Category: A Spiritual Look At All Forms Of Entertainment…

While I see plenty of movies both in the theater and at home on a weekly basis, there are only a handful I ever feel motivated enough to write about in this blog. Most of the time it’s the ones that spiritually uplift me, which lead to that. But in rare cases there are those that truly appall me, like The Wolf Of Wall Street, which compel me to do the same.

There really is only one reason why The Wolf Of Wall Street totally appalled me. It wasn’t because the film wasn’t acted well, because the acting was spot on with Leonardo DiCaprio and Jonah Hill, amongst others. It also wasn’t because the film was directed poorly, because the directing was top notch as it always seems to be with Martin Scorsese’s films. And in all honesty, it wasn’t because of a poor movie script either, as I found it to be a rather well adapted screenplay from the book it was based on. The thing I actually found most disturbing about it was how realistically it portrayed my former addictive lifestyle on screen.

From alcohol to drug addiction, to sex and gambling addiction, and throwing in a ton of greed and gluttony, The Wolf of Wall Street was a three hour look into someone else’s addiction fueled lifestyle that resembled too closely to my own. I can count on one hand the amount of times in my entire life that I ever felt a compulsion to walk out of a movie and this was definitely one of them. There were too many moments during this movie’s running time that I cringed and wanted to leave the theater, like I saw a few people actually do. The only reason why I stayed was out of respect for an artistic film that will most likely garner at least several nominations throughout the upcoming movie awards season.

As I said already, this movie wasn’t a bad movie. The fact is that it was a good movie because it yanked at each of the old addictive triggers within me. In other words, it was all too real and completely believable. Unfortunately, it just hit too close to home for me as it visually depicted a life similar to my own that once tore my soul completely apart. To hear stories about various addictions from others in 12 Step recovery meetings is one thing. I can handle that as it comes with the territory of going to those meetings in the first place. But to see one of those stories displayed so accurately on a movie screen is quite another as I wasn’t able to handle that at all. Watching actors and actresses massively binge on alcohol and drugs, seeing them take part in one sex orgy after another, and observing how their love of money led each of them to treat others so poorly for the movie’s entire three hour running time, was too much for my spirit to handle.

I love the movies, but mostly because I like to leave the theater feeling spiritually good. It’s movies like Saving Mr. Banks or The Secret Life Of Walter Mitty that have done that to me. When I’ve left the theater after watching those films, there was tears in my eyes and a feeling of gratitude in my heart for what God has given me in life. But for The Wolf Of Wall Street, I didn’t leave the theater feeling spiritually uplifted on any level. In fact, I left the theater feeling quite down and out. That’s only because I know too many people who are still out there in this world living their lives like what this movie depicted. There are too many people who still actively engage in any one of the addictions that were demonstrated so well in this movie. And sadly, many of them will die from those addictions. I do have to admit something though the more I think about this. I was able to leave the theater after seeing The Wolf Of Wall Street with one single piece of gratitude to God. And that’s for the fact that I am clean and sober today from all of those addictions.

It’s too bad that this movie wasn’t able to show the real hope and recovery that exists in our world for people that suffer from addictions. The movie Flight with Denzel Washington was a perfect example of a movie that did. It showed a man’s downward spiral into a major alcohol addiction and then his eventual rise out of it. Unfortunately, The Wolf Of Wall Street didn’t quite get there and instead it spent the majority of its three hour running time displaying only the terrible things that occur from an addiction fueled lifestyle.

If you are thinking about seeing this movie and have a background similar to mine that’s addictive based, I only ask you to prepare yourself for an extremely realistic portrayal of all the downfalls that come with addictions. But please know and remember when the movie is over that there is hope and recovery out there for all addictions, as God has made me living proof of that.

Peace, love, light, and joy,

Andrew Arthur Dawson

Every year it seems as if the cost increases to see a movie in the theater. While some might just say that’s due to inflation and the price tag involved with some of the special effects laden films being produced, there are several other things causing this as well.

The first one deals with something I’ve spoken previously about in this blog. It surrounds the fact that there are many people who aren’t paying for some of the movies they see in a theater because they are sneaking in from one film to another. I know of those that do this regularly, who spend the day in a theater seeing at least three films where they end up paying for only one.

A second reason why ticket prices keep going up deals with the varying options that now exist for movie goers. Many films can be watched in multiple formats including 3-D, IMAX, and then both of them together in a 3-D IMAX version as well. Theaters are now charging up to $3.50 for the 3-D alone and if one ends up seeing the 3-D IMAX combination, that could cost another dollar or more. I know of those who won’t ever go to the theater and see these type of movies because of that extra cost. But what I can’t understand is why the option doesn’t exist to allow a person to save the $3.50 off the cost of their movie ticket by holding on to their glasses from a previous movie outing. One would think that would save the movie theaters and movie companies some money because of the cost involved to shipping them somewhere, getting them cleaned, testing them to make sure they are still good, and then reshipping them back out to the theaters. Ironically, this is leading people to acts of deception when they bring in their own 3-D glasses, pay for a non 3-D movie, and sneak into one that is.

A third thing that’s happening to drive up the cost of a movie ticket is the piracy that’s happening lately with films. A friend of mine a few months ago told me he saw Baggage Claim on the Internet with his son on the same weekend it opened in the theaters. Between those illegal copies thrown up on the web and those being sold on the streets, thousands avoid having to go to the theater to see a film because of the easy access to seeing it for much less at home.

