Religion and Film - Movie Review Example

Section/# Religion in Films: A Discussion and Analysis By their very nature, films have the ability to engage people in something of a singular or uniform approach to a particular idea, philosophy, or understanding of an issue. This unique ability allows for a type of social cohesion to develop. As a function of analysing this particular form of social cohesion and the manner through which it impacts upon society, and all expressions of belief/religion, the following analysis will engage the reader with an interpretation of the mechanisms through which film is able to psychologically impact upon the viewer. Rather than delving into a deeply analytical understanding, the focus instead will be placed upon the way in which shared interpretations are able to be engaged as a result of film. It is the hope of this author that by analysing this topic in such a way, the reader will come to a more informed understanding with respect to the way through which film is able to impact upon a shared set of beliefs or understandings that a more doctrinal approach could not effect. Further, a tangential understanding of the increase in ecumenical movements that have recently been exhibited throughout the world can also be understood to be partially the result of the impacts that religious films have been able to effect upon individuals from diverse religious backgrounds. Prior to delving directly into this issue, it is necessary to discuss and analyse the Durkheim theory of religion. In essence, Emile Durkheim understood that the constraining and defining impacts of religious observance and community were aspects of belief that, even though oftentimes differentiated, had immense power in congealing the emotions and thoughts of people in a given direction; or towards a given point of view. Said Durkheim, “A religion is a unified system of beliefs and practices relative to sacred things, i.e., things set apart and forbidden--beliefs and practices which unite in one single moral community called a church, all those who adhere to them” (Ōzavci, 2014). The connection that this has to film is contingent upon the fact that an untapped level of societal understanding exists with regards to religion and religious observance; something that filmmakers have long been able to leverage. However, notably absent from Durkeim’s theory is the fact that a “supernatural element” necessarily must exist in order for a body of believers to engage with a given topic in the same way. Instead, Durkheim promotes the fact that belief, identification, and understanding are in fact the more powerful metrics which help to define the life and approach that this community engages different topics with. Ultimately, Durkheim viewed religion as one of the most fundamental and formative social institutions; capable of congealing and collecting people to a particular view in ways that no other force could effect. The interesting connection that Durkheim’s theory has with regards to film is that film has the tacit and innate ability to utilize this aforementioned power of collective belief/consciousness and represent it to wide spectrum of individuals (Ostwalt,, 2013). As such, the power of religious motifs and imagery within film, especially when analysed under the lens of the Durkheim theory, is even greater than one might otherwise expect. Even basic statistical research reveals the fact that a large number of individuals within the Western world, and throughout the remainder of the world for that matter, consider themselves “believers”. However, one might quickly denote the fact that the similarity between pupils stop there. Yet, the fundamental understanding that must be had is with regards to the fact that shared level of belief that is exhibited within somebody populations around the globe, ultimately allows for the development of the unique market; one in which filmmakers and entertainers have sought to leverage and exploit within the past several decades. This does not come as something of a large surprise. For instance, some of the earliest representations of art were of course religiously the. Early cave paintings to take a type of unspoken deity, son God, or a pantheon of other such entities. Similarly, Egyptian hieroglyphics denote the many gods that existed within their pantheon. Likewise, Roman art not only depicted the pantheon of gods that their pagan beliefs held dear, it soon came to combine these guys with Christian entities; melding the two together and creating a blended level of diversity between art, religious belief, and paganism. In much the same manner, the earliest representations of Phil necessarily had religious themes as well; with some of the silent movies depicting themes from the Old Testament as well as the life of Christ. However, as film began to develop and the representation of different formats came to be utilized, the focus upon religious themes came to decrease. Since the era of “The Ten Commandments” or “Ben Hur”, religious themes in movies have been subsequently decreasing up until around the past 10 years. At such a point in time, it was once again realized that a large subsection of the viewers of films were in fact a believers of one form or another. As such, providing films that that meet the requirements of this audience is not only a lucrative approach, it was one that has been done for many decades. The difficulty that was faced with regards to finding a level of profitability in such films can be traced back to an understanding of delineating the “least common denominator”. Whereas this particular term is most oftentimes associated with mathematics, with regards to religiosity and actions of beneath within film, the least common denominator can be understood with respect to the way in which individuals of different faiths could achieve a level of commonality and understanding with respect to the depiction of religion or belief within the film without allowing this depiction to divide or otherwise separate the believers that would interact with such a topic. By leveraging this “least common denominator” among believers, filmmakers were once again able to detect a litany of different religious themes, develop a core audience, and increase the overall level of profitability that they were able to engage in any specific venture. Yet, the core question that must be understood prior to this has to do with the manner through which film is able to contribute social cohesion. Since the time of earliest of filmmaking, individuals have understood the manner through which psychology and group dynamics can be shifted as a result of a successful depiction within the format the film. Indeed, even individuals of ill repute, such as Soviet dictator Josef Stalin recognized the implicit power of social cohesion that film was able to effect (Mitchell, 2009). Whereas it may seem as somewhat strange to discuss Josef Stalin within an essay that is predicated upon understanding