Godgrown

Saving Humanity, Running with Scissors

Its been a good weekend for movies. Last night we watched The Last Mimzy, which was like E.T. and the Matrix somehow combined. Tonight we watched Edward Scissorhands one which I YET to EVER see. Both were absolutely wonderful allegories…parables for life.

The Last Mimzy reminds us of the pure nature of the child, and therefore humanity, and how our world’s culture of distrust and isolation ultimately leads to complete annihilation. It is a commentary on the preciousness of human life, and how each person has a crucial role to play in the desperate fight to reclaim that preciousness found in themselves. This movie suggests that as we mature, we lose our ability to actualize the divine gifts we’ve been given, and spend the rest of our lives trying to convince ourselves that we are in a world destined for destruction. For me, it was a powerful reminder of who I am in Christ – a child of life.

Edward Scissorhands was hilarious and awkward, as are all Tim Burton/Johnny Depp films. I was drawn into the heart of the “monster” (Frankenstein anyone?) and the “beauty and the beast” elements were pretty clear too. But the real villain was our humanity; we humans can’t be happy without social equilibrium. If something (or someone) too “other” comes too close to us and what we cherish, we are at best temporarily intrigued, and ultimately we are threatened and outraged. The townspeople in this flick use and abuse the gifts of love that Edward shares (he gives a mean haircut) but then turn on him the moment he is vulnerable. The only friends he has are those who accept his differences as more than just the “fascinating new thing” and see his pained soul deep within. What might happen if we were to learn from diversity, rather than wallowing in our culture of homogeneity?

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In both the theme of “isolation” is given comment. Mimzy says that our isolation breeds distrust, war and destruction, while Ed says that mixing together only brings confusion, conflict and death. How does humanity deal with the fact that we are so very different, yet in absolute NEED of one another? Can we ever learn trust? Or…do we even need to?