You’ve probably seen the trailer for Denzel Washington’s latest movie. It seemed to me to be your basic post-apocalyptic violence soaked actioner.
Now I love movies but I was definitely thinking this seemed like a cable movie. I like Denzel but my wife really wants to see that new romantic comedy “Leap Year” so the chances of me getting out to the movies are pretty small anyway.
But in the movie it seems Denzel is walking through a post apocalyptic wasteland and the evil Gary Oldman is intent on stopping him to get something that Denzel has. Alfred Hitchcock used to call that thing a “MacGuffin” I think. The oddity (and the reason I’m bringing it up here) is that the “MacGuffin” in this movie is The Bible.
Denzel is carrying The Bible across the country because he’s presumably been told by God to do so. Denzel believes that he must carry the Bible somewhere to redeem the country (or something) while the evil villains want to get it pervert it for their own reasons.
I don’t know much more about the movie but Kyle Smith writes:
Hollywood’s Christian blockbuster is finally here. Remember how, after “The Passion of the Christ,” Hollywood was going to get wise and make some big mainstream movies that acknowledged the Christianity of a majority of this country? Didn’t happen. Until now. “The Book of Eli” is not only a well-done action picture but an overtly, unabashedly Christian one in which Denzel Washington plays a soldier of God. He’s on a divinely-inspired quest — yes, a literal mission from God — to take The Book to the West as a swarm of wrongdoers led by Gary Oldman try to stop him.
In a post-apocalyptic wasteland (the movie hedges its bets on the usual war-or-environment question: this time, both have occurred), an unidentified man known as the Walker (a badass Denzel) strolls through the nightmare defending himself and slaying vicious predators who try to rob him along the way. The one semi-organized remnant of humanity is led by a Mussolini-loving leader (Gary Oldman) who is introduced reading a copy of a bio of Il Duce. Oldman has sent his gangs out looking for a copy of a specific book, although his men are dunces and can’t read.
They come back with whatever books they can scrounge up — including, hilariously, a copy of “The Da Vinci Code” (the movie is landing a little jab on the Dan Brown book’s message) but not The Book.
Because the only copy left of the Bible is the one Denzel is determined to carry to the West, having heard the voice of God commanding him to do so. Moreover, the Walker seems to be divinely protected: In a shootout, every bullet seems to whiz past him. Even the heavy villains have started to notice the aura of untouchability about him, and they find it unnerving.The Oldman character wants The Book because he’s convinced its words will enable him to control the world, not just the dirtbag town he oversees.
Now the Hughes brothers seem to be running away from the Christian angle of the movie but the idea of a guy promulgating religion with a sword disturbs me a bit. But I’ve got to admit the fact that the movie deals with Christianity has got me at least a little more interested in checking it out.
I’m interested in your thoughts or anything you’ve heard.
January 15, 2010 at 5:51 am
Douglas Urbanski, a practicing Catholic and Hollywood producer who works as a production partner with Gary Oldman, was interviewed for an hour on Catholic Answers Live this past Monday, and he explicitly said the movie is not Christian. It was odd, as he is certainly a proponent of implicitly and explicitly Christian films, if done well. All the more strange, Matthew, as your overview of it does seem to fit what I've read. Maybe God is the "McGuffin" in this film? I still would like to see it, in any event!
January 15, 2010 at 1:47 pm
Just looks like any other movie to me, not sure how a movie can be "Christian" or not.
-Russ
Followers Church – Post Falls
January 15, 2010 at 2:01 pm
"And Joshua mowed down Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword." Ex 17:13
Just sayin…
January 15, 2010 at 3:32 pm
Looks interesting… couple this with Legion and I might have two new movies to Netflix when they hit DVD's.
January 15, 2010 at 3:45 pm
Just because the film has Christian elements does not make it Christian. Where is the visible Church? And the fact that the non-canonical KJV version is the sole bible left leaves much to be desired.
On the sword protecting the bible. Well, he is not exactly evangelizing, Denzel's character is protecting an item, a relic if you will. So he is not instigating conversions at the end of a blade he is defending himself and the bible.
