Blood Diamond

I recently watched a film called Blood Diamond with a few of my friends. At first I did not think I was going to like this movie because it seemed historical and “educational,” and I usually just like to enjoy funny or love movies. But, this ended up being a spectacular movie; definitely on the top of my list of favorite movies and one I would recommend to anybody.

The basic plot of the movie is about a man named Solomon who gets captured by the RUF and gets put to work as a miner, looking for diamonds (which will be smuggled into other countries for profit). While this is happening, his son, Dia, along with hundreds of other young children, are taken in by the RUF and brainwashed to be a part of their army. One horrific scene shows these little kids, around 13 years old, shooting prisoners as if it’s nothing. One day while Solomon is mining, he finds a very large pink diamond and tries to hide it, but a guard sees him, but before he can do anything about it, the mining field gets attacked. Solomon ends up in jail, and the guard that saw him burry the diamond yells out deliriously about it, while Danny Archer, a man who smuggles diamonds from Africa to other countries, overhears this. Danny gets himself and Solomon out of jail, and Danny’s boss demands that he gets some of the pink diamond money, once Danny finds it. Danny finds Solomon and tells him that if he helps him find the diamond, he will help Solomon find his family. Along the way, the pair is joined by an American journalist named Madi, who is trying to tell the secret of this illegal diamond exchange, the “blood diamonds.” The rest of the movie is about these three fighting to find the diamond and help end this horrible situation, where many Africans are being forced to work as miners and not getting any of the profit because the diamonds are smuggled into other countries.

This movie has clear examples of both the empire and the Kingdom of God. First off, the horrible and unethical treatment of these Africans is clearly the work of the empire. The sole purpose of this diamond industry is to make money, at the expense of others. The “good life” portrayed in this movie is buying big diamond rings and necklaces, while the Africans finding these
diamonds are treated so horribly and do not getting any of the profit. The army and guards are so willing and easily able to shoot and kill anyone who goes against their demands even slightly. But while all of the fighting and exploitation is occurring, there are glimpses of the Kingdom of God as well. At first when Danny asks Solomon for his help to find the pink diamond in exchange for the help to find his family, this is all out of the selfish desire of Danny. But at the end, when Danny gives the diamond to Solomon and his son, is a shining example of him thinking about others rather than himself, an admirable quality of people living in the Kingdom of God. I got shivers throughout my body thinking about how selfless Danny was at this moment. He had spent so much time looking for this diamond, hoping that the profit would get him out of this country and this business, but he so gladly gives it up to a newfound friend and someone truly in need of it. This encourages me to really stop and take a look at my life and see what things I actually need and what things I think I need but I do not, and how giving away some of these things or time or money or resources could really help someone in dire need. This film also demonstrates to me that there really can be beauty amidst all of the ugly in this world, which is apocalyptic- glimpses of the Kingdom of God breaking through into the here and now. I think, in this situation, we as Christians first need to educate ourselves about this issue and not ignore it simply because it is halfway around the world and we think we cannot do anything about it. We cannot grow numb to these things because that is what the empire wants to happen, so it can continue doing its evil work.

1. Why should we as Christians care about what is happening half way around the world in a different country?
2. Is there anything we can do that would help a situation such as this one?
3. What are some little ways that we as Christians can shine the light of the Kingdom of God in this dark empire?

American Idol

Tonight, I embraced my feminine side as I decided to partake in the viewing of the American Idol season 11 premiere. I watched the crazy Steven Tyler, beautiful Jennifer Lopez, and cool Randy Jackson examine America's up and coming singing talent as they graced across the stage. However, although this show brings plenty of entertainment, it also brings about plenty of insight on how America views people and what America perceives to be the norm of society.

While watching American Idol, I found many scenarios that could relate to the class and its topic of the Empire. The first thing I noticed is how America perceives physical beauty to be an important characteristic of any person. American Idol would continually showcase beautiful women such as NBA cheerleader Brittney Kerr and volleyball player Shannon McGrane. It was obvious that American Idol clearly admired these women's looks and were more than willing to show their audience what the ideal singer should look like. Also, American Idol depicted how Americans love to have fun at others' expense. With silly music in the background, the confident Joshua Chavis and African immigrant Mawena Kodjo were presented as dorks before they sang their songs terribly to America's amusement. I too found myself laughing at these men, succumbing to what the Empire wanted me to perceive as "just good fun." Finally, American Idol showcased how vulgar language has become a normal part of society. It almost felt like the viewer was hearing an alarm clock because of the many times Steven Tyler or an angry contestant would utter a swear world. For these reasons, American Idol relates heavily to what we are learning in class and I was glad I could realize these cultural dilemmas as I watched it.

