Some stories are just too iconic to tell only once. So the Coen brothers thought when they wrote O Brother, Where Art Thou, an adaptation of the Greek epic The Odyssey. The classic story was too big to remain only in ancient Greece. It deserved a modern equivalent.
But simply transposing the story into a new setting wasn’t good enough. This is cheap adaptation. No, the Coen brothers understood that stories need to grow, adapt, evolve, an even change. They can begin with the source material, but unless something is added, it will not be a story that speaks to its time.
And so, that’s exactly what they did. Using the structure of The Odyssey and transposing it to the 1930s south, they began with something familiar in order to tell a new story.
In today’s world, it is safer for the movie business to create a sequel than to attempt an original idea. Why risk making something that people won’t like when you could just recycle something that you know they do? If you ask me, it’s created a very predictable (and underwhelming) movie-going experience over the past decade or so.
A major exception to this trend is director Christopher Nolan. I remember going to the movies in 2010 to see Inception and just being blown away. I had never seen anything like it before. It was imaginative, daring, challenging, and absolutely mesmerizing. It was the sort of movie that reminded you why you went to the theatre in the first place: to be awe-inspired. I remember driving home that day thinking, “Now that’s a movie that gives me faith in the movie industry again.”
Over the past 11 years, Nolan has continued to blow viewers away with over-the-top spectacles and stories that melt your brain with complexity, and for the most part they have been worth their enormous budgets. I never leave thinking, “Well that was pretty predictable” or “yeah, seen that done before.” Everything is original. Everything pushes the limits of cinema in ways you couldn’t even have imagined.
It’s with that that Fr. Tito and I approached his newest movie, Tenet. Basically, with high expectations. No one makes a movie quite like Nolan. In many ways, we were not disappointed: it was the most “Nolan” movie we had ever seen, complete with some of Nolan’s biggest flaws on display.
Yes. The title is provocative. I know. Don’t judge something simply by its name.
The content of this week’s video isn’t the least bit controversial. At least it shouldn’t be. It boils down to this: the ends don’t justify the means. No matter what we do, no matter how important we might think it is, there is never an excuse to compromise our lives as disciples. First and foremost, we are called to the Ten Commandments; we are required to live the beatitudes; we are meant to be humble, loving followers of Christ.
Unfortunately, this is not always the case. Unfortunately, there are many people who get so enflamed by an issue that they believe anything is allowed to stop it. This issue is that important.
It’s not. It never is.
You can (and should) oppose racism, but not by publicly shaming white politicians and attacking their families.
You can (and should) oppose the death penalty, but not by sending death threats to judges.
You can (and should) oppose abortions, but not by spreading vitriol online against those who disagree.
Today, as people march in their local communities, I have a simple message: no issue, not even abortion, is more important than living as a follower of Christ. If your opposition to abortion causes you to hate another, break the commandments, or be anything other than a humble follower of the beatitudes, you might need to take a step back. Nothing is that important that you would forfeit your place at the table, that you would act in a way that disgusts Jesus, to get something done.
Fighting for justice is something that we must do in our world, but please, do so as a Christian.
When Pixar announced that they were producing a movie about the nature of the soul, I was immediately on board. This would be the movie of the year, clearly the masterpiece of the studio. I was sure it would be imaginative, pack a punch, and leave me wondering deep thoughts.
One out of three isn’t bad for baseball. It’s okay for Pixar movies.
In this week’s episode, Fr. Tito and I discuss what we really loved about the movie, namely, its animation, but spend a good amount of time wishing that the story would have been a bit more airtight. Not incredible, but by no means a bad movie!
If you’ve ever been through RCIA or taken a look at the Catechism, you know that there is a lot of stuff to know about our Church. Good stuff. Important stuff! For more than 9 years on this blog, I’ve dedicated myself to sharing that sort of stuff with you, things that will have a practical effect on your lives.
But what about the stuff that isn’t practical? When your Church has been around for 2000 years, there is simply a lot of trivia that has nothing to do with our lives, but is interesting in its own right. For that reason, I’ve compiled 18 straight minutes of useless trivia for your viewing pleasure.
Breaking In The Habit 