Alberione Film

Trailer for the Blessed James Alberione film-in-the-making, the founder of the Pauline Family.

Red Dog

The last movie of the Windrider Bay Area Film Forum was Red Dog, a movie about a small miners town in the Northwest of Australia and a dog who brought together an unlikely group of people. The movie takes place in the 1970s in the small mining town of Dampier. A Red Kelpie dog wanders into the town and into the hearts of all the people. He becomes the "common dog," which means he has no owner but belongs to everyone. Through this touching and humorous film, we see how Red Dog becomes the catalyst for each person to share their story, their pains, their struggles and their hopes.

At one point, John Grant (Josh Lucas), an American, comes to Dampier. For reasons unbeknown to him, Red Dog takes to him and follows him everywhere. They soon become best friends and everyone recognizes Red Dog as belonging to John. John falls for a young woman named Nancy (Rachael Taylor) and Red Dog takes to her as well. After a large party at which John proposes to Nancy, they take off on his motorcycle. John tells Red Dog to stay and wait for him in the morning. After dropping off Nancy, John is killed in an accident. Red Dog stays outside John's home waiting for him to return. He waits for three weeks. After that he takes off and travels all over the Northwest of Australia--traveling for years searching for John. He finally makes his way back to Dampier and finds Nancy.

This depressive, mining town brings together people from all nationalities and races. Everyone gathers around Red Dog who brings a sense of purpose and meaning to this motley crew. New life springs out of sadness and loneliness. People talk to one another, share their stories and find new meaning in life. As the screenwriter, Daniel Taplitz says, "Red Dog is a mirror of ourselves." We deal with grief and pain which is all a part of the cycle of life. Communion comes out of a shared experience and these people shared a sense of hope in life because of Red Dog.

The Hammer

Directed by Oren Kaplan, this docudrama depicts the life of Matt Hamill, the first deaf wrestler to win the National Collegiate Championship. He grows up in a hearing world and navigates the challenges to achieve his dream of being the best. This true story has a profound lesson in true communication. With those who are deaf, often people focus on their mode of communicating rather than their content, as Shoshannah Stern who plays Kristi, Matt's girlfriend, in the film says. In the film, Matt grows up learning to speak English instead of Sign. He struggles with communicating when he goes to Rochester Institute of Technology for wrestling where there is a deaf campus and a large student body who speak Sign. Matt eventually grasps this new language and realizes that there is more to communicating than speaking. The transformation in Matt focuses him on being less centered on himself and becoming more other-centered. This is a film about Matt's search for himself.

Matt has a deep and profound relationship with his grandfather with whom he lived growing up. His grandfather did not want to admit that his grandson was different and so taught him to speak and sent him to regular schools while refusing Matt's mother's request to send him to school to learn Sign. He was also Matt's best fan for his wrestling and encouraged him to follow his dream. On his deathbed, he surprised Matt by Signing some phrases and telling him how much he loved Matt. He finally said that Matt is different and that's a wonderful thing. His acceptance meant the world to Matt.

We all have various strengths and weaknesses. We all have struggles in life and must search to find who we really are within this larger universe. God makes each of us unique and special in our own way. We are all called to greatness--the greatness of giving of ourselves in love to others. As Paul says, "Love never ends...." 1 Cor. 13:8.

Rising From Ashes

Rising From Ashes is an amazing full length documentary about the first Rwandan National Cycling Team. This is about the journey of a country trying to rise from the depths of horror of the 1994 genocide and its need for heroes to believe in once again. This group of cyclists go through a six-year journey of training by the first American to ever race the Tour de France, Johnathan Boyer. As the cyclists struggle with their own pain--mental, emotional and physical--Johnathan goes through his own journey of finding redemption, hope and new life in giving himself to the Rwandan people. T.C. Johnstone, the director, producer and editor of this emotionally charged documentary, says that, "This is a film about transformation. For Jock (Johnathan) it was a transformation in humility." For the Rwandan cyclists, it was a transformation out of a nightmare constantly relived in their minds to an opportunity to overcome their past and to be recognized as united Rwandans.

The bicycle is a powerful tool. As T.C. Johnstone says, "Everyone has one. And no one gets on a bike and doesn't smile." It is therapeutic. It gives the rider a chance to process the suffering of the mind and soul and connecting them to a sense of redemption.

Adrien Niyonshuti, one of the cyclists, made the qualifying round for the London Olympic Games 2012. Look for him on the last day of the Olympics on August 12th during the mountain bike event. His story of loss and perseverance, struggle and redemption is so compelling and profound. He will represent his country at the opening ceremonies. No one can know what that means to this young man representing Rwanda.

Follow him on Twitter during the Games:  https://twitter.com/RFAthemovie.

http://risingfromashesthemovie.com/Rising_From_Ashes/Home.html.

Windrider Film Forum

This week is the annual Windrider Film Forum here in Northern California, specifically Menlo Park.
Windrider is about making the space for conversation and community regarding the medium of film. It gives us the chance to bring our faith into active conversation with the media culture and experience some marvelous filmmaking. Here's more info:
http://www.windriderbayarea.org/?q=about

Where God Left His Shoes

This is a realistic and hard look at what many people face in our alabaster cities. When a family becomes homeless and Frank Diaz (Leguizamo) unsuccessfully looks for another job to support his wife and kids, he turns to stealing. Knowing that he doesn't want to go that direction, desperation leads him to such measures and even to teach his step-son to do the same. He changes and tries to do better, but the ending isn't a perfect fix. It's open-ended and often such is life. It is a socially-challenging movie. What is our response to those who are struggling to make ends meet? Do we see the Lord present in the homeless? Will he turn to us and say, "What you did to the least of these, you did for me"? This made me examine my own values and motives.