 of your money, this is the one. Each member of our family – middle aged parents, teenage boys, and nine-year old girl – thought the movie was terrific. It’s not The Lord of the Rings or even The Passion of the Christ, but it is an inspiring true story of the power of God’s love and forgiveness to change hearts, minds, and even societies. Your time and money not only will buy you thought-provoking entertainment, but will also make a statement to Hollywood that the public wants uplifting, encouraging stories and will tell the critics that their opinions do not reflect the views of most of America. Now, that’s a bargain.

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

When I learned that someone was making a film version of the C. S. Lewis classic, I was skeptical and a bit worried. Narnia is more than just a wonderful series of books -- it is the story of Creation, the Fall, the redemption of man and the redemption of creation. Could the film industry do the story justice?

I was somewhat encouraged by the wonderful production of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy, another book series I did not believe could be filmed. Would Narnia, a series aimed at children, receive the same attention?

I was pleasantly surprised to find that the movie version is delightful. The beginning, slow to some, was exactly as it should be… portraying what is was like to live in Britain in WWII. The child actors were wonderful. Although attractive, they were believable as ordinary school children – not extraordinarily brilliant or gifted. The battle scenes were virtually bloodless. But this is not The Lord of the Rings. A realistic battle scene would have eliminated much of the target audience – I cannot fault the production for the decision to keep the graphic violence to a minimum.

The film is beautiful and quite faithful to the book. To the nonbeliever, it is an enchanting fantasy and good, wholesome entertainment. For the believer, though, when Aslan first enters the scene, well, the effect was very moving. Several Christians, myself included, said they actually shivered when Aslan appeared.

If a cinematic lion, meant to depict Christ, engenders such a reaction, imagine the thrill, the joy, the unspeakable reaction when we see Him face to face!