social cohesion from a religious standpoint, it was this very maniacal dictator that utilized still as a means of developing his own personality cult; not very far from a religion predicated upon communism and the worship of the figure of the “Great Leader”. Broadly speaking, social cohesion within the film has oftentimes been used as a means of perpetrating a particular approach, winning over individuals, or otherwise shifting the dynamics of society to engage with the topic in a particular way. Similarly, with regards the representation of religion and/or belief within film, social cohesion is utilized as a means of drawing the individual back to the core understanding that the possibility of a higher power exists at the very root of the human condition (Last, 2012). In effect, the representation of social cohesion that is most oftentimes leveraged within the film, concerning religion or belief, is unspoken; the tacit or innate belief that a higher power exists that is not only interested within the lives of individuals on earth but is also able to interact with them and change their respective conditions. Naturally, the most obvious utilization of this particular technique is with respect to the representation of a Christian God within film. Although by and large this “Christian God” has become the most oftentimes depicted, there are of course litanies of other representations of religion or belief that exist within the body of film. Within recent years, filmmakers such as Ang Lee had been able to promote a level of religious belief that extends beyond the confines of a particular religious affiliation or denomination. It is an approach such as this that allows for the greatest level of social confusion to (Blizek et al., 2011). Whereas it is true that almost all of the individuals that have seen “The Life of Pi” were not necessarily do or Muslim, the religious overtones and interpretations that are represented within the film allow for a degree of social cohesion that extends far beyond the realm of denominational doctrine or other divisive aspects of religious belief. Once again, the ability to leverage the “least common denominator” lies at the core of the ability of the filmmaker to engage with the audience and promote a degree of social cohesion that might otherwise not exist. One of the core reasons for why religious themes and overtones have played such a level of importance within the genre of film has to do with the fact that the medium of film, by its very essence, is one that conveys a type of magical understanding of the world. Heros are lager than life, action sequences go from realistic to laughably impossible; yet, this is not only done as a means of simply entertaining. It is the argument of this author that the medium of film is by its very essence magical and “otherworldly” (Sjö & Daníelsson, 2013). As such, incorporating religious overtones and themes to film is not only done as a means of promoting further profitability and/or engaging with a broader subset of theatre goers/film watchers, it is done due to the ease of production and the fact that a conversation/depiction of the divine and/or religion serves as a simplistic tool through which plot resolution and analysis of culture can take place. Yet, beyond understand this tactic as sheer laziness on the part of screenwriters and producers, it should also be understood that specific periods in time have a drastic impact with regards to the permissibility and levels of interest in religious themes. As has been alluded to earlier, long periods of film history have been nearly devoid of representations of religious themes; only to come to a new level of prominence within the recent past (Blizek, 2013). Far from being a barometer of religious observance throughout the world, it is the understanding of this analyst that the core reason for this can be traced to levels of doubt and uncertainty; stemming from concerns as diverse as global warming and pandemics to concerns relating to the economic growth and longevity of current society. From the information that has thus far been presented, the reader can appropriately note that religious themes and identification have a powerful level of impact with regards to movies and the way that they are represented to specific demographics. As the majority of the world shares some type of religious affiliation, regardless of whether it is a belief in a spirit world or the belief in a triune god, the impact and shared power that these films are able to represent to this specific demographic is profound. Further, as filmmakers have begun to leverage these understandings to a more full and complete degree, taking special care to represent what has been termed within this essay as the “least common denominator”, it is likely that the appeal and broad based interested in such types of film will only increase within the near future. Finally, from the analysis that has been conducted, it should be understood that religious depiction within film is not the result of a single factor; instead, it is the result of intellectual laziness on the part of filmmakers to develop plotlines that leverage new ideas and new approaches, a desire to engender a further level of profitability from viewers by addressing the “least common denominator”, and the function of the reality that religion serves as both the greatest uniting and dividing force within the current world. References Blizek, WL 2013, Religion and Spirituality in the Movies, International Journal Of Religion & Spirituality In Society, 2, 3, pp. 108-114, Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 1 February 2014. Blizek, W, Marie Desmarais, M, & Burke, R 2011, Religion and Film Studies through the Journal of Religion and Film, Religion, 41, 3, pp. 471-485, Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 1 February 2014. Last, R 2012, A Style-Sensitive Approach to Religion and Film, Numen: International Review For The History Of Religions, 59, 5/6, pp. 545-563, Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 1 February 2014. Mitchell, J 2009, New Directions in the Study of Film and Religion, Studies In World Christianity, 15, 2, pp. 107-112, Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 1 February 2014. Ostwalt, CE 2013, The Bible, Religion, and Film in the Twenty-first Century, Currents In Biblical Research, 12, 1, pp. 39-57, Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 1 February 2014. Ōzavci, H 2014, Differing Interpretations of conscience collectives and "the Individual": Émile Durkheim and the Intellectual Origins of the Republic, Journal Of The History Of Ideas, 75, 1, pp. 113-136, Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 1 February 2014. Sjö, S, & Daníelsson, Á 2013, DETRADITIONALIZATION, DIVERSITY, ANDMEDIATIZATION:EXPLORATIONS OF RELIGION IN FILMS, Nordic Journal Of Religion & Society, 26, 1, pp. 45-62, Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 1 February 2014. Read More