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}

Catching Fire – Flames of Love, Flames of Hatred

Posted on by Father Albert
aaaaaand we're back! This is the second post in the series on Hunger Games. Last time I tried to look a little at what it means to pursue freedom under oppression. Recall that I tried to emphasize two related but different streams of influence in the overall plot of revolution: violence and resistance - it'll come up again. This time I'd like to consider another question: what is love? It's becomes clear very early on that Katniss' "love" for Peeta was primarily an act in order to save their lives, but Peeta is no doubt in love with Katniss. Right away,...Read More

Hunger Games – The Desire for Freedom?

Posted on by Father Albert
May the odds be ever in your favor. What about the evens? I mean, evens are sooo much better. They let you divide by 2, and two is always better than 1! The odds have to pick one, but the evens let another win too! Amiright? Righto, so... I guess I've been doing a lot of watching and thinking lately. You may have noticed my plan to build up for Star Wars episode VII. Well, that got me thinking and I realized that the final installment of the Hunger Games trilogy (quadrilogy?) comes out this weekend! Suddenly I remembered that it was the Hunger Games that first got...Read More

Episode III: Forgive me Father, for I have Sithed

Posted on by Father Albert
Greetings! Today I continue my journey through Star Wars. Last week I began with Episode II  and Anakin's failure to keep to his integrity. This week, I've taken a look at Episode III: Revenge of the Sith and guess what I've found? A Catholic Sacrament! Well, sort of. There's actually a ton of material here for reflection (how the devil lies, pro-life, how evil can look good, the dangers of relativism, etc.), but today I'll just focus on Jedis going to confession, and the sad reality that we can't all just get along after all... Bam! Fshwoon! VVMMMMM! KSCHHH! "Good... Kill...Read More

Episdoe II: Attack of the Clones? or the Hormones?

Posted on by Father Albert
Baah, BAAAH, bu-bu-bu-Baah-baah... A short while ago, on a planet not far away, a digital citizen began an adventure. The Ephesian, excited by the hype of the upcoming Force Awakens, set out to re-watch and review all the prior episodes. After surviving the pod race and witnessing the death of Qui-Gon Jinn, we join him as he muses his way through the emotional Episode II, Attack of the Clones. Greetings digital visitors! While people on the internet are sensationalizing the new theory that Jar Jar Binks is a Sith Lord, I'd like to explore a different concern: how Star Wars displays...Read More

Worth More than the Stars: Some thoughts on “The Martian”

Posted on by Father Albert
Heyo! It's the Ephesian again. I'm back from a little trip through cyberspace and decided to drop in and share some thoughts about outer space. I went to see "The Martian" and a few things stood out that I'd like to write about if anyone is willing to read it, or even if no one reads it. I guess it's kind of like Mark's video logs - no one is watching them, but they just might someday ;-). Anywho, much of the movie is about dealing with the technical problems regarding staying alive on Mars. As for the scientific accuracy...Read More

The Small Details

Posted on by Father Albert
Huzzah! I went to see Ant-Man a while back and had a blast, but maybe I got too excited. Because I'm all digital and stuff, I decided to try to copy Ant-Man in a way by attempting to shrink down my data and squeezing into different servers and hard drives. I got a little carried away and ended up stuck inside a 3 1/2" floppy disk right before it got ejected. Man, I was worried. I mean, how many people ever even use those things anymore? What were my chances of every getting back into a computer with internet access?...Read More

On the Outside looking In (Part II)

Posted on by Father Albert
Aaaand... we're back! Hope you enjoyed part I, here's part II: I've been surfing around the waves of Inside Out on the internet and came across this little beauty, which talks about a pretty significant message in the movie; that sadness has an important place in our lives. It's a fair point and I won't rehash it all here, but I do want to add a little commentary on the matter. Its worth calling to mind the fact that many conversion stories start with how a person hit rock bottom, faced the reality of their isolation, fear, pain, etc. and finally admitted...Read More

On the Inside looking Out (Part I)

Posted on by Father Albert
I'm back! and boy have things on this blog gotten turned upside down... or was it inside out? Either way, having grown up in the digital continent, I decided it was time to go see the physical world with its seven! continents - or try to at least. Apparently hurtz and bytes don't get much recognition in the physical world, and we don't exactly issue passports. Long story short, I spent most of that time stuck in a disconnected server bank on the third floor of Notre Dame Seminary in New Orleans - not a visit a recommend unless you...Read More

Posit or pause it?

Posted on by Father Albert
Greetings from the Ephesian! For the few that have encountered my not-too-recent initiation of this here undertaking, a question may have arisen: "Where'd the Ephesian go?" Well, I've "gone" far too many places it seems and this going to and fro has left me with little time and even less motivation. Since I seem to be all human and limited and stuff (surprised?), this here blog, with its ambitious "once a week" intention completely fell by the wayside. While its probably no big deal (and mostly likely forgotten by most), I do apologize for any tiny amount of disappointment I...Read More

Dark Knight… of the soul?

Posted on by Father Albert
It's just hours before he rises (from where exactly?), and here I am trying to shine light on this Dark fellow. [Warning, dramatic prose may erupt...] As an aside, I would like to point out that my last post took a few tangents into the realm of shoulds and should nots, which were fun, but not the goal. I hope someone noticed that I'm writing posts about movies I've seen (and assume you've seen) and so it makes little sense for me to spend my time trying to tell people not to see what they've already seen. Certainly don't be...Read More