Most Spirituality Literate Films of 1997

The Most Spiritually Literate Films of 1997
Reviewed by Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat

The Top Ten (and Ten More Recommended Films)

Monday night, March 23, Hollywood honors its own at the annual Academy Awards presentation. The Oscars are given for the best performances and production values in the previous year's film releases. Our choices for the best of 1997 reveal our interest in "spiritually literate" movies--films that enable us to recognize the presence of Spirit in our experiences and in the world around us.

The films reviewed below speak to us about key practices that have long been affirmed by the world's religions: beauty, compassion, faith, love, mystery, transformation, wonder, and yearnin g. These practices, included in The Alphabet of Spiritual Literacy, are cherished ingredients of the spiritual life.

THE TOP TEN

BEAUTY
Paradise Road (20th Century Fox Home Entertainment, 1997, R -- prisoner of war brutality and violence)

Paradise Road is a triumphant celebration of the human spirit in the face of suffering. Based on true incidents, this drama written and directed by Bruce Beresford recounts the experiences of a group of European, Australian, and American women who are captured by the Japanese during World War II after their ship is sunk while fleeing Singapore. They are put in jungle prison camps and subjected to a hellish existence of hard labor, little food, and a shortage of medical supplies.

In order to lift the women's spirits, Margaret Drummond (Pauline Collins), a kind-hearted former missionary to China, comes up with the idea of starting a vocal orchestra to sing classical compositions. She writes the scores and chooses Adrienne Pargiter (Glenn Close), a flinty survivor, to direct the singers. The project creates an oasis of beauty and transcendence amidst death, pain, and grief. Even the Japanese guards are awed by the music.

The top-drawer cast provides insights into the various paths to survival. Joanna Ter Steege plays a nun who is a multitalented peacemaker; Cate Blanchett is an Australian nurse who discovers great inner strength during the ordeal; Julianna Margulies is an American who almost joins the women who choose to service the Japanese officers for special privileges; and Frances McDormand is a clever German Jew who acts as the camp doctor.

"Paradise Road" is a deeply spiritual film that shows how creativity and beauty can soothe the soul even in the worst situation imaginable. The film also honors the driving force that keeps people alive and thriving -- hope.

COMPASSION
Ulee's Gold (Orion Home Video, 1997, R -- language)

Ulysses "Ulee" Jackson (Peter Fonda) is a middle-aged beekeeper in the tupelo marshes of the Florida panhandle. Although he finds his solitary work to be satisfying, Ulee uses it to keep himself isolated from the overwhelming sense of pain and loss he feels as a widower and as a Vietnam vet.

Jimmy (Tom Wood), his son, is serving a prison sentence for armed robbery, and his daughter-in-law Helen (Christine Dunford) ran off two years ago. Ulee is the sole caretaker for teenage Casey (Jessica Biel) and her younger sister Penny (Vanessa Zima). Then Jimmy asks his father to retrieve Helen in Orlando where she's staying with his two partners-in-crime, Eddie (Steven Flynn) and Ferris (Dewey Weber). It turns out she's in a drug stupor, unable to take care of herself. Helen has inadvertently told Eddie and Ferris that Jimmy has stowed away $100,000 from the robbery. These two want the money in exchange for the safety of Ulee's family.

Bringing Helen home, the beekeeper realizes that nothing will ever be the same again. Connie Hope (Patricia Richardson), a neighbor and a nurse, helps look after his daughter-in-law as she goes through drug withdrawal. At the same time that he's processing his prize tupelo honey for his distributors, Ulee comes up with a way to keep his family from harm's way.

In "Ulee's Gold" writer and director Victor Nunez ("Ruby in Paradise") shows us how the spiritual practice of compassion opens up this troubled man and puts him on the path of heart. For the first time, Ulee gets in touch with his feminine side, acknowledges the mystery of life, jettisons some of his rigid ideas, accepts help, and even begins to see his enemies as suffering souls similar to himself.

COMPASSION
Welcome to Sarajevo (Miramax, 1997, R -- brutal images of war atrocities, language)

"Welcome To Sarajevo" is set in that besieged city in the former Yugoslavia in 1992 as Serbian forces are shelling it from afar and shooting civilians in the streets from sniper posts. British journalist Michael Henderson (Stephen Dillane) and his cameraman (James Nesbitt), producer (Kerry Fox), and local driver Risto (Goran Visnjic) are desperately trying to find a fresh hook for their coverage of this harrowing war. When Henderson discovers an orphanage run by a courageous woman (Gordana Gadzic) near the front lines, he decides to do a continuing story on "big guns, little children, evil men." But he is unprepared when his heart compels him to get involved in the illegal rescue of Emira (Emira Nusevic), a nine-year-old orphan. In the midst of devastating chaos, one man decides that his act of compassion can make all the difference in the life of a shell-shocked, terrified, and lonely little girl.

