I used to be a movie snob.
You know the type. We avoid the multiplex with its stadium seating and bourgeoise buckets of Diet Coke, opting instead for that little-known art house where they serve a mean espresso. As self-proclaimed cinephiles we feign ignorance of the latest summer blockbuster whilst trumpeting the merits of the recent foreign-language import we’ve “discovered.”
I’ve mostly recovered now from being an insufferable bore, but as I look back over that period of my life I’ve realized that I saw a lot of movies. Some of them were very good, and some of them were terrible. I now have innumerable images in my head, and there are many of them I wish I could forget.
You see, every time we settle in to watch a movie, we agree—whether consciously or not—to go to certain places in our imaginations. What I’ve often wondered is: Are some of those places better left unvisited? We make the same choice when we sit down to read a book, consider a painting, or visit the theater. Each of these art forms invite us into a journey in which they ask us to look at life from a new perspective, but are all of these journeys and perspectives of equal value?
I recently asked a friend of mine this same question, and he answered, “I’d go to hell and back for a good story.” He was willing to get pulled through miles and miles of metaphorical mud as long as it was in the service of a great narrative.
Whenever this subject is raised in Christian circles there is one verse that inevitably rears it’s discussion-squashing head. Without fail, some well-intentioned person will quote Philippians 4:8, “Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”
Once this verse is uttered the result is usually an unspoken understanding that the issue may be laid to rest. After all, isn’t it clear that, for the Christian, his or her mind must be firmly and permanently directed toward thoughts about church, puppies, and The Chronicles of Narnia?
I tend to disagree.
If Christians are expected to exclusively engage in art that omits the messiness of life we’d have to avoid large portions of the Bible.
Remove the mentions of David and Bathsheba. Tear out the pages describing the worship of the golden calf. Forget about Ecclesiastes; it’s just too negative.
Such an understanding of Philippians 4:8 seems to be a gross oversimplification of the intention of scripture. But does that mean that we should be willing to go “to hell and back?” Will we bury our heads in the sand, or will we drag them through the gutter? Should we only listen to Christian music and watch Christian movies, or should we use the freedom we have in Christ to listen to and watch anything we want?
Is there a line we shouldn’t cross? Is there a standard we can use? How far is it too far?
Also, Philippians 4:8 can be thrown to either side of the argument if you look at it, just as the author points out.
I also agree that this does not mean we should go to hell and back (aka try the drugs, try the sex, or watch the porno). The line is very hard to define, but we usually know when an action is getting into lusts or just running across a subject.
I tend to agree with your disagreement and have another basis for it. When Jesus and the disciples walked the earth did they seclude themselves to only going to religious events or hanging with “the right people”, no absolutely not! If they did this they’d be just another Jew.
We have to keep up with society and its views in order to be able to most efficiently interact with it and to know what it has to “throw at us”. Also, they did not reduce themselves from taking part in many societal traditions and events of the time, and let’s face it, movies are now a big societal tradition and event.