1. What are other ideas on people that the Empire wants us to believe?

2. Do you believe American Idol is a show worth watching, despite its various representations of the Empire?

3. Do you believe that it is morally wrong to laugh at a struggling singer who is performing on American Idol? After all, you do not know them.

Corn Becomes Us

King Corn is a documentary about people. Slovenly people. People whose cultural motives thrust their diet to homage of a single vegetable, the titular Corn. The presence of Corn in everything we eat is a shocking revelation when placed in context of Everything We Eat.

The Crew (two young men) trace their respective family lines to Small Town Iowa, where they plan to farm an acre of Corn. They begin this journey, incidentally, because they discover the element s of Corn in their hair. Their perspective, illustrated here, is that the food industry is skewed towards the overproduction of an inferior system. Their research, allowed, startles.

                Viewing the supply side of the equation, they spend nine months with their acre, growing and harvesting. This involves surprisingly little work. The Planting process revolves around buying bulk seed, then spreading it over the field via oversized fertilizer pods. They then have roughly two months off until they have to buy and spray fertilizer/pesticide. The process is impersonal. The Corn is inedible. It needs processing to become food-like. They connotation the film asserts is that corn is overproduces, heartless in treatment of the “family farm”, which is ceding to massive single-farm plots.

Following the corn, it becomes our food. The camera contrasts massive tubs of corn syrup to huge herds of corn-fed cows, unhealthy and pained. The trail injects itself into our beef, our drinks (commented by a doctor as “liquid candy”). As fast food restaurants slide by their car, the ubiquity of Corn sinks in.

“People who grew up in our generation are basically made of Corn.”

King Corn attacks our Corn-Following industry, something out of proportion and before us. The final scene of them playing in their empty acre (which they bought from their support farmer) in the middle of a new, Single-Farm plot, invites reflection. How far is enough?

1: How is Children of the Corn a prophetic title in reference to our generation?

2: What Kingdom perspective can we exercise in how We purchase and regulate out diet?

King Corn

When we think of corn products images of popcorn, corn on the cob, and corn bread come to mind.  But what if I told you that corn can be found in almost every type of food product that is sold here in the US; from Gatorade to hamburgers corn can be found in nearly every part of our daily diet.  

http://www.sustainabletable.org/features/articles/kingcorn/

The documentary King Corn examines this new phenomenon that is sweeping across our nation. It explores the rise of the mega farm and the inventions of new hybrid forms of grain.  The family farm can no longer survive in the United States.  The review posted above accurately examines the film.  It shows how we no longer even grow edible corn.  The corn that we grow is used for two main things: high fructose corn syrup and animal feed.        A farmer in Iowa can actually no longer feed himself with the crops that he grows.  This is a sad reflection on what agriculture has become in the United States.

While the movie does not explicitly state ways that we can change this new way of farming, there are things we can do to help out our local small scale farmers.  We can buy local foods, avoid large supermarkets, and be more conscious about what we are putting into our bodies.

Who Killed the electric Car?

The documentary I viewed, Who Killed the Electric Car?, addressed the rise and fall of the EV1, a fully electric car that was first produced in 1996. The car was created by General Motors in an attempt to cut down on oil consumption and pollution. Several hundred were produced and introduced to the streets of California. However, due to an interlocking web of issue involving oil companies, car companies, the government, the consumer, and hydrogen fuel cell, the car was sadly taken off the streets and destroyed.

This truly gives a glimpse into the length that companies will go to in order to obtain money and power, even if it means sacrificing a car that would drastically cut down on pollution and gas expenses. An aspect that film did not touch on quite enough, in my opinion, was the role of the consumer in relation to the price of the car. What was not explicitly mentioned was the fact that that car was in fact extremely expensive, and therefore would not have even been an option to the majority of the U.S. population. However, I did appreciate the fact that the film made me pause and consider how little thought I put into what I drive and what impact that has.