Michael Winterbottom ("Jude") directs this ethically powerful film that explodes with outrage over the Serbian desolation of a city and the carnage of its innocent residents. It is also a film that softens the heart in the face of such terrible suffering. Gandhi, who understood this effect of involvement, said: "I believe in the essential unity of all people and for that matter of all lives. Therefore I believe that if one gains spiritually, the whole world gains, and if one person falls the whole world falls to that extent." "Welcome To Sarajevo" lifts up compassion as the quivering of the heart in the presence of true pain.

FAITH
Ponette (Arrow, 1997, Not Rated)

"Ponette" is an astonishing film experience--the kind of intimat e drama that stops you in your tracks and leaves you marveling at the magnificence of the human soul. Four-year-old Ponette (Victoire Thivisol, a four-year-old actress who gives an incredible performance) has survived an automobile accident in which her mother was killed. Her father, who's devastated by the tragedy, is comforted by his daughter who says, "I'll make us feel better." However, he goes away on business and leaves Ponette with relatives. Her aunt tells her that her mother is with Jesus who rose from the dead. The little girl's young cousin states that the dead don't come back to life. Loyal to her mother, Ponette tries to bring her back with presents, prayers, and magic words. Then her atheistic father assures her that "God is for the dead and not for us."

At a summer camp Ponette meets a Jewish girl who puts her through a series of tests in order to prove herself to God and win his favor. The worst news comes from a nasty boy who tells her that she killed her mother by being a bad girl. All the while, Ponette endures in her belief that somehow she will see her mother again.

Writer and director Jacques Doillon has created a masterful study of childhood grief and the ways in which a sensitive and imaginative little girl tries to handle her deep feelings of loss. In the end, it is her own unique brand of faith that helps Ponette pull through this period of mourning. The fi lm also reveals how important it is for adults to watch what they say and do in the presence of little ones because everything has significance to them. "Ponette" honors the resiliency and spirituality of children.

JUSTICE
Amistad (DreamWorks, 1997, R -- scenes of strong, brutal violence and some related nudity)

"Amistad," set in 1839, celebrates the holy grail of freedom and how the quest for justice is fueled by a yearning for home and the spirits of ancestors. A group of Africans take over a Spanish slave ship bound for America. They are eventually captured and put in a New Haven, Connecticut, prison.

Two zealous abolitionists, Lewis Tappan (Stellan Skarsgard) and Theodore Joadson (Morgan Freeman) take up their cause by hiring a real estate attorney, Roger Baldwin (Matthew McConaughey), who is convinced he has the key to set them free. But powerful forces are lined up against him including a judge handpicked by the pro-slavery President Martin Van Buren (Nigel Hawthorne). The case eventually goes all the way to the Supreme Court where former President John Quincy Adams (Anthony Hopkins in an Academy Award-caliber performance), inspired by the moral stature of an African named Cinque (Djimon Hounsou), makes a stirring defense of freedom as the linchpin of the American way of life.

Steven Spielberg's direction compellingly draws out all the moral nuances in this searing drama about the invidious evil of racism and the waywardness of politics tainted by greed and face-saving. "Amistad" presents a mesmerizing portrait of human dignity under fire and salutes the spiritual firepower of justice.

LOVE
Titanic (Paramount, 1997, PG-13 -- disaster related peril and violence, nudity, sensuality, brief language)

"A woman's heart is a deep ocean of secrets," Rose (Gloria Stuart), a 101-year-old woman, tells Brock Lovett (Bill Paxton), a fortune hunter who is using the latest technology to explore the wreckage of the Titanic in his search for a priceless jewel. She then tells the story of what happened on the fateful night of April 15, 1902, when the unsinkable vessel hit an iceberg.

Rose (Kate Winslet) is an unhappy 17-year-old American set to wed Cal Hockley (Billy Zane), a fabulously rich young man favored by her social climbing mother (Frances Fisher). Although Cal is awed by her beauty, he has no interest in the yearnings of her soul. Ready to leap off the deck rather than face a future of upper class ennui, Rose is rescued by Jack Dawson (Leonardo DiCaprio), a free-spirited artist who is returning to the States after seven years abroad as a vagabond. She defies the social barriers that separate them because he alone respects the mystery and the potential of her soul. The young couple find ways to be together secretly on the ship and share some magical days filled with all the risks which must be taken to fully experience the present moment.

