Johnson, Robert K.. Grand
Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2000. 236 pp. $16.99 US. ISBN: 0-8010-2241-X.
[1] Robert K. Johnston (Professor of Theology and Culture, Fuller
Theological Seminary) wants to put an end to the feud between Hollywood
and Christianity. He is interested in more than just a peace treaty
however; he wants to see genuine interaction. When theology and film
interact, Johnston asserts, the individual Christian will experience
opportunities for revelations and deeper insights into what it means
to be human.
[2] Theology, defined as "'conversation about God' is increasingly
found outside the church" (14). Quite a bit of conversation about
God is taking place in the movies, some indirectly, but almost all
of it without Christian input. The Church risks irrelevance by ignoring
the culture at large (15). The world is talking about God and what
it means to be human while the most that the Christian Church seems
to offer is moral judgment. Christians should have more to say about
movies than just giving a tally of swear words. "Film criticism, however,
has a different goal than simply the negative or positive evaluation
of a film. It seeks to initiate a process of inquiry and reflection
in order to better understand a movie" and ourselves (125). The point
is not "to render moral judgmentsÄbut to achieve greater insight"
(54). According to Johnston, this insight happens during moments of
transcendence.
[3] Johnston suggests there are two types of transcendence to consider.
"Transcendence A" is the kind that ushers us into the presence of
the Holy, something outside ourselves that cannot be predicted or
forced. No one can tell which movies or scenes will cause this kind
of transcendence, but certain movies are more likely to open up possibilities.
"Transcendence B" is more focused on humans overcoming trials and
showing the best that is in humanity; something that makes the viewer
say, "So that is what it means to be human." This kind is much more
common in movies and is easily built right into the story.
[4] There are two audiences for the first chapters of this book.
One audience is Christians who tend to avoid movies, so the author
spends quite a bit of time defending the idea that moments of transcendence
or understanding can come from movies. In fact, he seems to spend
almost too much time trying to convince the reader that films are
of value. This may be in some measure due to the intended/expected
audience of evangelical Christians who have traditionally treated
Hollywood with skepticism. Not only does he spend too much time on
the matter, but he is not wholly successful in his argument. What
if a person doesn't watch very many movies? If he reads books instead,
is he really selling himself short on a chance to experience the divine?
[5] The other audience Johnston addresses is probably the majority
of American religious believers. The author assumes that since most
of us watch movies regularly, we might as well engage them with our
theology. Most people, not just Christians, tend to watch movies without
putting any effort into analyzing the content.
[6] One of the points that Johnston emphasizes is that viewers should
first view a movie on its own terms, and then, only after that, bring
their theology into dialogue with the film. Rather than pre-judge
according to our theological standards, we should see what the movie
has to say and then bring our standards into a give-and-take type
dialogue that can help us to see more of what a film has to offer
(49). One example of this pre-judging would be rejecting a film out-of-hand
because the lead character is a womanizer or a smoker. The viewer
should allow the characters to have flaws, find what's good in a film,
and use that as the starting place.
[7] Chapters six and seven focus on how to critique a film. Johnston
explains four types of criticism: Genre (type of film such as romantic
comedy or film noir), Auteur (the filmmakers, usually the director),
Cultural (the audience and what is happening in the world at large),
and Thematic (broadly defined themes such as courage or nature of
good and evil) (126). This is an especially helpful section of the
book for anyone who lacks training or experience in formal film criticism.
Johnston has a certain fondness for graphs; many of his points, such
as this one, are enhanced by representing them visually.
[8] To illustrate his points, Johnston includes several short movie
reviews within the chapters–some of which are quite good–while
also providing a more in-depth, chapter-long analysis of the movies
of Peter Weir. Excellent appendices include: a thirteen-page bibliography
of theology and film ranging from the mid 1950s to 2000 (though many
items only seem to fall in one or the other category–theology
or film–and not both as might be expected); an index of movies
cited; and a standard subject index and notes section.
[10] Johnston occasionally makes too much of his case: "'We are what
we eat' overstates, but its truth with regard to movies is incontrovertible–'We
are what we watch'" (173), and "[A movie] character, reflects, 'Everything
you need to know about life is in the movies.' His remark rings true"
(152). Perhaps Fuller Seminary, located in Pasadena, is too close
to Hollywood and the smog has infiltrated even into the conservative
Evangelical seminary. These statements ring hollow to a movie lover
outside the insular world of southern California. Movies influence
society and individuals, yes, but the totality of humanity is not
reflected on the big screen.
[11] Though this book is written for a Christian audience, many of
his ideas could be expanded more broadly to religion in general. Looking
for the transcendent (both the kind that points to something "out
there" and the kind that reveals what it means to be human) can be
used by anyone with a desire for getting more out of film. Especially
valuable are the ways of analyzing the worldview implicit in a film.
This is a book worth reading and using in the quest to understand
a very important part of popular culture.
Robert M. Lindsey
Pittsburg State University,
Pittsburg, Kansas
rlindsey@pittstate.edu
