Category: A Spiritual Look At All Forms Of Entertainment…

Have you ever wished you could see a preview of how your life is going to be down the road, somewhere in the future? This is a question I have often pondered with much introspection over the past few years. For the longest time, it was something I really wanted, but that was until my recent movie going experiences changed my viewpoint.

For anyone that knows me, it is a well known fact that I head to the local multiplex at least once or twice a week to see the latest films that have been released. But there is one very disappointing trend happening lately that has started to ruin many of the films I go see and it has to do with those trailers that come out weeks, months, and sometimes even a year ahead of its release.

When I was a kid, I got very excited when I would see a 30 second preview of an upcoming movie that was only a few months away from being in the theater. Normally I might only catch that preview a few times and most of the best parts weren’t given away during it. Unfortunately, I can’t say that’s true anymore for the films of today. Many big budget movies have trailers for it now that are several minutes long in length and sometimes even up to ten minutes long when a portion of the film is shown during a special television show. While it may be exciting to see some of those really cool special effects, or those moments of gut busting humor during all those minutes of previews, there is a downside to it as well. It takes away from the excitement I might normally get from seeing them when I watch the entire film the first time.

I have already seen most of this summer’s tent pole movies up to this point and sadly, because of all the trailers I have seen ahead of time, many of them haven’t been as fun to go see because they spoiled most of the surprises. I didn’t laugh as much at the jokes during The Internship for this reason. I wasn’t scared as much with those zombie ant hills and zombie swarms in World War Z because of it. I wasn’t as excited about the big airplane takedown scene in The Fast and The Furious 6 due to it. And well, this list could go on with how I’ve felt about other movies such as White House Down, This Is The End, and others. Now, I’m leaving the theater feeling more let down then not because of these previews spoiling too much of the film’s fun. Also just as noticeable is that I am starting to skip a lot more films now which is not like it used to be for me. Previews show so much now that I often will not go see a film because too much of it has been revealed, thus making it unattractive to go see. A good example of this is with the movie The Purge. Many years ago, I might have gone to see this film by reading up on its description alone, but this year’s trailer depicted so much that I felt I had already seen the majority of what the movie was about, so I didn’t go see it at all.

If you’re wondering how all of this compares to the original question I posed about wishing to see a preview of one’s life in the future, it’s pretty simple. If any of us were given a several minute long preview of our coming life, there’s a good chance it might spoil any excitement we would experience when that future actually happens thus making life appear very boring as it occurs. And if that preview of our future showed too much, including things that might not be so alluring, there’s a good chance we’d probably do everything we could to change it, or avoid it altogether. Because of this, I came to the conclusion I’d rather not ever see any preview of my future life.

I hope at some point that the film industry might develop the same conclusion with previews and trailers as I have come to with not wanting to see parts of my own future. While that may never happen, I guess you can say that I’m glad at least that the technology hasn’t been created yet for me to see what’s coming down the road in my life. For now at least, I will continue to be able to enjoy a spoil free future when those wonderful things happen and also just as important, I won’t be trying to skip my attending any part of it either.

Peace, love, light, and joy,

Andrew Arthur Dawson

I had a chance the other night to go see World War Z at the theater starring Brad Pitt. I thought the movie was pretty decent as it kept me on the edge of my seat for most of its running time. But let’s face it, doesn’t it seem like lately that zombies are popping up everywhere in television shows and movies? Why is it that everyone is so fascinated by them now?

A quick google search showed me that zombies have been around for much longer than I thought. Their first real appearance goes all the way back to a film called White Zombie that was released in 1932. But it really wasn’t until George Romero released a 1968 movie named Night of the Living Dead that they became infamous. Ever since then, zombies have become more and more popular and been simply known as “the living dead”.

Over the past few decades their notoriety has been gained through movies such as 28 Days Later, Resident Evil, Shaun of the Dead, Zombieland, I am Legend, and most recently Warm Bodies. And there’s even an extremely popular show about them now entitled The Walking Dead that has millions and millions of fans watching it.

After watching World War Z and many of the other movies and TV shows which portray zombies, I can see why people are drawn so much to them. The most obvious reason to me is that zombies are people too. They were someone’s friend, husband, wife, son, daughter, mother, father, etc. Placing myself in some of those situations I have seen in these movies and television shows, I really can’t imagine what I would do if my sister or my partner or one of my closest friends had become one. In the movies, when I have seen those situations, the people usually shot their loved ones in the head with terrible regret or they get bitten while trying to do the right thing and become one of them too. It’s a horrible dilemma to think about and I’m sure that’s one of the top reasons why people are so intrigued by watching a zombie invasion. I believe another big reason for zombies growing popularity is this end of the world concept that has been growing fear in so many people lately. In World War Z, most of the human population is decimated by this zombie plague. And that’s only one way that films and TV shows are showing how the end of the world might happen. Often it’s also shown as an asteroid about to hit the earth, or severe weather outbreaks from global warming, or some other deadly disease, or Revelations from the Bible. In all of them, the majority of the human race is lost and I’m sure most everyone who has ever watched any of these portrayals on the big or small screen has imagined themselves as one of the last survivors on Earth. And of course, a final reason why many people probably like zombies is just because they think they’re cool. Television and movies have become so realistic and graphic lately with blood and violence that zombies are a very good way now to shock audiences as they chase, jump on, and rip and tear the flesh off of someone. The truth is I really don’t like zombies that much because of all of this. I always get nightmares when I go to sleep after watching something they were in. When I watched the first two episodes of The Walking Dead in Season One, I got next to no sleep and that became the end of my tuning into that show. So you’re probably wondering now why I decided to go see World War Z given this fact. I don’t really have a good answer for you, except for the fact that I love movies especially those big budget flicks that come out during the summer like this one.

