Thoughts on the movie Courageous

Normally I watch movies for escapism, not realism.  However, on occasion, I do stray away from your run of the mill zombie apocalypse or alien invasion for more wholesome, family cinema.

A few days ago my wife and I watched the Christian drama “Courageous.”  Like other movies from Sherwood Pictures, the majority of the cast are not professional actors but members of Sherwood Baptist Church in Albany, Georgia.  Don’t let that deter you from watching this or any of their other movies.  You watch their movies for the message, not because you are looking for a cinematic masterpiece.

***Relatively Spoiler Free***

The story centers around four sheriff’s deputies who begin a journey in examining fatherhood and the need for the father to be the spiritual head of the home.  We have the father of two kids who is too busy for his oldest son, the father who feels the need to protect his family, the father who doesn’t have custody of his son, and a young man who seems to be distant when discussing issues of family.  Each has their own story and viewpoint on the meaning of fatherhood.  Eventually we meet another character named Javier who joins our deputies in their spiritual journey.  Javier is a good man, who is down on his luck, but has faith that the Lord will provide for him and his family.

An unfortunate tragedy bring these five men closer to one another and to God, and they all eventually take on a resolution to be the father that God wants them to be.

There are plenty of subplots in the movie with drugs, gangs, stolen evidence, etc.  They all really serve as backdrop for the movie to get its points across (and they will; you will get constantly reminded if somehow you missed the message).  God wants you be an involved father and to honor Him in everything you do.  Your children need that positive influence in their life.  Not having that positive, spiritual influence potentially sets them up to fail in life.      

At times, the film suffers from plot holes and a lack of coherent plot structure.  There is a whole lot that one can criticize about this movie, but if you are doing that, then you are missing the point. 

I think every father can somehow relate to at least one of the main characters in the movie.  That’s what makes the movie work.  You want to see these men stand up for God and succeed as fathers.  You are rooting for them to set the bar high and achieve it.  Hopefully, you will want that for yourself as well.

For me, I don’t want to be a “good enough father” as the movie mentions.  When I am dead and gone, I want my children to have nothing but positive memories of me.  I want them to remember a father who protected them, loved them, and demonstrated for them how to honor their heavenly Father in all that they do.  Courageous reminds me why it is so important to achieve this kind of parental legacy. 

Courageous fills a need that can’t be found in so many modern movies.  If you are in need of a positive, uplifting spiritual movie, check this one out.   You won’t be disappointed.

Random Thoughts on the Movie Phase 7

Normally I watch a movie when I don’t feel like reading, but sometimes I’ll combine the two and look for a foreign horror or sci-fi movie and bear through the English subtitles. If the movie is good, then I don’t mind. Last night was devoted to watching the low budget Argentinian sci-fi movie “Phase 7” from the Netflix instant queue.

Here’s the basic premise with no major spoilers.

The story is set in Argentina and initially focuses on a twenty something slacker named Coco and his 7 month pregnant wife Pipi. As the story develops we find out that a deadly virus has hit several countries, killing lots and lots of people (they don’t exactly say how many so I will quantify it as “lots and lots”). The Health Ministry begins increasing the threat level in the country, and eventually the building that Coco and Pipi live in is placed into quarantine. As time passes, we get introduced to the unusual group of neighbors in the building and the social dynamic between these people. Although a pacificst, Coco eventually aligns himself with his gun-toting survivalist neighbor Horacio as tensions and paranoia increase from living weeks in quarantine without contact to the outside world.

There is mention a few times about some type of New World Order and the conspiracy that the virus is a way to decrease the population, but this really wasn’t developed much other than to further along some conversations between Coco and Horacio and explain Horacio's survivalist actions. I was expecting monsters or zombies to attack those in the building, but that never happened. The most dangerous predator in this movie was man and his inevitable inhumanity towards others.

Pros

· Decent story with decent acting for a low budget movie, funny at times
· Suspenseful environment
· Musical score is reminiscent of something out of a late 70's/early 80's John Carpenter movie

Cons

· Character development
· Pacing
· The virus isn’t all that frightening in the way it kills (other than it kills you I guess).   However, it’s probably much more realistic than getting a bite/scratch and then bouncing up from the ground as an out of control zombie or monster.

Overall I was satisfied with the movie. Perhaps it’s because I didn’t have any preconceived expectations. If I had wanted to watch Hitchcock, then I would have watched Hitchcock. I just wanted a little escapism and basic entertainment, not a cinematic masterpiece. This movie gave that to me. It also got me thinking about what I would do in similar circumstances. So for that, I’ll recommend the movie. Most movies these days won’t keep you thinking after the credits roll.

If you can handle the subtitles, I would also recommend Troll Hunter (Norway) and Rammbock (Germany), which can also be found on the Netflix instant queue. Maybe I’ll discuss these later, but I have to finish my thoughts on Space Invaders first….