sophiaserpentia (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
sophiaserpentia) wrote2003-09-07 04:06 am
sophiaserpentia) wrote2003-09-07 04:06 am
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I went to see a late night showing of The Order. This movie was originally going to be called The Sin Eater, and actually this should have remained the title, because the new title is misleading and inaccurate. There is no "Order" in this movie, except tangentially the main character's order.
This could have been such a better movie -- not by adding things in, but by leaving things out. Certain rather cheesy scenes which don't advance the plot at all were included that have the effect of damaging the movie considerably. I mean, priests in movies shouldn't confront unholy terrors and then exchange idle banter immediately afterwards, right? Most uneven movies start off excellent and get bad at the end; this movie does the exact opposite, with the first 30 minutes being awful, and the remainer being quite good and thought-provoking.
I have no idea whether or not Catholics will find this movie disparaging. It shows the Catholic Church as being rigidly dedicated to its teachings and sternly unforgiving towards those who have been excommunicated -- but then, isn't it?
The title The Order and the trailer previews almost make it look like the movie is about some dark conspiracy within the church. What the movie actually winds up being about is far more fascinating. Like Stigmata, heavy topics are buried within stock Hollywood "horror" cheese. Citing the last-minute absolution of the crucified thief by Jesus, the Sin Eater absolves people the Church cannot or will not. Which raises the question -- is the Sin Eater more exemplary of Jesus' forgiveness than the Church itself? There are some hints, though they are not quite obvious, that Jesus was himself a Sin Eater. I wish this movie hadn't been so cheesy, perhaps these issues would otherwise get more discussion in Christian circles.
Another interesting aspect is that the Sin Eater doesn't lie, but just as the Serpent in Eden didn't lie, this almost suggests that one doesn't have to lie to deceive.
This could have been such a better movie -- not by adding things in, but by leaving things out. Certain rather cheesy scenes which don't advance the plot at all were included that have the effect of damaging the movie considerably. I mean, priests in movies shouldn't confront unholy terrors and then exchange idle banter immediately afterwards, right? Most uneven movies start off excellent and get bad at the end; this movie does the exact opposite, with the first 30 minutes being awful, and the remainer being quite good and thought-provoking.
I have no idea whether or not Catholics will find this movie disparaging. It shows the Catholic Church as being rigidly dedicated to its teachings and sternly unforgiving towards those who have been excommunicated -- but then, isn't it?
The title The Order and the trailer previews almost make it look like the movie is about some dark conspiracy within the church. What the movie actually winds up being about is far more fascinating. Like Stigmata, heavy topics are buried within stock Hollywood "horror" cheese. Citing the last-minute absolution of the crucified thief by Jesus, the Sin Eater absolves people the Church cannot or will not. Which raises the question -- is the Sin Eater more exemplary of Jesus' forgiveness than the Church itself? There are some hints, though they are not quite obvious, that Jesus was himself a Sin Eater. I wish this movie hadn't been so cheesy, perhaps these issues would otherwise get more discussion in Christian circles.
Another interesting aspect is that the Sin Eater doesn't lie, but just as the Serpent in Eden didn't lie, this almost suggests that one doesn't have to lie to deceive.