This presentation was given to a university class on Latino Culture and Religion. The professor wanted me to provide the students with input on how to write a film review. I started by showing trailers for several Latino-themed films such as The Milagro Beanfield War, From Prada to Nada, Mi Familia/My Family, Voces inocentes/Innocent Voices, Fools Rush In, They Killed Sister Dorothy, At Play in the Fields of the Lord, The Burning Season, A Better Life

1. So
you
want
to
be
a
film
cri2c?
Sr.
Rose
Paca8e,
FSP
January
30,
2014
H8p://sisterrosemovies.net
See
Slide
#35
for
the
short
cut

2. About
this
presenta2on
• This
presenta2on
was
given
to
a
university
class
on
La2no
Culture
and
Religion.
The
professor
wanted
me
to
provide
the
students
with
input
on
how
to
write
a
film
review.
I
started
by
showing
trailers
for
several
La2no-­‐themed
films
such
as
The
Milagro
Beanfield
War,
From
Prada
to
Nada,
Mi
Familia/My
Family,
Voces
inocentes/Innocent
Voices,
Fools
Rush
In,
They
Killed
Sister
Dorothy,
At
Play
in
the
Fields
of
the
Lord,
The
Burning
Season,
A
Be8er
Life

3. Tell
us
what
you
really
think
•
•
•
•
•
•
It
s2nks!
I
loved
it!
Wow!
Waste
of
money!
Best
movie
ever!
Worst
movie
ever!

4. Why?

5. Criteria
•
•
•
•
•
Know
what
you
know
Know
what
you
believe
Who
is
God
for
you?
Know
who
you
are
Ar2culate

6. More
on
criteria
• Develop
criteria,
a
point
of
view;
• A
unique
perspec2ve
that
unifies
your
life
experience,
faith,
imagina2on,
educa2on,
hopes,
and
dreams;
see
everything
around
you.
• Don’t
just
copy
what
everyone
else
is
saying.

7. Values
• Over-­‐arching
ideals
that
guide
your
life
• 1.
• 2.
• 3.

8. Theology
of
Cinema
• “You
will
need
to
know
what
you
believe
about
God
as
well
as
God’s
ongoing,
eternal
communica2on
with
us”
-­‐
Meredith
Gould
in
the
“The
Social
Media
Gospel”

9. 1.
Watch
movies
or
“films”

10. 2.
Know
story
Know
storytelling
and
film
Study
film
history
Understand
genre
and
How
cinema
works
as
art
and
movies
as
consumer
products;
• How
cinema
func2ons
in
the
person,
in
audiences
and
society;
• Understand
the
commercial/consumer/profit
aspects
well.
•
•
•
•

11. The
meaning
of
the
films
rises
from
the
rela2onships
of
the
characters
with
one
another,
their
society,
their
environment
and
beliefs.
It
is
in
these
stories’
exquisite
expressions
of
human
love
that
God
is
revealed
for
the
characters
and
for
the
audience.
Ineffable:
too
great
to
be
expressed
in
words

12. 3.
Interrogate
films
• Ask
ques2ons
• e.g.
the
U.S.
Military
consul2ng
on
films
–
how
does
this
change
what
the
film
means?
Does
it?
(Iron
Man,
Act
of
Valor;
The
Hurt
Locker)

13. 4.
Write
every
day
• 250
words,
one
side
of
a
page
type-­‐wri8en

14. 5.
Context
vis-­‐à-­‐vis
content
• Context
is
everything
• Content
analysis,
which
may
be
useful
for
parents
of
young
children,
is
not
film
cri2cism.

15. 6.
Don’t
rate
by
thumbs,
numbers,
stars,
fruit
or
vegetables
• It’s
a
cliché
• It’s
lazy

16. 7.
Mediate
the
film
• Mediate
the
film:
what
does
the
movie
mean
• How
do
image
and
sound
work
together
to
create
meaning?
• What
do
the
visual
and
musical
symbols
and
mo2fs
mean?

17. Sacramental
imagina2on
• Your
job
is
not
to
censor
but
to
mediate
the
film
through
the
lens
of
your
humanity
and
your
Catholic
Chris2an
religious
imagina2on
–
your
sacramental
imagina2on.

18. Cinema
as
sacrament
Cinema
makes
visible
invisible
reali2es
• Transcendence
• Grace
• Encounter
• Senses
• Imagina2on
• Spirituality

19. Sacramentality
is
seeing
the
face
of
God
in
the
world
• In
the
face
of
the
poor,
the
dying,
the
hungry,
the
oppressed
• And
in
the
faces
of
the
decadent
and
morally
bankrupt
• “Audiences,
knowingly
or
not,
compelled
to
look
more
deeply
at
humanity’s
search
for
meaning”
(cf.
Nancy
Usslemann)

20. 8.
Think
sacramentally
• Sacraments
are
outward
signs
of
invisible
grace
• Cinema
reveals
inner
reali2es
through
outward
visual
and
aural
signs
• What
inner,
transcendent,
transforming
grace,
signs
of
the
divine,
are
being
revealed
• Have
you
seen
a
film,
had
a
cinema2c
moment,
that
you
saw
the
face
of
God?

