The Cinema,
Spirituality, and
Science Fiction Site
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What's this?
This site celebrates cinema (ok, "movies" to most people), spirituality, and science fiction through movie reviews, essays, short stories, and other information on these topics.
Why these three topics? These are three main themes I most enjoy writing about--especially when the areas overlap such as in a science fiction movie with spiritual themes. (A mythic core that these topics share is discussed in A Prince, Machines, and Stillness.) As a published writer, this site includes a number of my writings published (in print) on these topics.
There is something for everyone here because who isn't interested in at least one of these topics? Ok, atheists with no imaginations will want to look elsewhere. The rest of you are invited to surf a few cybercinema, cyberspiritual, or cybersci-fi pages.
(For easy navigation on other pages click on the appropriate "spotlight" in the stage graphic or click on the "home" icon to return here. See also Index of Films Reviewed on this Site.)
What's new!
Here are the most recent additions to this site:
- Fighting Evil with Another Kind of Evil?
The ultimate antihero messiah for the post-9/11 "War on Terror" era can apparently be found in The Chronicles of Riddick, the sequel to Pitch Black. Overcoming evil with evil, unfortunately, seems to be the spirit of the times.
- Unmasking the Spirituality of Spider-Man
Spider-Man and Spider-Man 2 offer surprisingly profound spiritual lessons when unmasked from their comic-book disguise. No other films have so evocatively explored the downside of being a superhero. Peter Parker, the reluctant everyman messiah, must constantly choose between self-interest and self-sacrifice, choose between his own needs and those of others, choose between his own social life and social obligation, and make all these choices while being misunderstood and unappreciated. Being a superhero never seemed so difficult.
- Middle Earth's Messianic Mythology Remixed: Gandalf's Death and Resurrection in Novel and Film
In the mythology of the very influential The Lord of the Rings, J. R. R. Tolkien employed several Christ figures, the most obvious being the wizard Gandalf. In Tolkien's "fundamentally religious and Catholic" novel, the symbolism of Gandalf’s "death and resurrection" scenes was implicit, but Peter Jackson’s film versions visually made Gandalf's Christ-figure symbolism more explicit. This article will explore:
• The cultural impact of Tolkien's mythology
• The meaning of myth to Tolkien
• The characteristics of a Christ figure
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What a Christ figure subtext may add to the psychological/mythological impact of a work of art
• How Gandalf’s death and resurrection scenes portrayed him as a Christ figure
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How these two scenes in the films diverged from the book
• The possible meaning of that divergence (of the mythology remixed)
(This article is published on the Journal of Religion and Popular Culture.)
- The Superhero's Mythic Journey:
Death and the Heroic Cycle in Superman
Superman, the original superhero, is a culmination of the great mythic heroes of the past. The hero's journey, a recurring cycle of events in mythology, is described by Joseph Campbell. The three acts in Superman: The Movie portray a complex calling to the superhero's role, consisting of three distinct calls and journeys. Each of the three stages includes the death of someone close to him, different symbols of his own death and resurrection, and different experiences of atonement with a father figure. Analyzing these mythic cycles bestows the viewer with a heroic "elixir." (This article is published on the Journal of Religion and Film.)
- He is the One: The Matrix Trilogy's Postmodern Movie Messiah
Many films have used Christ figures to enrich their stories. In The Matrix trilogy, however, the Christ figure motif goes beyond superficial plot enhancements and forms the fundamental core of the three-part story. Neo’s messianic growth (in self-awareness and power) and his eventual bringing of peace and salvation to humanity form the essential plot of the trilogy. Without the messianic imagery, there could still be a story about the human struggle in the Matrix, of course, but it would be a radically different story than that presented on the screen. (This article is published on the Journal of Religion and Film.)
- The Word Warrior: A Post-Apocalyptic Parody
In 2013, the Doomsday Virus loose on the Internet causes all nuclear weapons to launch. Darn those military contractors for not keeping their virus checkers up to date! Although the post-civilization job market leaves much to be desired, with a little ingenuity, writers can still earn a buck (well, old cans of food).
- The Public Relations of John the Baptist
John the Baptist offended many people in his day and his ministry was cut short. Some might have told John that he needed a little help with his public relations.
- The Mark of the Beets
Tired of end-of-the-millennium doom-and-gloom? Take a light-hearted look at the Apocalypse.
What else?
