Two films about faith… sort of.
The Secrets of Jonathan Sperry (2008; Hoopla through your library, Tubi, Daily Motion, YouTube)
Three bored junior high boys start hanging out with their aged neighbor and discover that there’s more to him—and his faith—than they ever imagined. This is a low-budget, independent Christian movie, but it’s one of the best I’ve seen. It’s set in 1970, back when a preteen boy could be bored over the summer in a small town. Jonathan Sperry is delightfully played by Gavin MacLeod, whom you may recognize from those 70s TV shows The Mary Tyler Moore Show (Murray) or Loveboat (the captain). His object lessons are valuable, and the boys’ transformation is genuine. The movie sags for about a half hour as the boys lethargically discuss the doldrums of having a crush on a girl but not knowing how to talk to her. But even this slow pace is effective, as it contrasts with the sense of purpose they find by the end. A sense of purpose they develop, on the inside and through real relationships.
Inherit the Wind (1960; Hoopla again, Tubi, Pluto, Amazon Prime)
In the early 1900s, a high school teacher is arrested for teaching evolution, and the trial becomes a public battle of ideologies. Adapted from the play, loosely based on the real-life 1925 “Scopes Monkey Trial,” this film features top-notch acting. The director, Stanley Kramer, consistently casts star-studded films, and here we have, first, Spencer Tracey as the teacher’s advocate; second, Fredric March, who gives an intense performance as the Bible-believing politician who opposes him; and finally, a cynical reporter played by… Gene Kelly? Kelly gives a convincing performance even though we clearly aren’t Singin’ in the Rain (1952).
I like early 60s film. It’s at a sweet spot where American cinema is facing tough social issues head-on without spilling out into unwatchable content. So, you get films that are intense but rather clean. They are as crisp as the cinematography and as captivating as the psychological editing. And we haven’t yet reached the paranoia or anti-hero despair of the 70s, either: we aren’t throwing the baby of meaning out with the bathwater of disappointment.
It's odd watching this story in an era when the red shoe is on the other foot—when evolution is the standard curriculum. But again, this film is precisely about this transition, if not in the 1920s then in the 1960s. To me, it’s fascinating. It resonates today because it’s about how hard it can be for the two polarized sides to listen to each other. This movie may not land where you want it to, but it offers a good starting point for meaningful conversation and critical thinking; a reminder to have a little more humility, and a little more grace for the ones we disagree with.
For sensitive viewers: Some mild swear words and smoking.
Have you guessed our “theme of the month” yet? (Excluding week two’s essay, of course.) If not, I’ll reveal it next week 😊
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