28 replies to this topic

[Persona]

Secretary.

[Andrew]

You know, this was something I appreciated about Ordet when I viewed it this week, how the rhythms of a farm family's (and tailor's) life - complete with farm animal noises on the soundtrack - were seamlessly integrated into such a deeply spiritual tale.

On a more somber note, Heartbeat Detector, perhaps?

And a recurring theme in Kurosawa's films is finding enlightenment and wholeness through vocation, serving others, and extreme perseverance - key examples could include No Regrets for our Youth, Seven Samurai, Ikiru, and Red Beard.

Edited by Andrew, 12 February 2011 - 12:03 AM.

[John Drew]

Big Night

[David]

Has anyone suggested John Sayles' "Limbo"?

"Witness"

[BethR]

In Good Company
Sweet Land
Places in the Heart

David, on 12 February 2011 - 02:48 AM, said:

Has anyone suggested John Sayles' "Limbo"?

And what about Matewan?

[Tyler]

Man Push Cart
Chop Shop
The Bicycle Thief
After The Wedding
Ikiru
Sullivan's Travels
The Wages of Fear

[J.A.A. Purves]

I just wanted to look at these two posts right next to each other, hold on ...

SDG, on 11 February 2011 - 10:39 AM, said:

Depictions can include dehumanizing or oppressive circumstances, but fundamentally the goodness and dignity of labor should be in view -- ideally seen in some way, at least implicitly, through a Christian cultural lens.

Persona, on 11 February 2011 - 07:07 PM, said:

Secretary.

There.

[Ron Reed]

SDG, on 11 February 2011 - 11:55 AM, said:

Some good suggestions here, everyone. I especially like Darrel's list.

I'm surprised to see The Big Kahuna crop up in both Nick and Mike's lists. I remember that film primarily for its notion that human transactions, including the particular transaction called evangelization or proselytizing, can devolve into a form of working interaction, salesmanship. I don't remember it as notably work-positive, although perhaps it is.

More work-positive than evangelizing-positive, I'd say. All told, though, "positive" isn't the first attribute I would attribute to the flick.

Ebert: "There are two religions in America, one spiritual, one secular. The first worships in churches, the second at business conventions. Clergy of both religions wear dark suits and ties (or roman collars). They exchange a lot of business cards. The Big Kahuna is about an uneasy confrontation between these two systems of faith." I'd say at least it's about the world of work, how it shapes people, and how antagonistic it is to anything that interferes.

[Darrel Manson]

Salt of the Earth (1954) made by the Mine, Mill and Smelters Union. Made by many blacklisted film makers. The film itself was blacklisted - didn't play in theaters until 1965. National Film Registry class of 1992.

Besides labor issues it also has concerns of racial discrimination and the place of women.