E-Vangel Newsletter
July 16, 2012
Pastorgraphs: “Get Low”
Chances are you have not seen the
2010 movie “Get Low”. You probably haven’t even heard of it. It was not a
blockbuster by any means. I had neither heard of it nor seen it until about a
week ago. It is now one of the top three movies on my favorites list; no make
that No. 1. You might enjoy checking it out. It features some great acting by
Robert Duvall, Bill Murray and Sissy Spacek.
Up front, I am not a movie goer. I
haven’t been to a theater in probably three years, maybe more. I don’t watch a
lot of movies on TV either. Occasionally I stumble on to a movie that catches
my attention while flipping channels. That’s how I discovered “Get Low”. I’ve
now watched it TWICE, and will probably watch it again.
Robert Duvall has been my favorite
actor for years. He is the lead character, Felix Bush. Without giving the plot
away and spoiling it, Bush is an aging 1930s recluse in rural East Tennessee
who wants to hold a “funeral party” before he dies. He hides a dark secret from
his past. Felix built his own jail, his tiny Tennessee cabin, where he has
“punished himself” every day for forty years; a self-imposed sentence for his
sin.
For me, the theme is all about
forgiveness. And that’s why this is the subject of today’s Pastorgraph. There
is a sermon mixed in all this if you can untangle it.
First, Mr. Bush had refused to ask
God forgiveness for his sin. (In one line, a minister questions if he had asked
Jesus for forgiveness, to which Bush replied, “I never did nothing to Jesus to
ask forgiveness for”.) That attitude prevails today, keeping many mortals from
experiencing the love and forgiveness of God. Secondly, he had failed to
ask forgiveness from the few acquaintances he had, and from the community that
invented tall tales about him in the absence of knowing the facts. But
ultimately, Felix needed to forgive himself.
In an awesomely moving public
confession, Robert Duval delivers what I rate as one of the top movie moments
of all time. It is powerful and deeply moving, well worth watching. I award him
a Oscar. The Academy should have done so, too.
Get Low reminds me that forgiveness
is available, free for the asking; but you do have to ask from God, your loved
ones, and even yourself.
In this day of billion dollar movies
with planets blowing up and special effects that jolt you out of your seat,
it’s nice to see a simple, old fashioned story of love and forgiveness. You
know, the kind where you fight back a tear and feel you are a better person for
hearing one sinner’s struggle to find forgiveness before he Gets Low and Goes
Home!
Five stars!
Bless you,
one and all, Brother Bill
From the Quote Garden
“The fact that [Get Low] has no CGI,
car chases, explosions, gratuitous sex, or naked women will ensure that kids
and those who aren't interested in solid movie making will never see it. Such a
shame because I was pleasantly surprised. If you do not fit into the above
category but instead value a truly good film then check it out.“
~ Review by “Mad Movie Guy” ~
Christ United Methodist Ministry
Center
“Christ
in the Heart of San Diego”
3295
Meade Avenue - San Diego, CA 92116 - (619) 284-9205
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