Posted: July 31st, 2015

Film Reviews Suggestions.

Film Reviews Suggestions.

Consider writing a review of a film/videotape.  During the semester we have talked about many themes, virtues, and ideas in Christianity.  These are not limited to the material we find in churches or other specifically religious settings.  In fact, Christian themes are present throughout the culture, including many popular movies available on videotape, DVDs and video streaming services.  So here is my suggestion:

The Assignment:
Find a movie that has a major Christian theme in it, and write a critical review of the movie that discusses how the film presents that theme.

Suggested Themes:
Christian themes to find in the films include the following, but are not limited to them:
Incarnation    Resurrection    Salvation
Faith    Love    Hope
Martyrdom    Sacrifice    Holiness
Forgiveness    Redemption    Sin
Reformation    Triumphalism    Militancy
Hospitality    Mission    Conversion
Spiritual Gifts    Grace    Heresy
Interfaith Relations    Dissent    Revelation
The Imitation of Christ    Modernism    Toleration

Suggested Movies
I have listed some movies that will work for this assignment below, but you are not limited to them.  There are many, many others.
Movie    Click
The Gospel of John 2003     (YouTube)
Eng    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=47OkuvT5JFo
The Passion of the Christ     (Web)
Hebrew CC: Eng    https://endzog.wordpress.com/2014/05/16/watch-mel-gibsons-the-passion-of-christ-full-movie-2004/
Bonhoeffer: Agent of Grace    (YouTube)
Eng    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TeY-TG33OJc

Directions for writing film reviews:
I m looking for creativity, logical analysis, good research and good writing.  I expect the writing to take the form of an argument.  It should have a strong thesis statement that makes a claim about how the film illustrates a particular theme in Christianity, religion, and/or philosophy.  Then I expect you to use examples from the film to support your thesis.

Note that I do not want the following kinds of reports:

1.  Do not hand in a simple report on the characters and the plot of the movie.

2.  Do not state a thesis and offer no supporting evidence.

3.  Do not give me a report on a film you have not actually watched.

4.  Do not collaborate with other students in writing the review.

5.  While it is a good idea to see what other writers have had to say about this film, simply using their claims as support for your claims is not.

Also note, that the same rules about citations, quotations, and plagiarism that apply to regular assignments apply to extra credit assignments.  The penalties are also the same.

Concerning Writing:
You might want to look up reviews of these films to see what others have said about them, but your review should be based on your own ideas and interpretations.  Note that all the normal writing guidelines apply.  Properly cite your sources, including any published reviews you use, and add a bibliography.