I have a lot of catching up to do. I'd never been to a film festival. And what is happening in Egypt? Two entirely different events, but, yet, it's quite similar. How so? Take a back seat, relax, and analyze the world's view of religion:
News
The past and today's present. Life in the Middle East has been in turmoil, full of war and bloodshed. Specifically the countries such as Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and now Egypt.
Egypt is facing its own disturbance between the government and the residents. Protesters. The people there in this country are in havoc of destroying themselves. The cost is heavy. How did this crisis began? Lately, I haven't been watching the news nor reading the newspapers.
Several months ago, Haiti, the recent earthquake hit country, received its own share of major heartache and problems after the devastation of being hit with the epidemic of the cholera virus, an acute and often fatal intestinal disease, that led to an upheaval in the voting of its government officials.
Although none of these events are soundly based on just religion, this could, in fact, turn into a religious issue if these events are viewed by a religious sect, then the concept of how these countries live their daily lives do point towards some type of religious reformation.
In yesterday's The New York Times front page, the headlines were printed in dark letters of "Waves of Unrest Spread to Yemen, Shaking a Region" followed by smaller words, appearing as "Calls for Change Continue to Unsettle Old Order in Egypt and Tunisia." Then down within this column were the headlines of "Seizing a Moment, Al Jazeera Galvanizes Arab Frustration" and "Cables Show U.S. Tack on Egypt: Public Support, Private Pressure."
Turn the NY Times newspaper to pages A10 and A11. There are a lot more headlines printed across both of these two pages:
On page A10: "Waves of Unrest Spread to Yemen, Shaking a Region With Calls for Change;" "With Muslim Brotherhood Set to Join Egypt Protests, Religion's Role May Grow."
On page A11: "Cables Show How U.S. Changed Tack on Egypt;" "Most members of Old Cabinet in Tunisia Step Down;" and "Egypt's Leader Uses Old Tricks to Defy New Demands."
I have found the answer to my questions after reading the caption news story of "With Muslim Brotherhood Set to Join Egypt Protests, Religion's Role May Grow."
The lead paragraph of this news story had been about Egypt's rising prices, stagnant incomes, greater freedom, and ending police brutality. In addition to this country's religion, which, according to this New York Times article, is often a powerful mobilizing force, has played a little role. But, as this article states, that may be about to change.
For instance, the Muslim Brotherhood, the largest organized opposition group in the country, announced, on Thursday, that they would take part in the protest, which could heighten the tension in Egypt.
Hamid Said, a source in this news article, cited political oppression and police brutality as the leading causes of frustration among the people.
A silent prayer to all those who are in Egypt.
Television
On the front cover in a recent issue (Jan. 10-16) of TV Guide magazine, there had been a special report of "God on TV: Is Prime Time Keeping the Faith?"
This featured story prints that The Simpsons have been a long run televised program. A recent story in L'Osservatore Romano, a Vatican newspaper, praised Homer Simpson for being a "true" Catholic. The newspaper publication cites The Simpsons for using "Christian faith, religion, and questions about God" as recurring themes.
"The Simpsons is one of the more balanced treatments of faith-based characters that you'll see," a director of communications for the Parents Television Council said in this TV Guide article.
In a House episode, a Catholic League president reeled from what he saw as "unrelieved hostility" toward Catholicism, a patient, who is crucified every year, as part of a deal with God, to keep his daughter free of cancer.
The Catholic League president has an informative point of view. After all, this is the same patient who is being crucified every year. Not an entirely new patient that is being crucified to save his daughter from developing cancer.
Skimming though this TV Guide article, religion isn't so easily accepted by all TV families. I haven't watched The Good Wife, so I don't know what recent episode that a character Alicia was taken aback upon discovering her daughter kneeling in prayer.
And so goes for the remainder of the television shows such as Bones, The Middle, Hellcats, Glee, Law & Order: SVU episode, and the past TV show Lost.
There are two TV shows (MTV's Skins and CW's The Vampire Diaries) that appear to have the similar feeling of talking about spiritual topics. I just need to spend more time in watching them on the Internet and/or on DVD. Sorry about my television screen. One day, I'll change my daily and weekend routine schedule. If this is possible. Create more time.
Films
In yesterday's The New York Times front page, the headlines were printed in dark letters of "Waves of Unrest Spread to Yemen, Shaking a Region" followed by smaller words, appearing as "Calls for Change Continue to Unsettle Old Order in Egypt and Tunisia." Then down within this column were the headlines of "Seizing a Moment, Al Jazeera Galvanizes Arab Frustration" and "Cables Show U.S. Tack on Egypt: Public Support, Private Pressure."
Turn the NY Times newspaper to pages A10 and A11. There are a lot more headlines printed across both of these two pages:
On page A10: "Waves of Unrest Spread to Yemen, Shaking a Region With Calls for Change;" "With Muslim Brotherhood Set to Join Egypt Protests, Religion's Role May Grow."
On page A11: "Cables Show How U.S. Changed Tack on Egypt;" "Most members of Old Cabinet in Tunisia Step Down;" and "Egypt's Leader Uses Old Tricks to Defy New Demands."
I have found the answer to my questions after reading the caption news story of "With Muslim Brotherhood Set to Join Egypt Protests, Religion's Role May Grow."
The lead paragraph of this news story had been about Egypt's rising prices, stagnant incomes, greater freedom, and ending police brutality. In addition to this country's religion, which, according to this New York Times article, is often a powerful mobilizing force, has played a little role. But, as this article states, that may be about to change.