Writer and director James Cameron has set the love story of "Titanic" against the backdrop of the most spectacular calamity of the twentieth century. Unlike other disaster stories, this one focuses all our attention on Rose and Jack although there are two other characters who win our allegiance -- an Irish-American woman, Molly Brown (Kathy Bates), and the architect of the ship, Thomas Andrews (Victor Garber). The finale is a special effects dazzler but those scenes pale in comparison to the dramatic and creative ways Cameron exalts the salvific power of love.

MYSTERY
Contact (Warner Home Video, 1997, PG-13--some intense action, mild language, and a scene of sensuality)

"Contact" offers an inspired and inspiring close encounter with the ineffable mystery that lies at the heart of each individual and at the core of the majestic universe. Ellie Arroway (Jodie Foster) is a driven American astronomer using highly sophisticated radio telescopes to search for extraterrestrial intelligence. When she picks up a message from Vega, a star 26 light years away, scientists from around the world join her in an effort to decipher the continuing communications. Eventually, they discover instructions for building a machine for intergalactic travel.

The excellent screenplay by James V. Hart and Michael Goldenberg based on the 1985 novel by Carl Sagan uses a variety of characters to explore the social, scientific, and spiritual implications of contact with extraterrestrials. Palmer Joss (Matthew McConaughey), a religious scholar who's in love with Ellie, believes that the one person chosen to take the trip to Vega should be a believer in God. David Drumlin (Tom Skerritt), the President's national science adviser, uses raw power to advance his ideal of technological progress. National Security Advisor Michael Kitz (James Woods) is convinced that every defensive precaution should be taken to protect America from the possible malevolence of aliens. S. R. Hadden (John Hurt), an eccentric billionaire, wants to use the trip as a ticket to insure his fame in history. And both a terrorist and the leader of a right-wing religious coalition have their own agendas for stopping the flight to Vega. As people jockey for positions all around her, Ellie holds on to her dream of participating in the ultimate adventure for a scientist.

Robert Zemeckis ("Forrest Gump") has fashioned a truly awesome movie that celebrates the spiritual practices of listening, wonder, love, and zeal. It affirms that there are times and places where reason must yield to mystery. "Contact" is a lso the only film of 1997 to present its audience with a mantra tailor-made for what ails our crazed and time-starved society: "Small moves."

TRANSFORMATION
Good Will Hunting (Miramax, 1997, R -- strong language, sex-related dialogue)

We all long for a soul friend, someone who will cherish the secret signature of our individuality. The emotionally troubled protagonist of "Good Will Hunting" is blessed with three soul friends who enable him to find his place in the world. Matt Damon gives a tour de force performance as Will, a 20-year-old townie in Boston who works as a janitor at M.I.T. After another scrape with the law, he is taken under the wings of Professor Lambeau (Stellan Skarsgard of "Breaking the Waves"), a professor of mathematics who has discovered that Will is a math wiz with a photographic memory.

As part of his rehabilitation, this walled-off orphan must see Sean McGuire (Robin Williams), a therapist, every week. The relationship between these two underachievers is mutually beneficial as they help heal each other. Luckily for Will at this critical juncture in his life, he meets and falls in love with Skylar (Minnie Driver), a Harvard pre-med student who is sexy, smart, and sensitive. Along with Chuckie (Ben Affleck), his best friend, she wants him to become all he was meant to be.

"Good Will Hunting" was written b y its actors Matt Damon and Ben Affleck. Gus Van Sant's no-nonsense direction keeps this multilayered psychological drama on course as it probes the complicated themes of love, work, ambition, self-esteem, and failure. "You are destined to fly but that cocoon has to go," Nelle Morton once wrote about that important moment in our lives when we must risk change. In this salutary film, Will sheds his cocoon with the help of Sean, Skylar, and Chuckie. They are true friends of his soul.

WONDER
Le Huitieme Jour: The Eighth Day (PolyGram Video, 1997, Not Rated)

Harry (Daniel Auteuil) is a workaholic salesman whose wife has left him, taking their two daughters with her. Alone and depressed, he sits in his upscale apartment disenchanted with life. Then Harry meets Georges (Pascal Duquenne), a young man with Down's syndrome who has just escaped from a home for the handicapped. Although people keep him at a distance, he has two special angels in his life--one is his deceased mother and the other is a Latino singer who sings in his imagination.

