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‘Tis the season…to stay at home, cozy up and watch a movie.  As the first post of our new Arts section, we’d like to introduce you to some of our faves of all time. Keep in mind that, as with all things HLife, our focus here is MESSAGE.  This is not a critique on production value, story line and execution, Oscar-worthy performances or anything that the ego might consider “good”.  These are movies that have Universal knowledge in them, the kind of wise quotes or ideas that will teach you something, perhaps make you think, or inspire you.

THE MATRIX

Why We Like It: The timeless story of the Jesus Christ-like hero saving humanity from the end of existence has never rang more true than with the modern-day/possible future world of Neo, Morpheus and Trinity in The Matrix.  The idea of our world being controlled by machines is not unlikely (how much time do we spend “plugged in” to Facebook, Twitter or the TV?) but our favorite thought in this movie is the notion that, in order to accomplish his mission and save the world, Neo must BELIEVE in himself and in that he is much more than what his body confines him to be.  “Don’t think you are, KNOW you are,” says Morpheus as he trains Neo’s mind to control his reality within the Matrix.  We’re all about knowing who we are, why we’re here and how to create a better reality, so teach on, Morpheus. Bonus: Love story within the hero story – can’t do anything without love, and no man is an island.  Neo needs Trinity, they all need Morpheus and it’s all one big cyber family that gives this movie the dynamic story and resonance that we love. We also dig the idea that this reality we call “life” could just be a virtual/hologram reality, a projection of our minds, and that our true reality could possibly lie somewhere else altogether

STAR WARS (ORIGINAL TRILOGY)

Why We Like It: Another hero story, but this time, the stakes are raised:  It’s not only our planet that the enemy is threatening – it is the entire galaxy.  Taking Joseph Campbell’s Hero with a Thousand Faces up a notch, from warrior and world redeemer to savior of the known Universe and representative of all things good against all things bad, Star Wars moves Luke Skywalker into a whole other league of heroes, yet keeps him human enough for us to relate as he faces himself and his trials, training, relationships, a dark past and a possibly darker future.  Besides Yoda’s wise words while training the young and restless Luke and the strength and determination of Princess Leia, it is the ultimate battle of good versus evil that fascinates us, as Luke refuses to fight his father and in doing so, saves his soul.

GROUNDHOG DAY

Why We Like It: Bill Murray is hilarious as Phil, a guy that lives the same day over and over and over again.  At first denying his fate, angry/stressed-out/egocentric/immature Phil learns that, if he is to live the same day over again for the rest of his life, he might as well accept it and make the best of it.  Slowly but surely, Phil begins to change his attitude toward his fate by taking responsibility of all the actions that become a part of his daily routine and that, however insignificant to him initially, make him an indispensable part of the town in which he is stuck.  Groundhog Day is recommended as a reminder to anyone who needs an attitude adjustment, a good laugh, or a lesson in what women really want from a guy (take note of the “poopie diaper scene”.)

THE NEVERENDING STORY

Why We Like It: A boy reads a book and makes a fantastical story come true as he reads along. Who doesn’t want that?  To be the hero in someone else’s story, save a mythical world more surreal than you can imagine…The Neverending Story is an underdog story about taking responsibility for people who need you, and, again believing in something in order for it to come true (believing is seeing, and not the other way around.)  The scene with the Childlike Empress holding a seed/grain out to Bastian and saying telling him that is all that is left of her world, but, he can still make it all be OK again, is a lesson in that no matter how many mistakes we’ve made or how many times we think we’ve failed, it is our right and responsibility to create our reality again. Ode to Innocence:  We also love that it is the purity of the heart, and the imagination of the mind, of a child that saves this beautiful world, yet another message for the child in all of us.

A SOUND OF THUNDER

Why We Like It: The butterfly effect taken to the 9th degree places Edward Burns as a scientist who leads millionaires looking for the latest thrill on an expedition back in time, to shoot a dinosaur.  As one of the guys steps on a butterfly, he changes the course of evolution to near human extinction in the present/future.  We love the idea of one act changing the course of humanity for good or bad, how everything is connected and has a purpose.  We like that it is the superficiality of Millionaires bored enough to want to mess with the course of Nature (isn’t there something more useful they could be doing, like donating their money to science, hungry children or education?) that ruins things in A Sound of Thunder, while the possibility of our own race becoming extinct and being replaced by another species is even more intriguing.

THE FIFTH ELEMENT

Why We Like It: As a planet-sized ball of fire adeptly referred to as “Evil” nears the Earth and the military’s response of “shoot first, ask later” fails to fix the problem, priest Vito Cornelius reminds the president that “evil begets evil” and you can’t destroy bad by shooting it – that only feeds it and makes it grow (talk about a lesson there. Can’t fix violence by applying more violence, ehem, bring our troops home. Did I say that out loud?) Instead, the Supreme Being known as The Fifth Element, along with the four elements of Nature, must defeat it.  Bruce Willis, Milla Jovovich and a hilarious Chris Tucker – all decked out in outrageous futuristic digs compliments of designer Jean-Paul Gaultier -  remind us that love is the key to save the world, and that “time is of no importance, only life is.” We couldn’t agree more.