Crash/Serenity

Links for Crash (Serenity below)
—Overview
—Photos
—About this Film pdf
—Spiritual Connections

And who is my neighbor?

By Mark Stokes

10-17-05

“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” (Luke 10:27)

According to the previous biblical passage, these two things are essential for inheriting eternal life. Like the probing lawyer in Luke, we often forget just who our neighbors may be. Thanks to two recent films (one in theaters and one on DVD), we are re-reminded of just whom we should love.

If writer/director Paul Haggis were asked to identify his neighbor, he would probably begin something like this, “A certain man went from Burbank to Los Angeles …” He would continue to weave a story entitled Crash that includes characters from a melting pot of different cultures, who are forced to stop their fast-paced, everyday lives and interact with those markedly different from themselves. As a result, the characters face the ugliness of their own prejudices, and they learn to love the commonalities and the differences of their human brethren.

Though this plot has Hallmark written all over it, this star-studded film is anything but. Crash earns its R-rating with intense language, sexual content and violence. Through painting the problem of hate so vividly, the film makes an excellent case for our need to love and to be loved. Recently released on DVD, the film is basically an adaptation of "The Good Samaritan" if it were set in our modern, technologically gluttonous society.

Crash initially seems to be a collection of unrelated vignettes tied together by the theme of “loving outside our comfort zones,” but these vignettes are later brought together through a subtle (and tightly-written) cause-to-effect storyline. The plot-weaving is so admirable that this author would be terribly shocked if the film didn’t at least receive a Best Original Screenplay nomination for the upcoming Oscars.

The film takes the notion of neighbor-loving to a deeper-than-typical level, insinuating that loving one’s neighbor is not only admirable, but it’s essential to maintain one’s humanity. After seeing Crash, we are presented with the idea that we definitely need to reach out to others. But how far should we reach? Enter Serenity and its overlying theme: “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13)

Serenity is rated PG-13 for sequences of intense violence and action, and some sexual references. Being obviously influenced by “Star Trek” (especially in its conformity to the Space Western genre), the film’s initial scientific dialogue may turn off many younger viewers. Though the discourse is especially heavy at the film’s start, it’s necessary to establish the world of Serenity—one where humans have been forced to abandon a crumbling earth, to seek a new home elsewhere, and to continue their lust for power and control in another solar system.

The film picks up after one of our characteristic power struggles, a war that leaves anti-hero Mal Reynolds (Nathan Fillion) disenfranchised with the notion of reaching out to others. It takes place shortly after the events of “Firefly” (the short-lived television show with Serenity’s same cast and storyline). Mal leads a small crew across the stars on a smuggling ship called Serenity (though, for Mal, the concept of “serenity” is nothing more than an idealistic dream). If the film seems dark, don’t let it fool you. Though disenfranchised, Mal has not lost his sense of humor. In fact, his dark, cynical wit seems to be an essential sustainer as he tries to make sense of the horrors he’s encountered.

Among the other key characters in Serenity is River Tam (Summer Glau), a genetically altered teenager running from the government with the help of a protective brother, Simon (Sean Mahon). Harboring these two mysterious, though needy, refugees challenges Mal’s newly acquired “look out for number one” philosophy and leads him on the road back to humanity.
As previously mentioned, the theme of self-sacrifice is repeatedly addressed and portrayed. After the lengthy expository scenes, this theme becomes more blatant, forcing the audience closer and closer to the edges of their seats as the sacrifices become more intense and less predictable. Though Mal and those around him have been hardened by extreme circumstances, they cannot fight the innate need to receive love and to express love (needs that lead us back to our spiritual responsibilities in Luke 10:27).

Serenity also includes strong themes that deal with the nature of sin and humanity’s attempt to rid the world of sin through its own inadequate knowledge and power. Though the relationship between good and evil begins with a gray hue, the lines are distinctly drawn in a climactic battle that contrasts light and darkness in a powerful way. Writer/Director Joss Whedon’s use of a dialect that blends familiar expressions with Western-evolved slang makes a world that’s both arresting and believable. Technically, the world remains stunning and life-like—a blend of post-Empire Star Wars, the pre-Civil War West and pre-technology Asia—thanks to a team of concept artists that includes acclaimed comic book penciller Leinel Francis Yu (Wolverine, X-Men).

The underlying moral of both Crash and Serenity is a blatant reminder for humanity. Existence is not just about us. It’s not even solely about a relationship with God. That relationship is primary, but it’s established so that we may share that relationship through the way we relate with one another. Though this is a simple truth, it’s an easy one to forget. Today’s culture is about self. Even our religious inclinations have a tendency toward self. Perhaps that’s because it’s easier for us to do the talking in our personal relationships with God, ignoring that still, small voice. When such a habit becomes a lifestyle, we become our own gods.

To avoid such self-serving religion, we only need to reach. When reaching out to those around us, we reveal God in an intimate and dynamic way. We also experience God through the fresh perspectives of others. The commands in Luke 10:27 are not mutually exclusive. Like the road-raging businessman or the roguish space captain, reaching out to others is essential for our spiritual health.

Links for Serenity (Crash above)
—1. Overview (multimedia)
—2. Overview Basic (dial up speed)
—3. Reviews and Blogs
—4. Cast and Crew
—5. Photo Pages
—6. Trailers, Clips, DVDs, Books, Soundtrack
—7. Posters
—8. Production Notes (pdf)
—9. Spiritual Connections