Help me come up with a list

[Brother Adam]

I want to gather a list of the all time best catechetical movies that are not made with a specific Christian theme in mind. For instance, the Passion would be out, but The Lord of the Rings could count. It can be a movie, or a documentary, but not a TV series. So HBO's "From the Earth to the Moon" could be used, but not "The Simpsons TV show". And they must be readily available on DVD (for instance on sale at amaon.com or another retailer.

What do you think?

[inDEED]

Dumb & Dumber
Top Gun
Footloose
Naked Gun
Hot Shots

Those are the only ones I can think of right now...

[ninjakyle]

inDEED
How could you forget:
Dumb and Dumberer
The Man Who Knew Too Little
Glitter
Crossroads
And . . .
Duh . . . the Adams Family

[ninjakyle]

we are such jerks

[inDEED]

It's cool...Brother Adam used to be Protestant...he's got a sense of humor...

[Brother Adam]

It would be helpful, if anyone feels like being serious to give their input.

[melporcristo]

Adam ... I am thinking ... but I can't think of any right off the bat ...
hmmm....

[philothea]

I've been trying to think too, but that seems to be a hard prompt with which to trigger movie recall. Urgle.

[hooverbloob]

What about Bruce Almighty? This could be seen as a Christian theme to some, but then again, others may view it as blasphomy! LOL

There are so many things this movie shows about God and scripture. For example, you have God playing the janitor, the electrician, and the boss (representing the trinity).

Star Wars could be as well (the force be with you).

Also, depending on the type of movie you are looking for, A Walk To Remember could be another choice.

Is this what you are looking for?

[Didacus]

"The Grapes of Wrath" comes to mind.

There are many Christian virtues portrayed in that film, though not specifaclly religious.

Not certain if you would agree though. Will come back with others when I think of them.
__________________

Just thought of this one too:

"Oh God, you Devil!" with George Burns, though it is rather weak as well.
I think it shows that grace is something given, not earned through one's own power. i kinda liked it and good old George made the best "God" character I've ever seen in movies.

Edited September 22, 2005 by Didacus

[ninjakyle]

i don't know exactly what you mean

Here are some thoughts
a movie with good morals: Remember the Titans
Pay it forward had a good thing going until they had premarital sex
Seven I think brings up some good discussions
But if I had to guess, none of these are what you are looking for.

Oh, I know . . . Green Mile
Many people refer to John Coffee as a "JC" Jesus Christ character
Is that what you are thinking of?

[Cre8d4Youth]

The list is exhausting. Do you have specific themes you are looking for? That might help me narrow it down a little for you. Rather than to inundate you with a huge amount of titles to look though and and figure out what I intended!

My favorite would have to be "Bruce Almighty." And that catch of the Trinity allusion, hooverbloob has her wonderful husband to thank for pointing that out to her!

[Brother Adam]

Thanks for the thoughts so far. Bruce Almighty really wouldn't work becuase it is too Christian oriented.

Here are some of the best I've found so far (and we are looking for the best of the best)

Ben Hur
From the Earth to the Moon
The Green Mile
The Shawshank Redemption
Star Wars
Lord of the Rings
Band of Brothers

[Brother Adam]

[quote name='Cre8d4Youth' date='Sep 22 2005, 05:59 PM']The list is exhausting.  Do you have specific themes you are looking for?  That might help me narrow it down a little for you.  Rather than to inundate you with a huge amount of titles to look though and and figure out what I intended!

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I know what you mean, but remember that the purpose is to have a list of the absolute best. The greatest of the great. Then I'm going to go over the list with our catechetical professors and even the friars and eventually publish it.

[ninjakyle]

i would especially be interested in hearing your thoughts on green mile and shawshank

[Laudate_Dominum]

Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon
The Princess Bride
Pirates of the Caribbean
The Muppet Movie
War and Peace (BBC version)

For Kids:
The Secret Garden
The Dark Crystal
The Little Princess

[franciscanheart]

What about Powder? No one has mentioned that one yet.