For instance, the Muslim Brotherhood, the largest organized opposition group in the country, announced, on Thursday, that they would take part in the protest, which could heighten the tension in Egypt.
Hamid Said, a source in this news article, cited political oppression and police brutality as the leading causes of frustration among the people.
A silent prayer to all those who are in Egypt.
Television
On the front cover in a recent issue (Jan. 10-16) of TV Guide magazine, there had been a special report of "God on TV: Is Prime Time Keeping the Faith?"
This featured story prints that The Simpsons have been a long run televised program. A recent story in L'Osservatore Romano, a Vatican newspaper, praised Homer Simpson for being a "true" Catholic. The newspaper publication cites The Simpsons for using "Christian faith, religion, and questions about God" as recurring themes.
"The Simpsons is one of the more balanced treatments of faith-based characters that you'll see," a director of communications for the Parents Television Council said in this TV Guide article.
In a House episode, a Catholic League president reeled from what he saw as "unrelieved hostility" toward Catholicism, a patient, who is crucified every year, as part of a deal with God, to keep his daughter free of cancer.
The Catholic League president has an informative point of view. After all, this is the same patient who is being crucified every year. Not an entirely new patient that is being crucified to save his daughter from developing cancer.
Skimming though this TV Guide article, religion isn't so easily accepted by all TV families. I haven't watched The Good Wife, so I don't know what recent episode that a character Alicia was taken aback upon discovering her daughter kneeling in prayer.
And so goes for the remainder of the television shows such as Bones, The Middle, Hellcats, Glee, Law & Order: SVU episode, and the past TV show Lost.
There are two TV shows (MTV's Skins and CW's The Vampire Diaries) that appear to have the similar feeling of talking about spiritual topics. I just need to spend more time in watching them on the Internet and/or on DVD. Sorry about my television screen. One day, I'll change my daily and weekend routine schedule. If this is possible. Create more time.
Films
The Los Angeles Times printed an article in its front page 'Calendar' section headlined as "Cross Purposes: Independent Films featuring mega-churches, adultery and attempted suicide examine how religion helps and hinders."
Within this feature story, the LA Times' reporter, John Horn, wrote there was a large number of independent films that used faith (specifically Christianity) as the foundation theme for its stories.
As I'm reading the front page of this Sundance Film Festival article, religion isn't as simple or as easy to define. For instance, the common words such as "God," "Jesus," and "Cross" are not found. Only the familiar terms of pastor and church, which is shown through Kevin Smith's gothic horror story "Red State."
The plot description of Red State in Horn's article "targets a violently homophobic pastor modeled on the real-life, gay bashing Baptist Fred Phelps." And in another Sundance review on the Entertainment Weekly website, Anthony Breznican wrote that Red State is about "a gay-hating minister who goes on a blood-drenched rampage against an equally murderous squad of federal agents, with some sex-crazed teens stuck in the middle." And, finally, according to Wikipedia, the plot of Red State focuses on "three horny high school boys who come across an online personal ad from an older woman looking for a gang bang. And boys being boys, they hit the road to satisfy their libidinal urges. What begins as a fantasy, however, takes a dark turn as they come face-to-face with a terrifying fundamentalist "holy" force with a fatal agenda." The source of this information came from an article on the 27th Sundance Film Festival.
So having at least three different plot notes, a reader could understand the story aspects of this independent film "Red State."
And the familiar word "church" and, in addition, "Christian" were visibally seen in another independent film at Sundance. It's George Ratliff's dark comedy "Salvation Boulevard."
At the IMDb website, the storyline of Salvation Boulevard had been written as follows: "Set in the world of mega-churches in which a former Deadhead-turned-born again-Christian finds himself on the run from fundamentalist members of his mega-church who will do anything to protect their larger-than-life pastor."
I will not dig too much in regards of posting anymore information about "Salvation Boulevard." If a reader has a chance, then go out of the way to see it; if no longer can, then ask around. I'm sure there is somebody who attended this year's Sundance Film Festival.
Next, there are the "faith based" independent films of Tyrannosaur, Higher Ground, and The Ledge.
Moving forward, lets take a closer look at Paddy Considine's Tyrannosaur. According to John Horn's feature article, once again, printed on the Los Angeles Times, this independent film "explores the futility of faith through the relationship between an embittered older man and a woman working in a charity thrift shop."
Moving forward, lets take a closer look at Paddy Considine's Tyrannosaur. According to John Horn's feature article, once again, printed on the Los Angeles Times, this independent film "explores the futility of faith through the relationship between an embittered older man and a woman working in a charity thrift shop."
Then the LA Times' reporter had written the 'two other' features---Higher Ground and The Ledge---are as being "not interested in using spirituality for satire or shock, but instead looking at religion for a deeper dramatic purpose."
On page D4, within this newspaper, Horn continued, writing a lot more of the Sundance Film Festival's faith based independent films. It's about the same films that were previously mentioned in the 'Calendar' front page. For example, Higher Ground is based on "This Dark World," which is Carolyn Briggs' memoir. And a rigid reading of the Bible shaped Chapman's The Ledge in which, according to the Los Angeles Times, is "outwardly a ticking-clock thriller about a man poised to jump to his death and inwardly a debate about how faith and forgiveness shape personal relationships."
The almost ending paragraphs of Horn's Los Angeles Times feature story are the price of faith in Ratliff's Salvation Boulevard and Considine's unafraid to show in Tyrannosaur that "although religion may serve as a lifeline to some, it can't always save people in a difficult marriage or with other troubles, and may distract the afflicted from more pragmatic soultions."
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