Meditating

I've been meditating on these words and images from the Tree of Life (Terrence Malick, 2011).  Enjoy.



The nuns taught us there are two ways through life...
The way of Nature
And the way of Grace. 
You have to choose which one you'll follow.

Grace doesn't try to please itself. 
Accepts being slighted, forgotten, disliked. 
Accepts insults and injuries.
 
Nature only wants to please itself. 
Get others to please it too. 
Likes to lord it over them. 
To have its own way. 

It finds reasons to be unhappy--
When all the world is shining around it,
When love is smiling through all things.
They taught us that no one who loves the way of grace
Ever comes to a bad end.

Lord, why? Where were you?

Did you know what happened? 

Do you care? 

Help each other. 

Love everyone. 

Every leaf. 

Every ray of light. 

Forgive. 

The only way to be happy is to love. Unless you love, your life will flash by.

Clips: The Way of Nature & the Way of Grace  and the incredible Creation Sequence.

Date night...

So... it was pretty awesome.

With this cast... how could it not be?

[left to right: Brian Cox, Ralph Fiennes, Jessica Chastain, Gerard Butler]

Since seeing her in Tree of Life and a few others since then, I have come to just adore Jessica Chastain. Classy and talented.

And may I just say, Ralph Fiennes's eyes--wow!

[I have to admit, the way he delivered a few of his lines, I was transported back to Prince of Egypt. It made my heart so happy =]

The overall experience was probably bettered by seeing it at the Uptown =)

Coriolanus (2011)
Directed by Ralph Fiennes
Starring:
Ralph Fiennes
Gerard Butler
Vanessa Redgrave
Jessica Chastain [a new favorite of mine]

Gotta love creative Shakespeare adaptations =)

Just saw Terrence Malick's new film Tree of Life. Breathtaking film. A good portion of the film is a series of awe-inspiring images of creation. The movie was able to create poignant albeit awkward, self-conscious moments of silence.

There were so many incredible meetings of form and content, mostly surrounding the movies themes of light and such, but also in the way it was blatantly Christian. Over half of the lines in the film were directed toward God.

"When did you first touch my heart? Where do you live? Are you watching me?"

Jessica Chastain was absolutely fabulous and definitely out-shined her higher payed co-stars. She also delivered some of the most amazing, yet convicting lines:

"There are two ways through life: the way of nature and the way of grace. Grace doesn't try to please itself. Accepts being slighted, forgotten, disliked. Accepts insults and injuries. No one who loves the way of grace ever comes to a bad end."

"Love everyone, every leaf, every ray of light. Forgive."

Ok... ok, she is very much a romanticist. Maybe that's why I love her so much. But so much of what she says is so true.

If you want a good review of the film before seeing it, you can read a good one by Christian film-critic Jeffrey Overstreet. Here it is in part 1 and part 2.

If you see it (or if you already have), I'd love to hear your thoughts. I'm still processing so much and I'd love to hear other people's ideas and interpretations of meaning.