[Theologian in Training]

[quote name='Brother Adam' date='Sep 23 2005, 12:06 PM']Thanks for the thoughts so far. Bruce Almighty really wouldn't work becuase it is too Christian oriented.

Here are some of the best I've found so far (and we are looking for the best of the best)

Ben Hur
From the Earth to the Moon
The Green Mile
The Shawshank Redemption
Star Wars
Lord of the Rings
Band of Brothers
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I have some ideas, however, some are rated R, so I don't know if that would work. I will just throw them out anyway.

BTW, I don't mean to scandalize anyone by some of these movies, and really cannot recommend some of them but I have used them in papers and they have helped me understand Christian concepts in a secular world.

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (the whole idea of what consitutes a man despite his incilnation to live like a beast, at least in the context of this movie)

Fight Club (there are a myriad of ideas that one can find in this movie)

Alfie (the old one which deals with the question of abortion, never saw the new one so don't know if the same question is dealt with)

Big Fish (the importance of the story, imagination and preserving the story of our lives...perhaps this is a bit too liberal sounding...sorry)

Bringing Out The Dead (the way in which a man deals with death around him and how he is haunted by their ghosts refusing to let go until he discovers a form of "redemption")

Run Lola Run (the idea that our choices and the choices of others can effect the outcome of not just our lives but the lives of those around us as well)

O Brother Where Art Thou (cannot think of any specific Christian themes but I do recall some within the movie....it has been a while since I have seen it)

Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind (the idea of forgiveness and giving someone a second chance)

In America (I cannot think of any Christian themes at the moment, but I remember the presence of some)

Those would be my pick as the best of the best, perhaps they are not suitable for everyone and not everyone would find the same Christian themes I did, but to each their own.

Hope that helps

God Bless

Edited September 29, 2005 by Theologian in Training

[franciscanheart]

[quote name='Theologian in Training' date='Sep 29 2005, 08:07 AM']I have some ideas, however, some are rated R, so I don't know if that would work. I will just throw them out anyway.

BTW, I don't mean to scandalize anyone by some of these movies, and really cannot recommend some of them but I have used them in papers and they have helped me understand Christian concepts in a secular world.

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (the whole idea of what consitutes a man despite his incilnation to live like a beast, at least in the context of this movie)

Fight Club (there are a myriad of ideas that one can find in this movie)

Alfie (the old one which deals with the question of abortion, never saw the new one so don't know if the same question is dealt with)

Big Fish (the importance of the story, imagination and preserving the story of our lives...perhaps this is a bit too liberal sounding...sorry)

Bringing Out The Dead (the way in which a man deals with death around him and how he is haunted by their ghosts refusing to let go until he discovers a form of "redemption")

Run Lola Run (the idea that our choices and the choices of others can effect the outcome of not just our lives but the lives of those around us as well)

[b]O Brother Where Art Thou (cannot think of any specific Christian themes but I do recall some within the movie....it has been a while since I have seen it)[/b]

Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind (the idea of forgiveness and giving someone a second chance)

In America (I cannot think of any Christian themes at the moment, but I remember the presence of some)

Those would be my pick as the best of the best, perhaps they are not suitable for everyone and not everyone would find the same Christian themes I did, but to each their own.

Hope that helps

God Bless
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there is a baptism in the river going on. two of the guys get "saved" in the river and think theyre now holy and pure and they "havent never done nothing wrong" or something like that. basically they think that by being baptised that means they wont have to go back to jail. they think since God forgave them then the state did too. the KKK is in the movie too.


bump for adam

[Theologian in Training]

Thank you, I knew there were themes present, I just could not remember. Kind of scary I forgot about the Baptismal scene, especially given the amount of times I listened to the song that accompanied it by Alison Krauss (Down to the river)

God Bless