Capitalism: A Love Story

       Manohla Dargis of the New York Times wrote a review on the documentary film Capitalism: A Love Story by Michael Moore. It’s hard to say if she agrees with Michael Moore about the idea of Capitalism. But in the same way, Michael Moore doesn’t know what action to take to stop Capitalism. He’s just giving out facts and opinions. This is what Dargis is doing with her review. She claims that he has good timing and his heart is in the right place. She even says that some of the film is moving. I would have to agree with Dargis.

       Along with Dargis, and apparently Michael Moore, I’m not sure what to do about Capitalism. After this film, and some apocalyptic thought from this class, I know that if America continues down this path of greedy Capitalism, there won’t be much left of this Earth at the end of this century. I am disgusted with the Empire we live in, but I don’t know what actions to take to make our world more like the Kingdom.

      God doesn’t call us to be successful, but to be faithful. If we look at the big picture, it’s already over and we don’t need to be successful. Jesus died on the cross he was successful for us. It is finished. And if you think about it, how can we be successful? The only way to be truly successful is to be faithful. Through our faith, God will bring His own success. He will make us successful in whatever His will is. I think through this class and from watching this film, I know I am supposed to change how I’m living. Whether it’s stopping my mindless consumption, being part of a corporation that is about the world and not about me, or fighting to take down corporations that are killing God’s earth and adding to Satan’s Empire, I know I need to do something. I’m not sure what my next physical move will be, but I think we are called to be more faithful and prayerful and see what God wants us to do to further His Kingdom.

Review: http://movies.nytimes.com/2009/09/23/movies/23capitalism.html

The End of The EV1

       What if I told you that we could buy a comfortable car that gave off no emissions and used no gasoline, made by the reputable General Motors Corporation? Then, what would you say if I told you that this car, the GM EV1, was already designed and manufactured 457 times over by 1996 but was taken off of the market and literally destroyed?
       Who Killed The Electric Car is a documentary by Chris Paine that explores the reasons that this car was created, and ultimately, destroyed. This film makes the viewer aware of the depleted oil supply, the environmental crisis that we find ourselves in and, therefore, the pressing need for sustainable energy. The state of California even proposed a mandate in 1990, requiring all automobile manufacturers to offer one zero emissions model. The GM EV1 could have been the 'perfect' sustainable car. It ran with no emissions for up to 100 miles on a single charge and had all of the interior features that consumers have come to expect in new cars. However, even after production, this car was never available on the market beyond a brief stint of leases that ended up being repossessed and literally crushed.  What happened?
     The film discusses the multiple factors that played a role in the death of the electric car. One theory is that big oil companies were nervous about the threat it would make to their industry. Another theory is that a lack of consumer interest for the EV1, and an increase of interest in the production of the Hummer, showed that the general public was not ready to widely accept such a model and justify continued production.  Whether the auto industry makers, the big oil companies, or even consumers are to blame for the death of the electric car, one thing is clear. Now 6 years after the release of this documentary, and 12 years after the death of the sustainable EV1, it is now time for a solution. We have drilled and used more oil, have released tons upon tons of toxic emissions into the air that we breathe and are settling for buying and driving cars that are far from ideal.
      While this film was a lot of facts and not necessarily entertaining, I found it to be very helpful and eye-opening. It made me think about the choices I make as a consumer and as someone who drives and will support the automotive industry, probably for the rest of my life. Viewing and discussing this film encouraged me to be a responsible citizen in regards to my buying and driving habits.

   1. Why should we be concerned about oil today when we still have it readily available to us at gas stations all over town?
   2. Does America pay its fair share in gas prices?
   3. How much would you be willing to pay for a car such as the EV1? Would you consider driving it at all?

Dorm Film- King Corn

King Corn. The title alone suggest the importance of corn. I knew there was a lot of corn out there. What I did not know is how prevalent it is, it's all over. Throughout the movie I was surprised time and time again at where the two guys who made the documentary were finding corn. Possibly the most shocking was when the found corn in their hair!

http://movies.nytimes.com/2007/10/12/movies/12corn.html

Here is a review that the New York Times did on this documentary. In the review the writer suggest that the film was not well done. That there was no sense of urgency from the film makers. No way to avoid this thing we call corn. It leaves the audience with a response like, "okay corn is everywhere better get used to it."

