Reflections On Passing Scenes

This was the first time I'd ever heard this son. Shrek remains for me one of the best animated films of all time, though its legacy was kind of ruined by the later movies. Still, at the heart of it all is a simple story about love truly being about more than just the outer appearance. Such an ideal is rarely achieved, but it's possibility speaks to the power of love to transcend the evolutionary history that produced it. But it is the song that really sticks with me. When I first heard that first line, I was hooked. There is a reason why that song has become so popular. There is a book out about it. I need to read it.

I recently finished a Bible study on BATTLESTAR GALACTICA, and I revisited this scene. It is heart wrenching but not heart breaking. It is also revelatory of the character of Cara Thrace, and what she represented throughout the film. Cara was the Christ figure, bringing the human race to salvation, taking a beating so the rest of us don't have to. Cara died and was resurrected, here she ascends again. This is Acts 1 played out. Even Lee's desire to go out there and do new things, is reminiscent of where the disciples find themselves in that moment. I love it.

Groundhog Day is simply one of the best films of all time. Here Phil brings it all together. He has been stuck in the same day for 19 years or more, and tried everything he could to escape, understand and transform his fate. This film is a perfect illustration of Ecclesiastes and here is a perfect illustration of the moral of the Book of Ecclesiastes. This moment is a gift, you accept it as a gift, find fulfillment in the moment as a gift from God. Forget the search for some grand overarching meaning, and make the moment matter. In that is the meaning of life.

While we're on Bill Murray, this is also one of my favorite films of all time, and his performance here is transformative. The message is simple but not simplistic, it may strike some a cliche, but I love it. Getting involved and caring about people...that is what it is all about. Getting ADDICTED to that feeling, getting hungry for it, it is the only way to transform your character, to start becoming that 'person you hoped you could be'. God, I wish I could infuse every day with the spirit of the Incarnation of God, with the spirit of Christmas.