Prince Caspian

Besides being really, really tired this morning I'm pretty jazzed about the premiere of Prince Caspian last night. I was disappointed that no one dressed up and looked like a Faun but I guess that get up would be uncomfortable to sit in a movie theater with. Plus aren't shirts required to watch a movie? Anyway, since a lot of people have not watched the movie yet, I thought this would be a good place to get my thoughts of it down. So please understand that I'm going to spoil the movie! If you have not seen it yet, please don't read any further!

~*Major Spoilers*~

Prince Caspian (PC) was one of my favorite books as a kid. I remember the first time reading it in fourth grade when I moved to Hawaii and I think I've read it every year since. I know that high expectation can kill a movie going experience. The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe (LWW) lived up to a lot I expected but it still seemed to lack some important things I wanted. PC though had every major scene that I loved from the book and more!

From the opening scene you know it is going to be a darker plot then LWW as Caspian rushes out of the castle to escape his power-hungry uncle, who just found out that he had a son but Caspian stood in the way of this son becoming king. The movie has Caspian meeting Trufflehunter and Nikabrik pretty quick and has him blowing the horn even sooner but in the big scheme of things this makes sense with where they were going with the movie. In the book PC blows the horn in the midst of a battle they are losing. This is probably the biggest departure the movie makes but it worked. Thankfully!

I loved it when the Pevensies first came on the screen because you could see that they truly wanted to be back in Narnia. How do you go from being Kings and Queens to grade school again? I think the movie captured this angst really well! When they first get to Narnia you really feel their excitement and then you also feel there devastation when they realize that Mr. Tumnus and the Beavers are not going to be there anymore. That was a powerful line from Lucy.

My favorite characters in this story are easily Edmund and Lucy. Edmund has grown (physically) and matured in this film and I almost wish he was in it more! They kept his sword fight with Trumpkin in the movie and I loved it. Trumpkin though I'm going to have to wait to judge because he was probably the biggest departure from the book character wise. I think it still worked but I don't know yet if I liked it. I loved the scene where Edmund believes Lucy about seeing Aslan but my favorite scene with Edmund is easily the one where Caspian and Peter are entranced by the white witch. She is a locked up in an icicle and in order to get out needs a drop of Adam's blood. Caspian (at the point of a sword) almost gives but Peter pushed him away at first to resist but you can see the tension he has about maybe letting her out to help! Where has Aslan gone anyway? You can see the indecisiveness in Peters eyes just as the ice begins to crack and finally breaks apart with the witch screaming. There stands Edmund with a giant lion on the wall behind him. It was easily the most redemptive part of the movie and a great example of how far Edmund has come!

Lucy is simply amazing in this movie. You could feel her anguish when she realized that Mr. Tumnus wouldn't be there and that many of those dreams she had were going to be different. The one part I did not like was in the scene with the white witch they had Lucy attacking Nikabrick. I doubt that very highly. That one downside though did not spoil the many brilliant scenes she had. The Dancing Lawn scene were she finally sees Aslan as the trees danced was incredible and right from the book. They decided to make it a dream instead of a real event but it still worked really well. I loved the scene directly after the white witch scene when Peter is sitting by the stone table looking up at the picture of the Lion wondering where Aslan has gone and why he won't show himself. Lucy comes and sits down and talks with him about Aslan seeming to be MIA. You could see Peter was struggling with the fact he almost let the white witch out! Peter says: "I wish Aslan would show himself to me." Lucy replied: "Maybe he is waiting for us to show ourselves to Him."

Overall I gave this movie an 8 out 10 because there were parts in the middle where it seemed to drag. As a fan of the book I did not mind at all but a lot of people were getting up to go to the bathroom so you could tell they thought it was a little long.

Themes from the book were easily shown in the movie and they even expanded on one of them in a way I would never have expected. Aslan barely has anytime in the movie and that works well because it feeds Peter's doubt about Aslan being there to help. Why would Aslan let all these people die? Why would he not come in and save the day? If Aslan was always there then that would have created a whole other issue. Instead, making a theodicy of it worked pretty well in the story! I also loved the friendship, faith, and hope that are clearly presented. Lucy and Edmund show all of these characteristics and magnify them!

The Prince Caspian/Susan romance was perhaps the thing I dreaded the most but I have to say it worked pretty well. The infamous "kiss" scene also was tactfully done and fit the moment. I had no problem with it. Peter was a big departure from the character in the book but you could tell he was struggling with not being respected as the high king. He has some funny lines with that and it worked when you saw him struggling with his identity, especially in light of Caspian. Reepicheep is a hoot and really presents well Lewis' idea of what chivalry is. When it comes to the issue of Susan fighting so much I didn't really have a problem with it but it didn't seem to fit the character. Especially given that she hates "wars" and is sort of a pacifist in the stories. That was a little bit of a departure but I understood why.

