Julie & Julia

Considering that the movie "Julie & Julia" was part of the inspiration to start this blog, I figure I should probably start with this movie. So let's start with some basics:


Genre: Comedy and Adaptation
Running time: 2 hours, 3 minutes
Rating: PG-13 for brief strong language and some sensuality
Starring: Merryl Streep, Amy Adams, Stanly Tucci, Chris Messina, Jane Lynch
Synopsis: Based on two true stories, "Julie & Julia" intertwines the lives of two women who, though separated by time and space, are both at loose ends until they discover that with the right combination of passion, fearlessness and butter, anything is possible.


Although I'm a big fan of both Merryl and Amy, I wasn't sure what to expect from this movie or if I'd even like it. However, the superb acting on the part of these two great actresses brought the story to life. The character of Julie (Amy Adams) was especially easy to relate to as she portrayed a young woman stuck in a mundane job despite her dreams of grandeur. A young married woman who feels like a failure and laments the fact that she's never completed everything, Julie takes up the challenge from her husband to blog her way through Julia Child's cookbook in one year.


So what in the world does this movie have to do with Christianity? What many Christian's fail to realize is that most movies can be "read" like a parable, and as my Religion teachers told me in college, it's vitally important to know how to translate a parable. Step 1: don't over-analyze - the first, easiest, and most obvious interpretation is usually the best one. Step 2: don't squeeze the parable dry - in other words...one interpretation at a time. Often we want to pick out every possible meaning from a parable/movie and we lose the power of the message in the process.


Now, let's apply these two steps to "Julie & Julia":


The majority of the movie focuses on the journey that Julie takes through Julia's cookbook. It shows her struggles, her joys, her failures, and her successes. Sound familiar? Ever tried to read the Bible through in one year? The idea is the same. Throughout the course of the year, Julie comes to feel a special bond with Julia as she studies her life and cooks through her cookbook, so much so that she comes to feel as if she knows Julia. Watching the ups and downs of Julie's year, really made me think about my journey with God. As I work my way through God's "cookbook" - the Bible - I have my own ups and downs, failures and successes...but through it all, I come to have a better relationship with a being that I've never "met."


Now here's the hard part, obviously there are going to be pieces of movies that don't fit in with the Christian lifestyle. For instance, if you notice the rating above, this movie is rated PG-13 because of language and sensuality. Sadly, it is nearly impossible to find a movie these days that doesn't have at least mild language and sensuality, so, how much is too much? That is something that you need to decide for yourself. It's a sad state of affairs that people today, including Christians, have become desensitized to language, sex, and violence. So what do we do? Do we just shrug it off as a part of the world?


My personal philosophy on the language, sex, and violence in movies has two parts: 1) there is such a thing as too much. Everything we watch and hear will affect our subconscious, and personally no movie or possible "hidden" message is worth sitting through a movie stuffed to overflowing with language, sex, and violence. 2) As a "big picture person" it is possible for me to completely overlook the "details." Now, not everyone can do this...and I must warn you that those particular details do tend to come to the forefront when watching movies with people who are more sensitive to them (i.e. parents, children, etc). So how much is too much? I challenge you to find out for yourself - that decision is truly between you and your conscience.