With an exuberant expression of his feelings and a zest for living in the present moment, Georges becomes Harry's spiritual director. He helps his new friend to slow down and to enjoy the parade. In one marvelous scene, the two are in the country about to return to town. Georges suggests they take a minute and lie down in the grass, just to observe the natural world around them. Later on a visit to the seaside, Georges helps Harry reconnect with one of his daughters by creating a magical surprise for her birthday.

Jaco Van Dormael, the Belgian writer and director of "Le Huitieme Jour: The Eighth Day," has fashioned a buoyant spiritual film that celebrates the mysteries of friendship and the moments of wonder when we are graced with an appreciation for life's bounties.

YEARNING
Shall We Dance? (Miramax, 1997, PG-13 -- mild language)

The fourteenth-century Catholic mystic Catherine of Siena once observed: "You have nothing infinite except your soul's love and desire." In "Shall We Dance?" Shohei is a middle-aged accountant who lives with his wife and daughter in a comfortable suburban area. One day while riding the train, he notices a beautiful woman looking out the window of a rundown building. Overwhelmed by his desire to find out more about this woman Shohei boldly enters the place where he saw her and discovers it is a dance school. He signs up for a beginner's class, approaching this challenge with the same earnestness he displays at work.

A wonderful teacher helps him discover how to enjoy the music and relax into the movements. Through consistent practice, Shohei becomes quite accomplished doing the waltz—even catching the eye of the enchanting Mai, the woman in the window, who helps him prepare for a national competition. Eventually his wife and daughter find out about Shohei's secret hobby, but by then he has found a new lease on life.

Japanese writer and director Masayuki Suo shows how desire is a force field that takes us beyond ourselves and enables us to transform our lives. By letting himself go, Shohei is liberated from his middle-aged malaise. He learns to live in the moment, to trust his body, and to flow with the magic elan of dance. And best of all, Shohei enables Mai to see dance competition afresh with the enthusiasm of an amateur. This irresistible Japanese film celebrates the spiritual uplift of boundless desire.

TEN MORE RECOMMENDED FILMS

Although the following films did not make our Top 10 list, they all are highly recommended because they are about key practices of the spiritual life as defined in The Alphabet of Spiritual Literacy.

IMAGINATION
Gabbeh (New Yorker, 1997, Not Rated) is a magical and visually stunning film set in the countryside of Iran. This poetic and picturesque movie celebrates story as a life-shaping force.

IMAGINATION
The Full Monty (20th Century Fox Home Video, 1997, R -- language, some nudity) is a funny a nd fetching film about how some unemployed men in an English town find a way out of their helplessness and hopelessness.

LOVE
Oscar and Lucinda (Fox Searchlight, 1997, R -- scene of sexuality, brief violence) revolves around two oddballs who are destined to meet and to fill each other with delight. The drama delineates what it means to be soul mates.

NURTURING
Her Majesty, Mrs. Brown (Miramax, 1997, PG -- a beating, language, brief nudity) explores the unusual and platonic friendship between the Queen of the British Empire and her Scottish servant in the late nineteenth century.

QUESTING
Molom: A Legend of Mongolia (Norkat Company, 1997, Not Rated) is a spellbinding film set in Mongolia about an orphan boy who is adopted by a shaman and taken on a spirit-testing journey.

SHADOW
In the Company of Men (Columbia Tristar Home Video, 1997, R -- language and emotional abuse) is the scariest horror film of the year with its portrait of the dark side of corporate culture where gamesmanship, deceit, power, and ruthless competition turn individuals into soulless zombies. This riveting film encourages us to be alert to sin and evil in the world.

TRANSFORMATION
Seven Years in Tibet (Columbia Tristar, 1997, PG-13 -- violent sequences) is about an egocentric Austrian mountain climber who turns into a gentler and more sensitive man after he becomes friends with the young Dalai Lama.

TRANSFORMATION
The Apostle (October, 1997, PG-13 -- thematic element and related scene of violence) is a highly engaging drama about the fall and redemption of a Pentecostal preacher from Texas.

YEARNING
The Quiet Room (New Line Home Video, 1997, PG -- language and domestic discord) is a flawlessly acted Australian film about a seven-year-old girl's emotional response to the complicated small world she lives in.

ZEAL
John Grisham's The Rainmaker (Paramount, 1997, PG-13 -- strong beating, domestic abuse) is an edifying drama about a rookie Memphis lawyer whose meat-and-potatoes case is a suit against a large insurance company that has refused to pay a policyholder's claim.