Episode 44: Lord, Help Me Get One More

After a brief discussion of politics and Batman, we jump into a review of Mel Gibson's new film Hacksaw Ridge and how it handles pacifism, conscience, violence, and point of view.

Episode 14: In the Beginning was the Word

Ordet. We talk about faith, miracles, theology, what we'd say to Alistair Begg if we met him, Hugh Jackman as Paul, William Goldman's review of Saving Private Ryan, and the hoot level of movies. What is a hoot level? Listen to find out. Also: the Patriarch discusses his bid for the presidency.

Ordet (1955) - Review

Ordet – The Word

I’m not inclined towards hyperbole, but I seriously think this little-known Danish drama has had an effect on me that is completely unique in my entire history of film-going. It’s a mixture of the dark, bizarre, confusing, inspirational, and sublime. I’ve never seen anything like it.

So now we’re clear on that, I’ll describe the plot itself. Carl Theodor Dreyer adapted the screenplay from a (much wordier) play, and the influence can be felt in the few locations and small cast, but it is the stronger for the narrow scope.

Picture a bleak, windblown farm in 1920s Germany. Here live the Borgen family, ruled by a pious, disillusioned patriarch. Most of his disappointment stems from the fact that his second son, Johannes, whom he was grooming to be a spiritual revolutionary (presumably the next Martin Luther), went mad. Now Johannes wanders the moors, wailing ancient prophecies into the wind.