The bottom line I’m trying to make with all of this though is that with all the diseases that are running rampant these days, with many labs doing terrible animal testing, and governments secretly working on biological warfare, it’s extremely possible that something like a zombie epidemic could happen. And if it ever does, I just hope that a rapture will occur just before it’s outbreak, and that God will choose to take me during it. I really don’t want to see my nightmares become reality before my eyes. Regardless, I think I’m going to pray now that I don’t have a nightmare tonight and that zombies will always just remain something to frighten us in a theater or at home on a television screen.

Peace, love, light, and joy,

Andrew Arthur Dawson

Spring is in the air and summer will be here shortly. With both comes the return of activities that the warmer weather can only bring. And one of those I was able to enjoy just the other night…the Drive-In.

There aren’t many of these left in existence today. Most will say it’s because of the rise of the multiplexes and their huge screens, digital surround sound systems, stadium seatings and plush recliner seats. While I love the movie theater experience, no matter how amazing it seems to get each and every year, I continue to be drawn to finding drive-in theaters and reliving one of the good moments I had in my childhood.

It’s true as they say, the older one gets, the more nostalgic one becomes with things of the past. While my childhood was filled with many unsettling moments, there are some that I am beginning to remember when I felt happy, the more that I heal. Going to the drive-in was one of them.

In my hometown, Poughkeepsie, NY, there were at least four drive-in’s in local proximity that my family would go to quite often throughout the summer. My family liked following the same habits a lot so that when we would attend the drive-in on a summer night, it would always be the same pattern. Dinner would be McDonalds take out where I usually had two cheeseburgers, an order of fries, and a diet soda. We would eat it after finding the spot to park the family station wagon which was faced backwards towards the movie screen. I can still remember sitting on the tailgate, eating that meal back then which I always found to be delicious. Today I’m not so sure but that’s because I’m a more health conscious person and McDonalds isn’t the first place I think of when it comes to eating healthy. Anyway, I usually devoured that meal so that I had a good half hour to hour on the playground that was situated right below the large movie screen. I spent most of my time riding on this contraption that doesn’t really exist anymore because of the danger it brought over the years. I can only describe it as a circle of interconnected benches that sat on top of a spindle, that someone would grab onto and run as fast as they could until at the last second, they would hop on it and enjoy a dizzying spin. Between that and the swings which I usually loved jumping off of once I got really high, I was always quite excited by the time the first movie was about to begin. My parents were pretty strict about the movie ratings with my sister and I. So for most of those drive-in experiences, I could only watch the first movie and not the second as it was beyond my age range they would tell me. With it, I was supposed to fall asleep but never really did. I remember one time I peaked over the seat without getting caught and watched a bit of Animal House that was “R” rated. I know today that wouldn’t be that big of a deal to many children who’s parents allow them to see just about anything at the movies but for me it was exhilarating.

Thankfully, there are others like me around today who are nostalgic and still enjoy going to a drive-in during the warm summer months. Poughkeepsie still has two in operation but I live no where close to there now. Unfortunately in the area of Massachusetts where I still live, there aren’t any close by. Where my partner lives though, there’s one still left behind in operation and that’s where I found myself with him this past Saturday night. There are some differences today from back then that I notice have evolved over time. Gone are the playgrounds where I once would have played. Gone are the bright colored poles with the small radios that would have gone on a car window to listen to the movie. And gone are the reel to reel devices the movies were brought in on, having been replaced by digital versions. Regardless of those changes, I still enjoyed my time there watching Oblivion and Identity Thief. Although I must say, what’s funny is that I really liked the first movie which my parents would have allowed me to see as a kid. The second movie, the “R” rated one, I didn’t like at all.

Thinking back to just a few years ago, I probably wouldn’t have enjoyed going to any drive-inn because everything that I thought of with my family brought back the bad memories and not the good ones. As I have worked hard this past year in turning my entire will over to God, I have found more healing from all those not so happy childhood memories and begun to remember all the good ones. Going to the drive-in was just one of them and now today because of all that work I am doing on myself, I can enjoy this experience and think back to a time in my life where I knew my parents loved me and that being a kid was pretty cool.

Peace, love, light, and joy,

Andrew Arthur Dawson