Dumb movies are made either by dumb people or (more likely) people who stifle their artistic potential for the sake of appealing to the lowest common denominator. Rather than making an effort to appeal to our virtues (I would argue this is one mark of true art), they tend to appeal to our vices. Their movies thrive off of simple formulas that are known to cause audiences to flock to the theaters: existing franchises, large explosions, crude and gross humor, slapstick comedy, sexual exploitation, sentimental manipulation of emotions, and simplified plot-lines …
The greatest danger of these movies is not what they are but what they do to us. They give us permission and at worst train us not to think about what we’re watching. As Christians, we don’t have this option. We are charged to remain sober and vigilant and to judge all things by scripture and the gospel. Does this mean we must concoct touching spiritual metaphors based on everything we see? No. But it does mean that if we ever find ourselves being taken on a ride by a movie about giant fighting robots [i.e. Tranformers 2], it’s best to either take control or jump off.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
I Couldn't Agree More - The Danger of Watching Dumb Summer Movies
Doug Wolter links to a good article:
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2 comments:
Zach, as a Christian who also happens to love well-made, thoughtful films, I could not agree more with Doug's post. I wish that every Christian who watches movies would read the entire post and consider its points.
I know that many believers will balk at this statement, but watching "dumb" movies (or TV shows) is *not* necessarily a morally neutral act. That isn't to say that every movie we watch has to be some serious treatise on man and God. As Doug notes, there *are* funny movies which are also well-made and which have some true merit. However, I cannot see how movies which do little other than to assault the senses or which lead one to think in debased terms (even if "humorous" ones) can glorify God. I would challenge anyone to make a Biblically principled case for how they could.
It's a TV show, not a movie, but I saddened recently to see that on Facebook, there are Christians joining a "That's What She Said" fan club, based on the jokes from "The Office." I used to watch that show and enjoy it, but in the last few years, I have stopped. I just don't see how such debased humor could *not* grieve God.
While my instinct is to totally agree, I'm hesitant to criticize the abstract "dumb" movie without a few more examples. One person's "adorably cute love story" and someone else's "totally sick action flick" will inevitably be what I would call "that dumb movie." Of course, I can just call them dumb people, but that starts to feel dangerously judgmental.
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