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Movies/Scenes
Representing Courage
 | Lord
of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
 | The Lord of the Rings is a movie which in following the
book well enough, addresses many issues pertaining
to emotions, faith, hope, pity, call, confronting
evil, discernment, and many many more themes. This movie is
rich to bursting with possibilities, as it follows the book which was
written around a mythical and religious basis.
(Michael K. Doran) |
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| Hearts
in Atlantis (2001)
| The scene where Bobby "O" carries Carol up the hill is a
beautiful portrayal of courage, fortitude, mercy and compassion. The scene
comes about 3/4's of the way through the film. (Bil
Shappell) |
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Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)
| Using almost any scene, including the beginning fight,
as an example of spiritual warfare in Crouching Tiger,
Hidden Dragon. (Benjy Oliver) |
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| Erin Brockovich (2000)
| "Erin Brockovich" is essentially a film about
empowerment. A mother of three children is unemployed and has no source
of income. She decides that she has to find a job at all costs. In her
work at a small law firm, she discovers that she has very little respect
from the other employees. She comes to believe that the women of the
firm are jealous of her physical attributes when she is asked to change
to more appropriate work clothing. She dreams of one day having a job
where she is respected for what she brings to her position. She dreams
of being viewed as a person of integrity. As the story unfolds, Erin
develops a friendship with her boss that only strengthens with time
because of her hard work and determination to do a good job. He strongly
affirms Erin with several votes of confidence. As Erin works on her
case, she receives acceptance from her co-workers gradually and also
from those whom she wants to sign the petition. She also is required to
show some great courage when she receives some threats to her family.
Her case in a small California town that is plagued by bad water
requires endurance from her and from her children and
boyfriend/neighbor. The film depicts a journey of self-discovery for
Erin. She finds that there are many obstacles that she must overcome,
including dealing with the tension of not being with her children as
much as she would like when she is working on her project for the town.
The tension between working and not working is a strong one for Erin,
who does not have the benefits of child support for her three children.
As she gains the trust of the town, a sense of community between these
people develops. They begin to understand that all of their medical
problems are interconnected and that by joining together as one
community they have a greater chance of achieving their goals. At the
end of the film, Erin shows great joy at her accomplishments as a
person in the working world (not to give away the ending). (submitted by
Valerie Lyson Humphreys, Independence MO) |
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| The Sixth Sense (1999)
| Cole stops running from the ghosts and turns to face
them. (Pulls sheet off and fearfully talks to one.) He finds what they
want and helps them, and they become less frightening. |
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| Three Kings (1999)
| Scene where Archie tells Troy that the deed comes first
- the courage follows. |
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| American History X
(1998)
| Dereks' courage to confront Cameron (and the ghost of his
father) and leave his former life. Danny's courage to make the change
with Derek. |
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| The
Truman Show (1998)
| Truman confronts his fear of water (chaos/death) to escape his
scripted "paradise" (See review
at Hollywood Jesus.) |
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| Beloved
(1998)
| Sethe's flight to
freedom and her survival as a free woman. |
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| Courage Under Fire
(1996)
| Right at the end when the
"Truth" gets told - the scene where Meg Ryan refuses to leave
a man dying and eventually gives her life to save her men. Then they
deny it and tell the rescuers she is dead. (submitted by Luke Whiteside,
Youth
Alpha Australia) |
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| Rudy (1993) |
| The Mission (1986) |
| Glory (1989)
| Glory was the true story of first Black combat regiment,
the 54th Massachusetts, to fight in the Civil War. The commander (by law the
officers had to be white) was the young, Harvard-educated, son of wealthy
Boston abolitionists, Col. Robert Gould Shaw, played by Matthew Broderick.
In addition to Broderick, the cast included Denzel Washington (who
won an Oscar for best supporting actor), Morgan Freeman, and Cary Elwes.
It definitely touches on themes of call and courage - Shaw knows what
he has to do, and ultimately that it will cost him his life. It also speaks
well of race relations (in that time). This is a
great film. (Richard S. Hong) |
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| Weapons of the
Spirit (1989)
| ".....We, we in this
congregation, are called to do what comes naturally (!) for one who has
considered the costs and believes, one who has in her back pocket the
promies of God as recounted in our Psalm today….And what comes naturally is
moving ahead.(!) The community of LeChambon,
France did this. During WWII this protestant peasant French Hugenouts hid,
housed, fed, educated and welcomed hundreds of Jews. They set their face
firmly toward Jerusalem- with all it's suffering, glory, uncertainly and
promise. I believe their story helps illuminate Jesus' greatest hopes and
expectations for his disciples.(!) A Jewish man
who was a baby when his family was embraced by the people of LeChambon
created a documentary film about its story. (We should have a movie time at
BPC to watch it). Put a picture of these people in your head. All in their
70s and 80s at the time of filming, there are neatly dressed in well worn
vests and simple aprons, walking sticks in hand, rosy faced, vibrant. The
filmmaker remarks that hugging one of them is like hugging a tree-these are
solid people. Again and again, when asked why they risked their lives for
their Jewish brothers and sisters, the peasant farmers respond
matter-of-factly with comments like: "Sure, We gave up our bed when there
was no choice." "It happened so naturally, we
can't understand all the fuss." "The bible says feed the hungry and visit
sick. It was the normal thing to do." In an
interview with Bill Moyers about LeChambon, the filmmaker remarks, and I am
paraphrasing, "These days we seem to think that good people are those who
agonize. They " sleep on it"…and maybe in the morning their conscience gets
them to do the right thing. No- this idea is wrong. People who agonize don't
act. And people who act don't agonize." Their path
to discipleship also affirms our Psalm text. Descended from a persecuted
people themselves, the French Hugenouts, theirs was a community who took
great pains to remember the past. As good Calvinists, they had a very high
view of the OT and looked to the prophets to nurture their faith and
conduct. Their most oft sung hymn says, "May the spirit that gave [our]
ancestors life inspire [our] children to follow their example."
They credit their natural giving now with the simple fact that they
remember their own story. "There's was not a sentimental faith. Not
extraordinary. It was a solid faith that was put to the test and not found
wanting." (Anonymous contribution) |
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| The Color Purple (1985)
| Celie's survival and
endurance despite the cruelty around her |
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| Places in the Heart
(1984)
| Edna's courage as she defies those who
would exploit her because she is not married. |
| Moze's courage as he defies those he
knows can harm him. |
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| To
Kill a Mockingbird (1962) |
Index of Movie Titles
Index of Movie Themes
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