I fully agree with the reviewer in the New York Times. While the movie did a good job showing that corn is almost in everything we eat or buy it did not offer a solution or give any real good arguments. This is an issue that needs to be dealt with. We can't just say oh boy there is a lot of corn in our stuff. We need to be proactive do something about it. This movie offered no such solutions. Leaving me feeling empty at the end of the film. I would not crown King Corn a good documentary.

Maxed Out/Film Post

Maxed Out was a different way of looking at how we spend money on things every day. I knew the basic principles of owning a credit card and how you can use a credit card any time you want to pay for things, but eventually the bill comes and you owe for what you spent. The beginning of the movie started out in Las Vegas with a woman who was telling about the houses there. She explained that the amount of people spent on the house was doubled when they were trying to sell it. It was ridiculous because she even talked about how people wanted elevators in their houses!! It seems to me that houses are now turning into malls instead of actual houses. It was shocking to hear that Americans are $9,205 in debt, of course, it is much greater now since the film was in 2006. The documentary mentioned two reasons why people have credit cards: 1. They can't file for bankruptcy and 2. They can't make minimum monthly payments forever.

As the film continued, I saw how the system worked. It was scary to think that if you owned a credit card, people could track you down and tell you what you have purchased or even where you are. I know it has happened a couple of times when we lived in Texas, we would head up to Michigan for the summer and the credit card company would call, asking if we were aware that a person had bought gas from a gas station using our credit card. Then, we had to explain that we were fully aware because we would travel to Michigan for the summer. Still, having someone know that information about you is the same as if they had an actual tracker on you at all times. Something that I found completely shocking was that the bank's #1 concern is selling experience. No other experience was required. For me, it seems hard to believe. All they need is a person who can manipulate others into buying something and that's all they're looking for? It's ridiculous. They also showed in the film how credit card stands would be set up on college campuses, and the students would be so vulnerable to have a credit card while they were away from their parents. There were two mothers of students who explained how their children raised up such a debt, and in the end committed suicide because the debt was just too much to handle.

I do agree with the review of the film. Even though the documentary was a little harsh to watch, it still had a big impact. It showed how they could be savage to President Bush, several times showing how the MBNA went into effect. The documentary was also a little hard to follow because there was no narrator, so it was difficult to tell which story involved what and what was happening. The film prompts me to make a different choice about things in my life by being careful with how I spend my money. I don't own a credit card, but I do own a debit card, and I have experienced where I have come close to spending almost more than what was within my limit. By watching this film, I've learned to not let debt get the best of me and to be careful with how I handle my money. The last thing a person wants to be in is debt.

The only 2 questions I had were:
1. Why do we use credit cards on such small things?
2. Why do we need so many credit cards?

Maxed Out review link:
http://movies.nytimes.com/2007/03/09/movies/09maxe.html

Cultural Artifact 2 - January Series : Dancing with Dinner - Joel Salatin

Earlier today, my friends and I attended the January Series that we've been waiting for the last two and a half weeks. The speaker, Joel Salatin, gave a humorous, but yet succinct and moving presentation on conventional food paradigm. The first time when I first got to know about him was through the movie Food Inc. that I watched a couple of times in classes. His opinions on farming, food, and corporations were very interesting and touching, so this opportunity to listen to his presentation for a full hour was an exciting experience to me.

He talked about how food were meant to be, should be made and served, and produced. It sounds like a old styled farmer trying to defend his business, but he supported his opinions with irrefutable scientific evidences and most importantly, God's will in His creations. His Christian point of view was something that I did not find in the film, so I was very impressed once again.

Some of the main points he stressed in his presentation were that living things can heal, we need to treat living beings with noble ways, there are reasons why things are the way they are, and we need to embrace the way that God wants us to.