And then there’s my personal pet peeve that I believe is probably shared with many others. It’s one that definitely contributes to the decline of a tremendous amount of movie goers, which then in turn results in an increase in ticket prices. That deals specifically with the constant talking and cell phone use that goes on in a theater while the movie is running. I don’t think many people pay attention to those courtesy clips shown prior to a movie which ask people to not talk or use their phones during it. Often I see many conversations still going on between people, some quite loudly, and then there are those who will light up those white screens on their cell phones and start texting or talking on it throughout the movie.

Finally, it’s probably best to mention that the price of concessions is also related to the rising cost of of those movie tickets prices. People complain all the time about how expensive it is to get a large soda and popcorn at a theater these days but what they don’t realize is that the theaters earn less than 20 percent of the revenue from a ticket sale. The reason why the theaters stay in business is for the revenue they pull in with those high priced concessions. What stinks is that people either stop coming to the theater because of this, or they bring their own meals in, like a family did recently when I saw them eating McDonalds during a movie.

So I’m sure you can see a clearer picture now as to why the prices of movie tickets keep going up. It’s not just the fault of greedy movie production companies or theater chains as some might say. It’s not just because of the expanding options of movies like 3-D and IMAX that’s causing this. It’s not just because of those individuals who drive others away from the theater through their constant talking or cell phone use. Nor is it because of those individuals who cheat the movie system through illegal means like piracy and bringing food into theaters. All of these things are partially at fault but the sad thing is that I’m not sure if it will ever change.

Two famous directors, George Lucas and Steven Spielberg, recently agreed on some level to this by hypothesizing that the cost of movie tickets will eventually be upwards of $50 to $100 to $150 in the future. I can’t imagine a time like that. While I know through my spirituality and dedication to God that I would never try to cheat the system to see a movie at that price, costing that much would definitely curb my movie going to a handful of movies as compared to the hundreds I probably see in a given year.

For now, I’m just glad the movie ticket prices aren’t that extreme and I accept the only thing I can do to keeping it that way is to not contribute to any behaviors that may lead to it. That being said, I don’t bring meals into the theater, I don’t text on my phone during a film, I don’t carry on full conversations when a movie is running, and I make sure to always pay for each film I see. While that may not do much to prevent the inevitable price increase of movie tickets, at least I know I’m doing my part in trying…

Peace, love, light, and joy,

Andrew Arthur Dawson

It seems as if there are a lot of movies being made lately that are inspired by true stories. In the past few days alone, I’ve seen two of them where one of which was titled Philomena. Based on the real life story of Philomena Lee, this 2013 British Drama film focused on a woman’s 50 year search to find her son whom she was forced to sign away at a convent in Roscrea, Ireland at the age of 18.

Sometimes films really enlighten me when I see the horrors that have existed throughout time because of those in power. Maybe that’s why I like movies so much because they paint a much more vivid picture of them than a book might. Philomena is just one of many films that has done this for me. Others noteworthy to mention are films like 12 Years A Slave, which portrayed the horrors of slavery in our country, and The Passion Of Christ, which showed similar horrors, but solely those done to Jesus Christ.

In Phliomena though, the horror that was focused on was the fact that many unwed mothers in Ireland back in the 1950’s were disowned by their families and sent to convents. There they were forced to sign the rights away to their children, usually before they were even born there. During the birthing process, many of these women never even survived because they were denied the same birthing aids that women usually received through normal hospital care at the time. The Catholic Church thought of these women as sinners and degenerates and left the birthing process up to chance as to whether God wanted either the mother or her child to survive or not. Philomena Lee was one of those women who did survive that ordeal, along with her son Anthony. But sadly, her son was taken from her before the age of 4 when the Catholic Church sold him to an American couple through an ongoing adoption process they utilized to make money.

During the movie, my partner and others in the theater reacted in anger towards the many Catholic Church’s denials and cover-ups of what happened to Philomena and her son. I am even struggling as I write these words because I too could very easily jump on that anger bandwagon. I’ve had too many friends in my life that were sexually abused by Catholic priests, where those incidents were denied and covered up as well. Add in the fact that homosexuals have consistently been thought of as sinners and hell-bound by the teachings of the Catholic institution, it makes it very difficult for me to write with love and light about the Catholic Church. But I’ve also learned that anger doesn’t help fuel anything other than more anger and resentments. So I’ve chosen to look at all of the Catholic Church’s horrors that are being exposed these days, like Philomena’s ordeal, as misguided and filled with a lot of spiritual sickness. This has helped me to feel more sad about all of it rather than angry.

Hopefully one day, the names of God and Jesus Christ will stop being used by the Catholic Church and those in power in them to justify doing terrible actions, such as what happened to Philomena and the other 50,000+ women who lost either their lives, their children, or both from it. There is much healing that needs to take place on this planet, especially with so many who have been negatively affected by these past actions of the Catholic Church. But being angry won’t bring any of that about. Instead, I’ve learned the best I can do is to feel my sadness and pray for the healing and forgiveness for all those involved in any of the Catholic Church’s transgressions.

While I’m not Catholic, I do have many friends and loved ones who are. I don’t look negatively upon any of them for what a few leaders once allowed to happen to Philomena and the many other women who suffered the ordeal of an unspiritual birthing and adoption process. I’m just happy that Philomena was at least able to have some closure to her 50 year long search for her son. The movie truly stirred my heart as I’m sure it was intended to do. And it’s my hope that anyone who sees this film will at least walk away from it with greater awareness and not something unspiritual such as anger and anti-Catholic Church sentiments.

Peace, love, light, and joy,

Andrew Arthur Dawson