Prince Caspian was a great movie and a faithful adaptation of the book. More then LWW was and the fight scenes in this movie are just incredible. The reason I gave it an 8 out of 10 was because it did drag towards the middle and then in the end scenes you really never understand why Lucy runs off the way she does. Where is she going to meet Aslan? I might have missed an explanation but it didn't seem to fit. I loved it in the end where they had the Reepicheep being healed by Lucy and Aslan growing his tale back. The honor of a mouse! I also loved that the last line of the movie is the last line of the book. Caspian also was great and the best scene he has was when Aslan asked all of the Kings and Queens to stand and all the Pevensies stood but PC did not. It was a powerful show of what true leadership is! The movie is very family friendly and may be a little intense for young ones but it kept bad stuff out of it and made an amazing movie I think C.S. Lewis would have been proud of! Now let's just hope they do the same thing with Voyage of the Dawn Treader!

Buffalo vs. Lion vs. Crocodile. Winner: Buffalo?

If you are reading this on facebook you have to look at my blog site to see the video. It is violent but it is incredible:

OBAMALUJAH

I recently signed the Evangelical Manifesto because I agree with the frustration of the authors concerning the politicizing of the Christian faith. While I have core belief systems that affect the way I vote I also do not enjoy having to defend various Christian leaders comments when I am talking to people about my faith.

I signed the Evangelical Manifesto because I do not like people using my faith as a reason to vote for them. While I certainly do not want to create a dichotomy between private/sacred, I also respect that our Government was never supposed to make a state church. Only evil comes when that happens. I also have no problem with envoking God and talking about your faith. I have a problem though with this:



There he is. The media anointed savior. I have a huge problem with this add because it just shows how selectively outraged so many people are! If you remember back in December, Mike Huckabee made an add that had a bookshelf in the background. The bookshelf made a cross. If you don't remember the picture, here it is:
Mike faced all types of criticism for this add and most came from Christians, probably those who signed the Evangelical Manifesto. He had to come out and state that it was completely incidental.

The Christian outrage, or secular outrage for that matter, is silent on this flagrant use of the cross by Barack Obama. This just gets old to say but if this was a Republican there would be outrage, news stories, retractions, stump speeches. Heck, if this was Hillary Clinton there would be outrage! I have no problem with Barack Obama's faith and I am not questioning wither or not he is a Christian. I do have a problem with the selective outrage. Not even just that but the way the media seems to think it is ok for him to use the cross and there won't be a peep in the Ivory Tower but if someone mentions that God created the world, that person is tossed from the Ivory Tower? How did we get this messed up? This is an example of why I signed the Evangelical Manifesto and this is why I think you should to. It doesn't matter if it is a Republican or Democrat, anyone who uses the cross, faith, hope, etc. in the way this add does is doing exactly what Evangelicals are so afraid of. It just isn't vogue to condemn Obama for it and sadly, we dance to the tune of media outrage. Hence, no outrage. Well I am!

Who is the Greatest?

Whenever I read in the Gospel of Luke of the fights the disciples had over who would be the "greatest" in the kingdom I always think of Muhammad Ali running around saying he is the greatest. There is one particular story I am fond of and that was when Muhammad Ali refused to put a seatbelt on in a plane. A very witty flight attendant demanded that he put it on and his reply was: "Superman don't need no seatbelt." The attendant replied: "Well you ain't Superman cause he don't need no plane." She definitely got his attention with that I am sure!

You almost laugh at the two instances (Lk. 9 and 22) where the disciples are caught arguing about their greatness. What was Jesus thinking? What did they think afterward? I was reminded of this story just a few seconds ago after getting off the IM with a friend who is serving in Iraq. She made a very positive comment about me and used terms that I would never ascribe to myself, if anything I would lavish such pleasantries on her and all of are men and women who serve over in Iraq.

This blog is not going to debate the Iraq war. My point is simply this; To my friend who said those kind words, I appreciate the compliment but I am nothing in comparison to you! To all of our guys/gals who serve our country you are the great people! You selflessly put yourself in danger to protect my right to write, breathe, go to school, and live. You are constantly bashed by crazies who say your unintelligent and stupid but I would rather have you then those guys anyday!

Jesus said that no greater love has a man then when someone lays down there life for a friend. While it may sound cliche that is what defines in my book a great person! Not someone who is going for a masters degree. So a big thanks to all of our boys in the military and for those whose family support them! We love you guys and know that your doing the right thing! Will keep the country safe till you get back as you keep the country safe far from home! Thank you for being the greatest, just please put your seat belts on ;)

The Shack

I picked up "The Shack" by William P. Young yesterday and I just finished it tonight. So, yeah, I read the entire book in a day. I heard about this book from many of the different blogger sites and decided to see what all the hype was about. I thought I'd throw out my own two cents and finally get to recommending the book. So here you go. ~minor spoiler warning~

(1) I won't go into the main story but suffice it to say that the book focuses on a terrible loss encountered by a father. A couple of months later he gets a letter from "Papa" to come and visit him at the very site this great loss occurred. The rest of the story are the days that he is in this "shack".