Nowadays, the food we eat, vegetables and and animals that provide us food, and the corporations and technologies that grow them are not what we think they are, the way they are supposed to be, and the way God has designed them to be. In this day, when the technologies and human cleverness that we embrace try to manipulate God's Kingdom, Salatin is saying that we need to take a look back and think about ethics, and God's Kingdom.

How did He create us? what was the purpose of His creation of human and every living things? how does God want us to become better stewards of His creations? These are the questions we face today and we really need to think about them hard so we can one day stand in front of God, and not be ashamed of our lives.

Questions:

1. Technologies advance and they improve the qualities of human lives. But, compare to the past, are we really living in improved life style?

2. Salatin has an opposing view on eating food that is made of ingredients that we can't even pronounce. Then, are we supposed to refuse eating manufactured foods?

Capitalism: A Love Story

One of the main points of a documentary is to show a corrupt part of reality and expose it the the public.  The film makers use fact-based arguments to persuade the viewers to usually do something about the problem.  In Capitalism: A Love Story, Michael Moore takes facts that have little or no relevance to the problem and use them to make a point.  Most documentary makers do this, but Moore takes this to the extreme by being so blatantly obvious with this by not trying to hide or conceal these facts in the movie.  One of the most obvious examples of this to me was when he was talking about greed.  He talked about Columbine High School, the place of the fourth deadliest school shooting in our nations history.  He said that the company that employs the most parents of Columbine students is a weapons manufacturing plant.  If you think about this, what percent of parents at one high school are usually employed by a single company?  I’m guessing that the percentage of parents working at this plant is less than 5% and is a mere coincidence considering what happened at Columbine.  Moore said that these parents were too blinded by greed and need for income to notice that they were promoting this kind of activity.  In other words, Michael Moore tailors the facts in order fit his needs.

In Capitalism: A Love Story, Moore also plays with the viewers emotions unlike any documentary I’ve seen.  When talking about the “dead-peasants” he plays sad music and zooms in on the faces of the children who had lost parents, while major corporations made a profit on them.  It is simply human nature to sympathize for these kids and believe Moore’s argument is valid.  Dana Stevens, a writer for Slate, says, “The scene makes you cry, yes—who wouldn't when hearing how a little girl asked whether she could cut a hole in the hospital wall to see her mother one last time?—but it seems like something you shouldn't be allowed to see. Once again, Moore's goodhearted aims come into direct conflict with his bludgeoning tactics.” 

The facts in this movie were very loosely connected.  There were sections of the movie where he made good, valid points, but they did not do anything to further is point that capitalism is evil.  Overall, I did not like the movie one bit.  I felt that Moore was very irritating and infuriating with the things he did and said.  I would not recommend this movie to anyone, unless they wanted to see an example of how not to make a documentary.

Ste     Stevens, Dana. Capitalism: A Love Story. Slate, 17 Jan. 2012. Web. 18 Jan. 2012.    <http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/movies/2009/09/capitalism_a_love_story.html>.

Reel Injun

I watched documentary film, Reel Injun, for my film viewing. The director, Neil Diamond, travels across the country telling the story of Hollywood’s portrayal of Native Americans on the big screen throughout the century. I agree with Avi Offer’s review, found at bhttp://www.nycmovieguru.com/june14th10.html#reelinjun.  He says that it effectively and engagingly tells the story of the Native Americans through Hollywood’s portrayal. I agree with him in that it gave me a new perspective on Native Americans. I knew that movies had portrayed Natives in a certain light, but wasn’t sure exactly how, and didn’t understand the history behind it before watching the film. It highlights stereotypes we’ve given Natives. These include the noble savage, which was created through films in the early 1900’s. As the century went on they were transformed in a derogatory way as worthless and very savage.  In this way the history highlighted the transformation of their view through Hollywood.

                This film is very revealing and prompts me to change the way I think. A major way is to be weary of stereotypes. The movie shows how people outside of a group can greatly influence the general view of that group that we take. We need to be more weary of the media, and test things that we take in. In the movie, the young native children played “cowboys and Indians” just like other children, and are influenced as much by the outside as we are. This shows just how much influence the media has. I think the documentary is also calling us to listen to the voices of the minority. When we listen to outsiders, we aren’t hearing the voices of the people within.  We need to be more attentive to hear the stories of people, to get an accurate picture of the lives.