Is there something in particular that you would say to something like this? Especially something talking about Twilight

Nick Keutzers last blog post..The Effects of Heaven

Thanks for the helpful thoughts.

You are probably right about No Country, as you know it much better than I. I was mostly focused on the movie itself, which a) was in many ways very truthful and b) was NOT on CT’s list of top “redemptive” movies. I probably should have re-read your article first.

Either way, I’m sure we agree that Christians should exalt truth in art rather than “redemptiveness from whatever” in art.

Ben Bartletts last blog post..A Song and a Blessing

Great post. I’m glad you dealt with this issue, as it is tempting for Christians to try to baptize cultural creations “for God.”

I think you point to an essential problem with all discussions of culture and faith with your study of the word “redemption.” Because our theological language is so powerful and carries such weight, we (I) are often tempted to use it loosely in order to give our ideas more validity. So instead of saying that a character realizes that drug abuse is wrong and starts taking better care of his family, we might say he is “redeemed” in the story.

Likewise, I often find Christians playing fast and loose with the trinity, embodiment, incarnation, sacraments, and grace. These words are so (embodied) loaded with (sacramental) meaning that it is tempting to just throw them in (incarnate) to a sentence just for the heck of it (grace).

On another note, I would argue that while No Country does not have a traditional, Christian redemptive ending, it is hopeful. I think I have an old post about that somewhere. The book, particularly, alludes to the idea that there is someway out of the unremitting violence of the film.

-Alan

There’s really only one larger point that I’m trying to make here… Christians held this movie up as being “redemptive,” but I do not think it is a picture of Christian redemption.

Now, I DO think that in most ways the true story of Johnny Cash is one Christians can and should appreciate. But the way the movie portrayed it, he gained blessings by maturing, not by repenting. He gained marital contentment because June stuck it out, not because he remained committed to his first wife.

As you point out, the problem is that the movie doesn’t do a good job of showing his internal changes as a result of Christ. Instead it portrays them as something he just eventually realized, because he was taught by the pain of his old lifestyle (rather than their inherent sinfulness).

And as for June Carter, do you really believe Reese Witherspoon was inspired because she was a Christian? Or merely because she stuck out the bad days (admirable, no doubt, but not the same thing as seeing the gospel through her).

Look, I like the movie. And Johnny Cash is a great story for Christians in many ways. All I’m saying is that the directors focused the story on Johnny “growing up” and finding a healthier life, rather than realizing his sin and seeking redemption. Because of this, I do not think it is inherently more Christian than, say, There Will Be Blood. We Christians need to avoid saying movies with a “redemption from pain” story arc are necessarily better than a “sin leads to destruction” story arc, because many times the latter is more “Christian” than the former.

Ben Bartletts last blog post..A Song and a Blessing

Okay, good points in asking “redeemed from what?” I have to say, I’m with you on INTO THE WILD. Not so much with you on RATATOUILLE.

And way off the tracks with your choice of movie to scape goat.

Wow. I’m wondering if there is a different WALK THE LINE with Reese Witherspoon out there that you saw.

Where to begin? How about here: I defy you to give me any story of redemption through Christ that I couldn’t turn around and realign to be as hollow as you just did for WALK THE LINE. (The prodigal son selfishly turns away from pain in the calculated hope of getting a hedonistic party out of his dad.)

You say that the movie “is not redemption from an unholy life and sin so much as it is redemption from PAIN.” Yet the movie makes clear, from beginning to end, that it is his unholy life that causes his pain.

Every aspect – not just the drugs.

Cash’s treatment of his first wife is anything but glorified in the movie. Really, the scene of her moving out in your mind is one of joy and freedom to Cash? June’s call from her family after her adultery is seen in your eyes as the filmmakers expressing fulfillment in hedonism?

At the end of his journey, Cash is anything but hedonistic and self-serving. What do you think Folsom is about? He defies his record company in a move that he KNOWS will be unpopular and lose money – visiting those in prison. (The movie doesn’t state it, but the driving force behind that move is a direct response to the commands of Christ.)

It turns out to be a positive career move, not because it was calculated as such, but because it was HONORED as such.

The movie shows rather explicitly the ugliness in seeking merely what you want and what makes you happy. It shows the danger of letting your emotion be your guide. And makes clear that health, wealth and happiness are never going to cut it. (Even goes so far as to point out that you can’t pull yourself up by your bootstraps – Cash tries and fails miserably.)

Only deeper values, such as faith (okay, only given a nod in the movie, I agree), repentance, selflessness and forgiveness will lead to contentment (not happiness, mind you).

It seems that your beef isn’t with what the movie addresses, but rather that Johnny Cash chose a road that ultimately eased his pain. That despite turning his back on a worldly outlook, God allowed him wealth, family and joy.

Through Christ, I too have joy. Bummer for me, huh?

Oh, and my money goes on Reese seeing (and recognizing) and being inspired by the light of Jesus in the saved sinner, June Carter. How much are we betting?

-Sean Gaffney