Andy Rowell | Church Leadership Conversations

How to Sort Through Which Movies are Worth Seeing

I highly recommend Christianity Today's Our Top Rated Movies page on their website.   

When I am looking for a movie to see, I am in the habit of checking the reviews on Christianity Today's Movie site.  I will hardly ever see a movie that didn't get at least 3 out of 4 stars from them.   I just don't want to spend two hours filling my head with complete filth and it is hard to judge a DVD by its cover in the video store. 

For your convenience, they have placed all of their 3 1/2 and 4 star rated movies on one page called Our Top Rated Movies.  I admit that I have sometimes printed that page out and brought it to Blockbuster Video with me.   I have also wished that I had internet access on my phone so I could check out this page at the movie theater. 

You should know though that their "star ranking" is NOT a group process where all of Christianity Today's editors watch a movie and then decide what it should be ranked!  No, the ranking is one Christian critic's opinion.  I happen to think their 10 critics are pretty trustworthy voices but I also glance at why the movie has gotten the MPAA rating (PG-13, R, etc.) it has gotten.  (The review page for the movie gives all of this information in "The Family Corner" section of their review - how much violence, sex, etc.).  If it is rated R, I look a bit more closely at why the critic has given it such a high star rating before I see it.

Christianity Today also provides links to reviews by other Christian critics on each of their reviews:

• Plugged In
• Crosswalk
• Catholic News Service
• Past the Popcorn

They also have other lists that you might appreciate:
• Most Redeeming of '06 - they made this list as a group of critics
• Critics' Choice 2006 - they made this list as a group of critics
• Readers' Choice 2006

The reviews are also organized this way:

• All Reviews
• Now Showing
• New On Video

I will often also check the website Rotten Tomatoes which collates movie reviews and gives you a percentage of how many of the reviews by mainstream critics are positive.  Most of the high rated movies by Christianity Today also get a 85-95% positive reviews by all movie critics at Rotten Tomatoes.  If a CT review is very high and the mainstream critics give it a low rating, you might want to look more closely at CT's review to see what they see that the mainstream critics don't. 

Below I have pasted from Christianity Today's Our Top Rated Movies page, the movies they have given 4 stars or 3 1/2 stars, that I have seen.  I have sometimes been disappointed, but not often. 

I should say also though that few of these movies are "veg out and relax" movies.  Most were ranked high by the critics because the themes were dealt with thoughtfully.  I have made a comment about each. 

4 Stars

• The Aviator (2004, PG-13) - lots of academy awards about idiosyncratic character Howard Hughes.
• Batman Begins (2005, PG-13) - excellent. 
• The Gospel of John (2003, PG-13) - the whole Gospel of John.  Long but details are quite well done.
• The Incredibles (2004, PG) - delightful!
• Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003, PG-13) - pretty good. 
• The New World (2006, PG-13) - surprisingly good (about Pocahontas). 
• The Shawshank Redemption (1994, R) - disturbing but memorable.  Stephen King. 
• Spider-Man 2 (2004, PG-13) - excellent. 
• The Story of the Weeping Camel (2004, PG) - a bit odd.  It is a foreign film. 

3½ Stars

• Amazing Grace (2007, PG) - about William Wilberforce who championed the anti-slavery movement in Britain.  Lots of Christians love this film. 
• The Bourne Supremacy (2004, PG-13) - they gave the one that just came out this summer 3 stars only so it isn't on this list.
• Children of Men (2006, R) - Surprisingly good.  I think reading the review will help you appreciate this one. 
• The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe (2005, PG) - C.S. Lewis - lots of Christians like it. 
• Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004, R) - I was a little disappointed in this one.  An artsy film. 
• Glory Road (2006, PG) - a feel good basketball movie about conquering racial differences. 
• Just Like Heaven (2005, PG-13) - a little odd . . . not really a romantic comedy. . . it is a thoughtful drama.
• Kicking and Screaming (2005, PG) - I thought this one was pretty dumb.    
• The Manchurian Candidate (2004, R)   - a bit disturbing.  I didn't appreciate it. 
• Million Dollar Baby (2004, PG-13) - lots of academy awards.  I liked it. 
• Millions (2005, PG) - interesting story about boys and money and some other creepy stuff.  It was ok. 
• Miss Potter (2006, PG) - good romantic movie with some sad twists but ultimately happy.
• Most ("The Bridge") (2003, Not Rated) - disturbing short Christian foreign film. 
• Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006, PG-13) - I liked it but you have to read the Wikipedia articles on Pirates of the Caribbean to appreciate the plot if you like me forgot the plot leading up to it. 
• The Queen (2006, PG-13) - I liked this glimpse into Tony Blair and the Queen working together responding to Princess Di's death. 
• Shrek 2 (2004, PG)- funny and smart. 
• Spanglish (2004, PG-13) - this is thoughtful romantic drama that focuses on resisting an affair.
• Spider-Man 3 (2007, PG-13) - very good. 
• Super Size Me (2004, Not Rated) - memorable and good for most of us to think through.  Critique of fast food.
  