Theology seems a bit flawed, not as much as Legion though but I haven't either yet so take what I say with a grain of salt.
January 15, 2010 at 5:15 pm
Odd as it seems, the only one of these apocalypse action type movies that actually treated the Church respectably well (for Hollywood, anyway) was End of Days.
Had the Church actually getting a prophecy right and the Pope, of all people, trying to protect the (unaware) anti-Mary from giving birth to Satan's spawn and not just trying to off her to save the world (although a fringe Catholic group headed by a shady cardinal – clearly against the Pope's wishes – was trying to).
January 15, 2010 at 5:18 pm
Now the Hughes brothers seem to be running away from the Christian angle of the movie
That may just be a marketing strategy.
January 15, 2010 at 5:41 pm
Legion looks worse than this…St. Michael utter his own "non serviam" thus becoming a fallen angel i.e. demon; not to mention God is out to destroy humanity before Christ comes again.
January 16, 2010 at 4:05 pm
I saw the movie last night. I enjoyed it. I don't think I would necessarily call it a "Christian" movie, but I thought that overall it painted a favorable picture of Christianity.
For the sake of time I'll just make one point. Compare it to the recent 2012. In 2012 all the religious people were killed. The only "religous" person to make the cut was essentially a pantheist. It was sort of like Noah's ark in reverse.
In The book of Eli, God preserves his Word. He sends Denzel on a mission to take the
Bible to a Alcatraz (which I saw as a City on a Hill) where culture was being restored and from which a new civilization would grow.
January 20, 2010 at 6:08 am
The sword is a symbol of the Word of God. Jesus is the Word. The Bible is the word of God inspired by the Holy Spirit and written by men. Refer to the citations below which show how this symbolism is used in the old and new testament.
Revelation 1:16 And he had in his right hand seven stars. And from his mouth came out a sharp two edged sword: and his face was as the sun shineth in his power. Douay-Rheims Bible
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Isaiah 49:2 He has made My mouth like a sharp sword, In the shadow of His hand He has concealed Me; And He has also made Me a select arrow, He has hidden Me in His quiver.
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Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
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Revelation 2:16 'Therefore repent; or else I am coming to you quickly, and I will make war against them with the sword of My mouth.
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Revelation 19:15 From His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron; and He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty. (NASB ©1995)
January 25, 2010 at 1:21 am
The point of the movie is about restoration and how we are to live.
Yes, there is a "Christian" message about learing the word from the Bible, but it take Eli over 30 years wandering and reading the book.
I just think that the movie rocks!
January 27, 2010 at 9:12 pm
As others have said, it has Judaeo-Christian elements, but I wouldn't necessariy call it a "Christian movie." I loved the movie, and as a Christian I found things that resonated with me but if one was a non-believer, they would enjoy the movie just as much. I would probably equate it with similar religiousness as Raiders of the Lost Ark; the themes are there if you know what to look for, otherwise, it's a fun action movie.
Highly recommended!
April 4, 2010 at 3:54 pm
It is a christian movie. just because It does not have a "church" does not mean it is not. America has lost its values dramatically. First of all if you knew your bible you would know that Eli is an actual character in the bible who was blind. He was a fighter also. And yes it is Christian, take a look at the world now. We blame every thing on religion-when it is the lack of religion affecting this country. get yor facts straight before you make stupid comments.
May 13, 2010 at 12:17 pm
I have just watched the movie and wondering how I could use it with our youth group. One of the themes that could come thru' is being able to have the faith to follow that 'still quiet voice'. It is set in a story line where everything is not as it seems – the final twists can leave you pondering a lot
July 26, 2010 at 2:27 am
I wouldn't try using this movie to teach a youth group… It has many elements that some will take wrongly if they do not know the word that well… It can confuse them if you try and use it to portray what the word says. Yes, it has some great parts to it that would be good for teaching on, but alot of the content that is not actually what the bible says, could be mistaken and thought to be what it says if a person were to not fully know the word.
I Hope you find this to help you