Archetypal images

Countless stories, whether told in books, in drawings, or otherwise, use archetypal images of this world. They are fears, hopes, joys, and often they are projections. Primordial human experiences find expression there. The same thing happens in the cinema. Feature films are projected by human emotions and questions, not so much by the projector itself. It is stories that we tell each other that make the world comprehensible to us. It is also a mirror of our expectations and assumptions about this world.

There is an art to being able to tell good stories that touch lives.

Hopes and projections

Good stories spring from our experiences. This is generally true. In the Bible, they are related to God and embedded there in a longer story. It is vividly demonstrated that our life and experience take place in a larger context. We can even discover that this larger context is shaped by God’s grace. However, there are many more stories worth listening to. These stories do not have to show the same outlook of the Bible, but they point flawlessly to how other people hope, dream, or sense this world. Motion pictures are a great way to tell stories.

An astonishing number of films are based on biblical themes. Or would it rather be the other way around, that the Bible first unfolds in the reality of this world? One should not confuse all films with the Bible, but they are often apt statements about this world, sometimes only abstracted, in parables or ideas. Here are two examples:

• The film trilogy “Lord of the Rings”, based on the works of the same name by J.R.R. Tolkien, tells an exemplary story of the struggle between good and evil. The duality in this world is depicted very impressively in it, as well as the effort it takes to bring it to a good end. Tolkien, as a Christian, was devoted to the Catholic Church. He was also a close friend of C.S. Lewis. Tolkien probably played a significant role in C.S. Lewis’ conversion from avowed atheist to Christianity and, as a result, he became one of the best-known apologists for 20th-century Christianity.
• The “Matrix Trilogy” describes a world that is only dreamed and ruled by machines. Mankind unconsciously lives in a virtual world (the “matrix”), but is also trapped in it. There is a rebel group that is working to liberate the world. Then the team is completed with Neo, a young hacker who is soon considered a “messiah”, the fulfillment of prophecy.

Archetypal themes of many films are, for example, “saving the world”, “fulfilled love”, and such things more. Prophets appear, Messiah figures, saviors, warriors, lovers. New worlds are discovered. Road movies often describe a development. These are by no means only “pious” films that address important human questions and hopes. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.

The book of Eli

An impressive film is “The Book of Eli.” In the style of a B-movie, a gripping story emerges, loaded with action. After an apocalypse, there are few survivors left on Earth. There is no more culture. Cities and civilizations are destroyed. People try to survive in their own way. Books are burned and eliminated. This is the world in which Eli sets out to take a book to a safe place. However, you can hardly see the book itself. Eli carries the book in his backpack. More often he has to defend himself in the harsh world.

In my opinion, the film is excellent for showing how an idea can be packaged in a story. This is an action movie. However, you won’t do the film justice if you reduce it to action and violence. It conveys a very different story.

The following excerpts provide exemplary insight into this history.

The next excerpt is about a dialogue about this book. One guesses that this is about the Bible.

The gloomy atmosphere tells of a world that is hostile to life. Everything in the story visually revolves around this impression. The book, however, that Eli takes with him and wants to bring “to a safe place” is the hope that is literally carried through the world here.

Eli wants to carry the book west, to the only remaining library in the world. Books are also reprinted there so that hope can be spread again.

Here is a scene with the book, and how Eli came to have it, with a quote from Psalm 23 (English):

Of course, the trip succeeds. The book arrives at its destination. I don’t want to give too much away. Here’s one last section. The prayer comes from 2 Timothy 4.

Like every film, this film tells a story. The following interviews talk a bit about the composition of the film. Is it an action movie? Is it supposed to be a Christian film? Denzel Washington, who plays the lead role, is the son of a preacher. The production is about the question: What story should be told?

Tell stories

Some Christians grow up with statements like “Cinema is from the devil!” or “Children should not be told fairy tales, because they are not biblical!”. It is blithely argued why a legal interpretation of the world is the only correct one. Right and wrong, black and white. I question this legal view of interpreting faith. Are there better ways to engage in conversation with each other than in the tension of “right or wrong”?

Why it really works is the stories we tell ourselves, which can serve as a stimulus for a good conversation, for further thoughts. Stories are often parables, and they are not always interpreted correctly even in the Bible (John 11:11-14). Some Christians have told me they cannot believe anything that is not “real.” However, it has things in the Bible that do not actually exist (e.g., Jotham’s parable, Judges 9:7-15). We are always challenged in reading the Bible to interpret so that we understand what the real concerns are.

Almost everything in the Bible speaks in terms of history and stories. They are glimpses of human and divine experience. This is what it’s all about. We should tell more stories and learn to understand its value.

More movie quotes here on this website:

• Articles with film quotes

Deepening

• Exchange: Can you tell something good with an action movie?
• What kind of stories shape your life? (Narrate!)
• Did you listen to fairy tales as a child? Why (not)?
• Are there things that you are not allowed to see as a Christian? Why?
• Does a particular view have to be valid for everyone? Why (not)?