• An Unfinished Life (2005, PG-13) - a hard drama about difficult families directed by Clint Eastwood.
• Walk the Line (2005, PG-13) - the music of Johnny Cash pulls you through the pain of his life.

Ben Witherington is a New Testament scholar at Asbury Seminary.  This does not automatically make him a good film critic!  But I enjoy reading his take on things on his blog.   

He has recent reviews of:
The Bourne Ultimatum-- The Ultimate Thriller
'Hairspray'-- Another Hare Brained Musical?
Live Free or Die Hard-- or Live Hard and Die Free?...
'Ratatouille'-- A Midsummer's Gourmet Treat

So, if you are like me and don't have time to read every review of every film that comes out, listen to Christianity Today's critics as a starting point.  Their 3 1/2 and 4 star rated films are at Christianity Today's Our Top Rated Movies page.   

How to find movie clips to use in your sermon

   I recently had a student who told me she loved movies.  This woman watched lots and lots of movies.  I was wishing she would read a few more books and go out more often with friends.  But I also encouraged her to write down a movie clip she could use in teaching for each movie she watches.  One of my students emailed me that she is sometimes doing this.  (See the end of this post). 

I don't have this habit down myself but I would like to!  Movies can be a big waste of time but if you are reflecting on them, they can be edifying. 

You can send those clip descriptions into Preaching Today and get paid $75 for each one!  See here for a list of their illustrations which you have to pay to access (but you can still the list).  See here for their guidelines on submitting articles. 

Or get some practice and share your insights with the world by starting a free blog entitled "______'s Movie Illustrations" on Blogger.com.   

I gave my students a Movie Clip assignment in Teaching and Learning Strategies  The Microsoft Word assignment sheet is available free for download at the following link: Download mfilm_clip_assignment.doc

There are a few examples at Leadership Journal’s Website .  Search for “Movie Clips to Show or Tell”.

Here are some books which give movie clips for sermons:

1. Movie-Based Illustrations for Preaching and Teaching - Volume 1 by Craig Brian Larson
2. More Movie-Based Illustrations for Preaching & Teaching: 101 Clips to Show or Tell (Movie-Based Illustrations) by Craig Brian Larson
3. Videos That Teach 4: 75 More Movie Moments to Get Teenagers Talking by Doug Fields
4. Videos That Teach 3: 75 More Movie Moments to Get Teenagers Talking (Youth Specialties) by Doug Fields
5. Videos That Teach 2 by Doug Fields
6. Videos That Teach by Doug Fields
7. Group's Blockbuster Movie Illustrations: Over 160 Clips for Your Ministry! by Bryan Belknap
8. Group's Blockbuster Movie Illustrations: The Sequel by Bryan Belknap
9. Group's Blockbuster Movie Illustrations: The Return by Bryan Belknap

I have created an Amazon.com Listmania! list entitled "Using Movie Clips in a Sermon" if you want to see the covers of the books. 

The reason I mention all of this is that I got an email from Kerrie Schene, one of my students from that class.  After the course had ended, she thought of two movies that could serve as illustrations.  She didn't put her email to me in the "correct form" for the class assignment but I still thought it would be worth sharing with you.  I'm proud of her for watching movies and thinking about the themes and how she might use them in teaching.

Hey, Andy!

