Shadowlands

A couple days ago, I watched the movie Shadowlands. The movie stars Anthony Hopkins, who plays Clive Staples Lewis, or Jack as his friends called him. This biography of sorts, focuses on Lewis' relationship with Joy Greshem, an American woman who first was merely a fan and pen-pal but later became a beloved wife to Jack.

I had heard that Shadowlands was a good movie and am happy to say that I was not disappointed. I have read quite a bit about C.S. Lewis and found the movie to be very accurate. Hopkins was at the top of his game, portraying the extremely intelligent and reserved Lewis. On par with Hopkins was Debra Winger, who played Joy Greshem.

A very interesting thing about the movie was that it gives viewers a glimpse into the extremely intellectual and scholarly environment that Lewis lived and worked in at Oxford University. It was just really neat to see the environment that C.S. Lewis lived and worked in and how "things were done" at that time.

I don't want to give away the story (though even the most rudimentary research into the life of Lewis would reveal the climax of the movie), but I was especially impressed by Hopkins' portrayal of the extremely grief stricken Jack, who is dealing with the truth of God's sovereignty even over circumstances that cause His children much pain. We see C.S. Lewis as a fallible man; as a person who, when presented with suffering, must either run from God in anger or run to Him in humility.

In his book The Problem of Pain, Lewis writes, "God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pain: it is a megaphone to rouse a deaf world." If only we, when confronted with pain and suffering, would cry out to God "What do you want me to learn from this Lord? Teach me to rely on you for everything my Father!" instead of "God, why are you doing this to me? Why couldn't you just give me a comfortable life and leave me alone?"

God has spared me from serious suffering in my short life thus far. For that I am thankful and I praise God. However, I do expect it someday. It is one of God's most power methods for drawing us closer to Himself. And that is our goal, is it not? To be conformed into the image of Christ, entering into a deeper and deeper relationship with Him every day? If so, we should not fear and dread pain, but instead embrace it when it comes. This does not mean that we go looking for it, but instead we look for God in suffering, rejoicing that we are being "purified by fire," drawing closer to the righteousness that we already have in Christ (James 1:2-4).

"We are like blocks of stone, out of which the sculptor carves the forms of men. The blows of his chisel, which hurt us so much, are what makes us perfect." - C.S. Lewis

Aslan is on the Prowl... - Our 1st Co-Post!

Element O1O9: Hello, everyone and welcome to the first ever Matt and Aaron co-post. We figured that this was an appropriate time because of the release of the wonderful movie, The Lion, the Witch and the Warddrobe. So what one word would you pick to describe it Aaron?
asrgimli04: Well, Matt, if I only had one word to say, then it would have to be...."Outstanding"
Element O1O9: Ooo...good choice. I think I would say it was Powerful!
asrgimli04: Indeed. The depth of the writing the movies were able to incorporate onto the screen was simply amazing, and the Christian ties could not have been any clearer. This is a movie that everyone in the family can safely enjoy.
Element O1O9: Yea, totally! The producers didnt shy away from the strong Christian themes and analogies that are all throughout the movie. Andrew Adamson (the director) did a wonderful job bringing the book to the big screen!
asrgimli04: I don't think I have ever seen a movie so closely portray the book to the point that it practically does it justice quite like this one. In some ways, it was even better than my own imagination. This movie makes me wish that I had been one of the sons of Adam (if only I had another sister...). Oh well. Simply put, well done.
Element O1O9: I agree. Now lets go on to the visuals....and do I mean VISUALS! Was it just me or were you like completely stunned when you first saw Aslan?
asrgimli04: Absolutely. The giant figure of the lion was enough to make me both glad and sad that I wasn't there at that moment.
Element O1O9: Yep! He was fantastic and Liam Neeson did a great job as Aslan's voice. He was perfect for Aslan.
asrgimli04: The figure of the lion was intimidating, yet when He spoke, you knew there was nothing to fear. I don't believe anyone could have portrayed that kind of characteristic better than Liam Neeson.
Element O1O9: Yea so what did you think of the stone table scene? Was that powerful or what?! Especially when that minotaur hits Aslan on the head...I felt it myself!
asrgimli04: I don't think there are any words for the emotions I was feeling.
Element O1O9: That scene was really good, but they didnt have to show or gore...you knew what was going on and I felt that the moment that the White Witch plunged her sword into Aslan was very moving, even without showing it.
asrgimli04: Yeah. The point was evident, and they were able to keep the movie safe for any children watching.
Element O1O9: Yep. So what about that awesome battle at the end? That was spectacular!
asrgimli04: Yeah, I couldn't believe the amount of action that they were able to get into the movie and still keep it clean. I thought for sure that that moment would be when the movie was going to get a little ugly. But they didn't have to sacrifice any excitement while keeping it clean, so it was still good for everyone.
Element O1O9: So true. I think my favorite part was when the Pheonix flew down and lit the field on fire, stopping the Witch's advancing army. But then the witch (pulled in a sleigh by two huge polar bears!) like, blew out the wall of fire.....but it looked so much cooler than someone "blowing it out"...it was just awesome!
asrgimli04: I couldn't agree more. The monsters were surprisingly realistic, and some of them were definitely not what I would want to meet, especially not on a battlefield. The good army, on the other hand, would be way cool to be able to spend some time hanging around with, especially the centaur general, Oreius.
Element O1O9: Oh yea! He was great! Especially when he saw that Peter had fallen down, he valiently charged forward, going directly for the Witch's head. Unfortunatly, the Witch is one mean fighter and she did this awesome move and turned him to stone...
asrgimli04: But we shouldn't spoil everything for those who haven't seen it. Rest assured, however, that the battle scene is amazing.
Element O1O9: Yes it is!
asrgimli04: Overall, with the graphics superb, the acting decent, and the story practically picture perfect to the book, I don't think there is any question in anyone's mind that we will definately see the beloved Queen Lucy the Valiant, King Edmund the Just, Queen Susan the Gentle, and King Peter the Magnificent again soon.
Element O1O9: I sure hope so! It was a wonderful movie for the holiday season! Make sure you check it out sometime this Christmas - its not one to miss!

Narnia Mania!

Yea, so am I the only one who is excited about this movie coming out?! I have it as my buddy icon and people keep laughing at it! They wouldnt laugh if it was Lord of the Rings! I for one have high hopes for this movie, which could be just as good and true to the books as Lord of the Rings was.

I have read a few reviews of the movie by people who have seen it already and they are all great! The movie supposedly closely follows the book, making only a few minor changes to either keep up the pace or add a little tension. For example: The time period that the story takes place in is during World War 2. In the books, Peter, Edmund, Susan and Lucy go to live with their uncle to escape the b ombings of London. The books only refrence this event, not going into detail about what actually happened. However in the movie, the childrens escape from London is the first scene! While some diehards may freak out at this, I think that it is a good (and possibly necessary) addition that will open the movie with a bang!

So anyways...I just can't wait. Call me a nerd. Call me whatever you want, but when you see it this Christmas, and realize that it is awesome.....I'm just gonna smile and say "Told ya so."