(2) God is depicted as a large, black-woman. Yep. A lot of people seem to be having a fit over this fact but I think it is an interesting point of the book. When the main character meets "Papa" the point of the story is that we constantly think of God as either a white-male or some old phogey who floats around on a cloud. God is a Spirit and therefore He does not have a sex, which is a point the author makes in the book. You will have to read it yourself to see what you think but for the most part I had no problem with this. God did appear to a man in a burning bush. I don't see why we would have a problem with God appearing in the manner He does in this story.

(3) The relationship between the Trinity in this book is astounding. It really puts into place an amazing idea of how there really is unity in the diversity of the Trinity. They are completely God but completely there own person, unified as God. There interaction is beautiful!

(4) The story itself is an amazing one and it looks at some really difficult issues like pain, suffering, loss, and bitterness. All of these are issues I am dealing with and I know many of us face all the time. For those who constantly question God this will make you bend your knee and repent.

(5) The ending to this story is really good and then becomes REALLY bad. The last page is like a drive by shooting. This did not really turn me away from the story but geesh! You would think they would have thought of this!

(6) Deconstructionism. I have read some reviews on Amazon for the book and while I can see there points on how this book seems to push a deconstruction viewpoint I don't know if I totally agree. I cannot find anywhere in my reading a point where there was "heresy" and I think the point the author makes is that when law replaces the relationship you don't have a relationship anymore. God is love and His people should love Him in it. What is the biggest obstacle to that love? Ourselves! There was never a point where the author bashes the Bible or makes it less important. He instead reminds us that the Holy Spirit should be involved in our reading! Something this Pentecostal loved to hear!

Finally, I wanted to leave you with a quote from the book:

"Let us use the example of friendship and how removing the element of life from a noun can drastically alter a relationship. Mack, if you and I are friends, there is an expectancy that exists within our relationship. When we see each other or are apart, there is an expectancy of being together, of laughing and talking. That expectancy has no concrete definition; it is alive and dynamic and everything that emerges from our being together is a unique gift shared by no one else." (p.205)

The One Ring

“You are the Ring-bearer, Frodo...to bear a Ring of Power is to be alone”,

I was in church one Sunday morning and I was testing a new hypothesis I had concerning my True Love Waits ring (TLW).

I didn't have it on.

I had noticed that many of the ladies who would talk to me continued to glance down at my hand in the midst of our conversations and it started to bug me a little. The ring, for one, made me feel like I had a name tag on which said: "Hello, My Name is Matt, I'm a Virgin"and while that is not a bad thing in itself, it isn't exactly the first thing I want people thinking when they meet me.

The other thing I noticed with the ring on was that many girls wouldn't talk to me at all. Sometimes, OK a lot of times, this has worked in my favor but it did bring up quite a dilemma when girls that I did wish to speak to quickly turned away because they thought I was married. All the while I thought maybe I forgot to put the deodorant on?

That Sunday I walked into the Barn (the spiffy name for our Sunday church building) and rubbed the naked finger on my hand. The ring did not adorn it this time. I made my way to the seats and started conversations here and there, nothing really out of the ordinary, just good old Christian fellowship! Then I noticed in the midst of the conversations, the eyes began to wonder again. Inside I smirked because there wasn't anything for the eyes to see. Then the young lady who saw my eyes watching hers quipped: "Matt, that's a nice ring you have there, what is it?" I smiled and replied: "Oh, what ring?" I waved my lanky naked hands. "I don't have one on today." She apologized and the subject was changed rather quickly. I smiled. Got yeah!

This is an interesting dilemma for men who decided to stick to commitments made back in high school. Do I wear the ring or not? If I wear the ring, then many girls won't talk to me because no matter what hand it is on they will think I'm married. Or do I not wear the ring and chicken out on the promise I made so many years ago to my spouse and to myself? Do I go the way of Frodo? A ringbearer who is alone? If I don't wear the ring, then I am no longer a ring-bearer and every ring-bearer is supposed to have a flower girl, right?

Funny isn't it? This is such a stupid post but it's something that happened. I did decide what to do with the ring but the problem still continues. What a game this life truly is!

Shame On You, Al Gore, Shame On You

There are few times here that I may mention someone by name. I've learned that in many ways you cannot defeat an argument by insulting the person. Al Gore however is worthy of mention and it is worthy of saying how outrageous he is. I mention Al Gore by name because if someone said God did created this cyclone to wipe out 22,000 people because of judgment for a sin everyone would be outraged. Yet, here is Al Gore using a natural (NATURAL) disaster where 22,000 people, as of now, are DEAD! This is 2 days old and Al Gore can't keep from utilizing this to press his gospel. 41,000 people are missing and possibly dead and Al Gore is running around saying that they could have avoided this if they hadn't driven their cars or changed their light bulbs. No empathy. No anything. Shame on you Mr. Vice President, Shame on you!

“It’s also important to note that the emerging consensus among the climate scientists is although any individual storm can’t be linked singularly to global warming – we’ve always had hurricanes,” Gore said. “Nevertheless, the trend toward more Category 5 storms – the larger ones and trend toward stronger and more destructive storms appears to be linked to global warming and specifically to the impact of global warming on higher ocean temperatures in the top couple of hundred feet of the ocean, which drives convection energy and moisture into these storms and makes them more powerful.”