How's it going?  I hope your summer is going well with Amy and Ryan in Upland.  I hope you guys are getting some good relaxing time amidst plans for this fall. 

This is random, but there were two times this past semester when I had seen movies/remembered movies with good scenes in them that reminded me of our movie scene presentation in Teaching & Learning.  So, I'm not sure why, but I randomly remembered those just now and wanted to send you them before I forgot once again!

Okay, the first one I saw over Christmas break-"Christmas with the Kranks".  The basic gist of the movie is a married couple in Suburbia boycott having Christmas and decide to skip the traditions and go on a cruise instead.  Then, their daughter decides to come home for Christmas at the last minute so they scramble to make it a good Christmas for her.  The main scene that I thought was really good was one that parallels Christ's gift of mercy, redemption and grace to us.  It's one of the last few scenes in the movie.  Tim Allen's character decides to give his obnoxious neighbor and his sweet wife (who has cancer) his cruise tickets.  His neighbor refuses to take them and insists that he can't pay for them, though Tim repeats that they're a gift over and over and finally the neighbor takes them in amazement.  After I saw that, I said, "That is such a perfect scene to teach God's free and undeserving gift of Jesus to us!" 

The second one came to mind on the spring CE retreat, actually.  I was in the Lectio Divina room (which was awesome, btw) and my scripture to read was 1 John 3:1-3-

How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure.

The word "lavished" was what stuck out to me the most from the passage and made me think of the movie "A Little Princess".  I don't know if you or Amy are familiar with it-there are a couple different versions, but I was thinking of the most recent version made probably in the mid-90's.  The main story is about a girl named Sarah who came to America from India with her father to live in a boarding school as he goes to war-WWI.  He dies while she is at school and the cruel headmaster makes her become a maid at the school and she has to live in the attic with another servant girl named Becky.  They live in very poor circumstances, but still try to hang to some hope despite them.  They notice that a very rich man lives across the way and they can see both him and his butler, who dresses like an Indian sheik, through the windows.  He sees the girls and notices their living conditions.  One morning they wake up to beautiful surroundings.  They have big comfy blankets, pretty robes and slippers and a table covered with hot food that they haven't tasted in forever.  The girls are so excited and try everything at once and exclaim at the beauty of it all.  They end up playing and dancing in the sunlight through the windows and that was the main scene that I thought of when reading and thinking on the word "lavish".  The colors and cinematography in this movie are great, and definitely help when the cold attic is transformed with beautiful colors and sunlight.

So, I hope that maybe these can help for class next year if you are teaching a section of it at all or in the future.  I have just had those in my head for a while and kept forgetting to share them with you.  Again, I hope you are all enjoying the sweet country summer that exists in Upland, Indiana. :)  See you in the fall!

Kerrie Schene
Women's Ministry/CARE Ministry Intern
Southland Christian Church
Lexington, KY

Guidelines for Using Movie Clips in a Sermon

“A picture is worth a thousand words.”

Film and television clips can be a rich resource to draw from when teaching. They can be used at the beginning, end, or middle of a presentation to capture attention, stimulate interest, create a desire to know more, illustrate principles, summarize, or provide a powerful, memorable wrap-up to a message. Here are some preparation and presentation guidelines to help you make efficient use of this effective resource.

GUIDELINES FOR SELECTION

1. Select examples that capture the mood as well as the message of your point
2. Select examples that don’t require a ton of explanation to set up
3. Select examples that won’t require an apology afterwards (You can find more info at http://www.pluggedinonline.com/ or http://www.movieguide.org/ about movie moral content though I am partial to the reviews of movies at http://www.christianitytoday.com/movies/ since I know three of the reviewers personally).
4. Select only that segment that serves your specific purposes—edit, edit, edit!
5. Don’t be afraid to select examples that may be unfamiliar

GUIDELINES FOR PRESENTATION

A good clip doesn’t stand on its own; it requires a good set up and wrap up

  SET UP—Think Past, Present, and Future

1. Past: Describe the background, setting, time, place, etc
2. Present: Identify the characters and action of the scene
3. Future: Describe any future aspects of the story that would clarify your clip
4. Focus attention by telling them what to watch for, e.g. Pay attention to…,” Be sure to watch for…,”  “Take note of….”
5. Don’t forget to warn the audience of anything they might find offensive or disturbing

