Movies, Fantasy, and Learning

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Gretch and I love watching movies. If our recently posted list of movies we currently have on VHS that we want to get on DVD wasn't indication enough, we have the fact that we watch movies all the time at home. It is an inexpensive diversion that lets us do something together and it is something we love doing.

Today was an unusual day for us though. We usually watch one movie each evening. It is typically how we wrap up the day. We did watch a movie this evening. But we also watched three other movies today. And I watched a movie yesterday afternoon while Gretch was helping her friend Hannah with a photography project. So six movies within about a 36-hour period. Not too shabby, eh?

So what was being watched in our home? Well, yesterday I watched one of my many education-themed films, "Freedom Writers". In addition to being an amazingly inspirational film about the power that one teacher can have on her students, it is notable as one of two films that has ever made me cry. Yes, that's right, the man who almost never cries weeps during this movie. I told Gretchen this and she just laughed. She doesn't understand why I would shed tears during any point of "Freedom Writers". I will let you all in on the secret: I love watching the character Andre change his life and walk Miep Gies into the library and then tell her that she is his hero. (If you've never seen the movie, please go out immediately and rent a copy or borrow it from your local library.) The other part is when Eva does the right thing, rather than choosing to "protect her own" as her mother tells her to do. Again, if you haven't seen this movie, please do so now. Both of those scenes bring tears to my eyes as I contemplate the total change of heart that each character must undergo to reach that point.

This morning was the day I chose to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the theatrical release of "Back to the Future". I did this by watching all three movies in the trilogy. Gretch was originally going to not watch, but she joined me and, miracle of miracles, she upgraded her opinion of the movies from "terrible" to "okay". I was hoping for "full of golden awesomeness", but hey, I'll take what I can get. With all the great lines in these movies, I love the last scene with Doc Brown the best. His statement to Marty and Jennifer just rings so true: "Your future is what you make of it, so make it a good one!"

Finally, we watched "Secret Window" starring Johnny Depp. I admit, there's not really some awesome, powerful message in this movie. Just Johnny being good at being creepy. But hey, it is the week leading up to Halloween, and there are only so many scary/thriller movies out there that Gretch will watch.

The one thing that I love most about movies, and fantasy in general, is that there is so much we can learn from them. We can learn about the great heights of human triumph, the depths of human depravity, the joy of victory, the sorrow of defeat, and the reality that life is what we make of it. So even if I never have a flying DeLorean that can travel through time, I will still enjoy watching these movies, because they are fun and they help me frame my understanding of the world around me.

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