Posted by Ben on Friday, Jun 15, 2012 5:30 PM (EDT):
I have been sincerely hoping that I would be able to connect to enjoy “Moonrise Kingdom” as I (like you) have struggled to connect to Wes Anderson’s body of work (including FANTASTIC MR FOX). Here’s hoping my reaction to MOONRISE KINGDOM is somewhat similar to yours!!!
Posted by Tim on Friday, Jun 15, 2012 8:20 PM (EDT):
Thanks for these. Btw, I had no idea that “Reel Faith” was back.
Posted by Susan Varenne on Saturday, Jun 16, 2012 6:18 AM (EDT):
Re: Moonrise Kingdom. My husband and I (both in our sixties) liked this movie a lot. The quirky settings, the over-the-top earnestness of the scout leader, the somewhat haphazard adventures of the runaway youngsters and the adults chasing them were all amusing. But it was the ethos of the film that stuck with us. Two troubled and lonely young people, who suffer the way they do because of the adult world that has made life difficult for them, go away together. They show great sympathy and tolerance for each other—qualities sadly lacking from the marriage of the girl’s parents. Their unspoiled, quite pure response to romance also contrast with the angry, spoiled love of the parents. The girl’s disaffection with her home life, which causes her to strike out in anger, is her judgment on her parents who ought to know better. The boy is an orphan and bullied by other boys. He and the girl are a refuge of acceptance and affection for one another. What looks like a kind of silly movie on the surface has a deep undertow of meaning.
Posted by new Catholic convert on Saturday, Jun 16, 2012 7:56 AM (EDT):
I wholeheartedly agree with your review on “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel”. My husband and I ( both in our early 60’s) went to see it last week and we had the same reactions. It was really sad. I found that I was angered at the same old sins being made once again into something of beauty and sappy sentimentality: adultery, fornication, gay lovers. The actors were wonderful in each of their character portrayal, though, I must say. But I came away saddened that aging was not displayed as time for popndering, wisdom, using time wisely in helping others in works of mercy, etc.
I was sorry I’d payed money to see it, truth be told.
Posted by SDG on Saturday, Jun 16, 2012 3:37 PM (EDT):
Ben: Let me know how it goes!
Tim: Sorry you’ve been missing “Reel Faith”! I’ve been mentioning it…and of course the 60s with us in our theater seats (instead of on a white sound stage) is a giveaway.
Susan Varenne & New Catholic Convert:
Thanks both for your insightful comments and converging opinions! You both sound like thoughtful, critically engaged movie viewers.
Obviously, Susan, since Moonrise Kingdom is the movie I personally saw and reviewed, I’m particularly struck by your sensitive reading of the film. But New Catholic Convert, what you write about The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel really resonates with what I heard about it from my co-host David DiCerto, not only in this 60 but also in our longer treatment on the show. It’s a shame about that film, it seems like such a waste of potential.
NCC, it’s great to hear that you’ve come to the fullness of the Faith—and in your sixties? Welcome home!
Posted by Heather on Tuesday, Jul 10, 2012 2:15 PM (EDT):
“Rock of Ages” has a sex scene in a Catholic church, with the characters involved using the Rosary as “handcuffs”. I was appalled when I found that out, and I refused to let my teens go see it. I am wondering why there hasn’t been any commentary on this horrible scene from the Catholic community.
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Steven D. Greydanus is film critic for the National Catholic Register and Decent Films, the online home for his film writing. He writes regularly for Christianity Today, Catholic World Report and other venues, and is a regular guest on several radio shows. Steven has contributed several entries to the New Catholic Encyclopedia, including “The Church and Film” and a number of filmmaker biographies. He has also written about film for the Encyclopedia of Catholic Social Thought, Social Science, and Social Policy. He has a BFA in Media Arts from the School of Visual Arts in New York, and an MA in Religious Studies from St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Overbrook, PA. He is pursuing diaconal studies in the Archdiocese of Newark. Steven and Suzanne have seven children.
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I have been sincerely hoping that I would be able to connect to enjoy “Moonrise Kingdom” as I (like you) have struggled to connect to Wes Anderson’s body of work (including FANTASTIC MR FOX). Here’s hoping my reaction to MOONRISE KINGDOM is somewhat similar to yours!!!
Thanks for these. Btw, I had no idea that “Reel Faith” was back.
Re: Moonrise Kingdom. My husband and I (both in our sixties) liked this movie a lot. The quirky settings, the over-the-top earnestness of the scout leader, the somewhat haphazard adventures of the runaway youngsters and the adults chasing them were all amusing. But it was the ethos of the film that stuck with us. Two troubled and lonely young people, who suffer the way they do because of the adult world that has made life difficult for them, go away together. They show great sympathy and tolerance for each other—qualities sadly lacking from the marriage of the girl’s parents. Their unspoiled, quite pure response to romance also contrast with the angry, spoiled love of the parents. The girl’s disaffection with her home life, which causes her to strike out in anger, is her judgment on her parents who ought to know better. The boy is an orphan and bullied by other boys. He and the girl are a refuge of acceptance and affection for one another. What looks like a kind of silly movie on the surface has a deep undertow of meaning.
I wholeheartedly agree with your review on “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel”. My husband and I ( both in our early 60’s) went to see it last week and we had the same reactions. It was really sad. I found that I was angered at the same old sins being made once again into something of beauty and sappy sentimentality: adultery, fornication, gay lovers. The actors were wonderful in each of their character portrayal, though, I must say. But I came away saddened that aging was not displayed as time for popndering, wisdom, using time wisely in helping others in works of mercy, etc.
I was sorry I’d payed money to see it, truth be told.
Ben: Let me know how it goes!
Tim: Sorry you’ve been missing “Reel Faith”! I’ve been mentioning it…and of course the 60s with us in our theater seats (instead of on a white sound stage) is a giveaway.
Susan Varenne & New Catholic Convert:
Thanks both for your insightful comments and converging opinions! You both sound like thoughtful, critically engaged movie viewers.
Obviously, Susan, since Moonrise Kingdom is the movie I personally saw and reviewed, I’m particularly struck by your sensitive reading of the film. But New Catholic Convert, what you write about The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel really resonates with what I heard about it from my co-host David DiCerto, not only in this 60 but also in our longer treatment on the show. It’s a shame about that film, it seems like such a waste of potential.
NCC, it’s great to hear that you’ve come to the fullness of the Faith—and in your sixties? Welcome home!
“Rock of Ages” has a sex scene in a Catholic church, with the characters involved using the Rosary as “handcuffs”. I was appalled when I found that out, and I refused to let my teens go see it. I am wondering why there hasn’t been any commentary on this horrible scene from the Catholic community.
Post a Comment
By submitting this form, you give The National Catholic Register permission to publish this comment. Comments will be published at our discretion, and may be edited for clarity and length. For best formatting, please limit your response to one paragraph and don't hit "enter" to force line breaks.