  WRAP UP

1. Let the clip speak for itself OR summarize the point you’re making quickly
2. Answer any lingering questions the clip may have raised
3. Don’t get caught up in a personal running commentary on the film as a whole

LICENSE ISSUES

Your church will also need to have a video license to show clips of movies.  Yes, even clips of movies as I understand it though this guy disagrees.  Here are a couple of providers in the USA: MPLC and CVLI  The Willow Creek Association report about the issue is here.  In Canada we used ACF

This handout was originally created by Faye Chechowich, a professor of Christian Educational Ministries at Taylor University, and added to by Ted Ewing, pastor of First Church of God of East Central Indiana.  It was further revised by me for my course Teaching and Learning Strategies (Fall 2005) at Taylor University. 

See the next post which will talk about how to find movie clips. 

APPENDIX: MOVIES I HAVE SEEN IN THE THEATER THIS SUMMER

I have watched three movies in the theater this summer and would probably recommend all of them.  See the reviews of them at Christianity Today: Superman Returns (2 1/2 stars), Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (3 1/2 stars), and X-Men: The Last Stand (3 stars). 

You should know that Pirates of the Caribbean is part of a series so the plot does not resolve whatsoever.  The next movie comes out in May 2007.  It is fun.  It is also a bit difficult to follow if you don't remember the previous film.  I read Wikipedia's plot summary of the previous film at Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl which helped a lot. 

Superman Returns is also well done I think.  Some of my family thought it was predictable.  I liked it.  There are a few thoughtful moments.  (As far as superhero movies go, see the 4 star reviews from Christianity Today of Batman Begins and Spider-Man 2 now both on DVD.  They are great.)

X-Men 3 was the most intellectually stimulating for me because I could think of some parallels to some issues in our modern world.  Again, it might be helpful to read the plot summary of the previous films at Wikipedia at X2 and X-Men to appreciate all of it. 

Recommended DVD's: Mark Twain, The Plea, The Greeks, The Roman Empire in the First Century, Antwone Fisher

I have seen four documentaries recently that I recommend. Thank you Taylor University library.

The Greeks: Crucible for Civilization (PBS DVD Gold 2000)

Empires: The Roman Empire in the First Century (PBS Home Video 2001)

Of course documentaries are great because it is an easy way to "learn." As long as you realize that you are getting a very simplified overview. I watched the two above to look for cultural insights that might help me with New Testament studies.

The Plea (PBS Frontline 2004)

Believe it or not, you can watch this and a lot of their documentaries online here if you like for free. (Though I wouldn't recommend it because it is annoying to watch a long feature on a tiny window on your computer screen).

This was a real eye-opening experience for me to see behind the justice system. Essentially, a court-appointed lawyer may not even know your name and may urge you to plead guilty even if you aren't. If you do plead guilty but later the charges are dropped because they were trumped up, you are still stuck with the sentence that you agreed to. Probation is a huge money-maker for governments and so forcing poor people to pay fines is a vicious cycle. If they don't pay, they get more time on probation and more fines. Yikes. It is fascinating and important for all Christians to be familiar with this injustice issue. After watching it, look at an update on the cases profiled in the movie on the PBS website and do a google search as well because there are some new good breakthroughs in the cases.

Mark Twain by Ken Burns (2002 PBS Home Video)

I was deeply inspired by the impact of Huckleberry Finn and the power of story. Twain was on the right side of so many things: urging for the right treatment of native peoples, against American imperialism, for the rights of women to vote, etc. His marriage was also exemplary in terms of his deep love for his wife. Yet his life was filled with so many tragedy he lost faith in God. But that lack of faith in God made his life a search for fame and wealth. Throughout his life, there was a deep sense of emptiness - because of the lack of meaningful faith. A great film.

Antwone Fisher
This is not a documentary but I would recommend it. It is based on a true story. I will warn you that there is one sexual abuse scene that my wife found utterly repulsive and disturbing. See more full reviews at Christianity Today. It was great to see on the special features in the interview with the real Antwone Fisher that he started to take free screen-writing classes at a church. I was glad to hear that.