21. Sacramental
signs
point
to
inner
reali2es
•
•
•
•
They
engage
our
senses
They
can
be
seen,
smelled,
touched,
felt,
tasted
They
engage
our
emo2ons
first
of
all
Call
us
to
reflec2on,
conversa2on,
unity,
ac2on

22. • These
existen2al
ques2ons
are
always
present
to
humanity
but
some2mes
it
takes
a
cultural
parable
to
make
us
aware
and
a8en2ve
to
these
very
ques2ons.

23. 9.
Know
what
it
is
to
be
human
•
•
•
•
People
of
character
Who
live
empathy
Who
walk
first
in
the
shoes
of
someone
else
Who
do
the
right
thing
even
when
no
one
is
looking

24. 9.
Know
your
audience
•
•
•
•
Who
you
are
wri2ng
for
Keep
that
audience
in
mind.
But
don’t
write
for
their
“taste”
Leave
room
for
them
to
reflect
on
your
perspec2ve
through
the
lens
of
their
own
faith
and
life
experience.
y.

25. 10.
Trust
your
readers
• Your
job
is
not
to
tell
people
what
to
think
• But
to
invite
them
to
engage,
to
ac2vely
par2cipate
in
the
cinema
experience;
• To
think,
choose,
and
make
meaning
for
themselves.

26.
11.
Know
the
difference
between
cultural
sensibili2es
and
morality
• Language
• Image

27. Conscience
• Conscience
is
our
true
home

28. Conscience
• Not
to
live
by
one’s
conscience
is
homelessness

29. Dilemma
and
Drama
• The
most
interes2ng
movies
deal
with
the
dilemma
between
following
or
not
following
one’s
conscience
• The
consequences
of
one’s
choices
on
one’s
life
and
the
lives
of
others

30. 12.
Never,
never
review
something
you
have
not
seen
•
•
•
•
It
is
not
honest
It
is
a
disservice
to
your
readers
You
can
write
“about”
it
but
not
“review”
it
Thoughrul
vis-­‐à-­‐vis
emo2ons
and
rants

31. 13.
The
film
is
not
over
un2l
the
last
credit
rolls
• An
en2re
film
can
turn
on
the
last
five
minutes
e.g.
“The
Lives
of
Others”

32. 14.
Experience,
feel,
think,
write
• How
do
I
feel
aser
experiencing
this
film?
Why?
• What
does
it
evoke
from
me?
Why?
• What
were
the
visual
and
audio
mo2fs?
Why?
• What
did
they
point
to?
• What
did
I
expect
from
the
film?
Why?
• Did
it
meet
my
expecta2ons?
Why
or
why
not?

33. •
•
•
•
•
What
was
it
about?
What
does
it
mean?
Did
the
director
do
well?
Cinematography:
it’s
all
about
the
light
Music
and
sound:
direct
hit
to
the
body

34. 15.
Read
reviews
• Internet
Movie
Database
• IMDB.com
• Opinions
• SisterRoseMovies.net

35. Film
Cri2que
Template
•
•
•
•
What’s
it
about?
(The
story)
How
well
is
the
story
told?
(Sight,
sound)
What
does
it
mean?
What’s
your
judgment
of
it
and
why?
Or:
Did
it
meet
your
criteria?
Why
or
why
not?

36. As
with
the
Scriptures,
It
is
in
and
through
the
complexi2es
of
our
human
experience
that
the
face
of
God
is
revealed.
Cinema,
and
even
movies
at
2mes,
tell
stories
of
grace
and
God’s
love.
What
is
truly
human
is
truly
of
the
Gospel;
What
is
of
the
Gospel
is
truly
human
–
Va2can
II
Gaudium
et
spes

37. Sister
Rose
Info
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Sr.
Rose
Homepage
(digital
business
card)
H8p://
SisterRoseHomepage.com
The
INNdustry
with
Sr.
Rose
on
the
IN
Network
(Loyola
ProducBons)
h8p://ge2nn.tv/the-­‐inndustry-­‐with-­‐sister-­‐rose
Sr.
Rose
at
the
Movies
blog
at
Patheos
h8p://SisterRoseMovies.net
Sr.
Rose's
blog
at
NaBonal
Catholic
Reporter
(print/online)
h8p://ncronline.org/authors/sr-­‐rose-­‐paca8e
Sr.
Rose
Goes
to
the
Movies
Reviews
at
RCL
Benziger
h8p://SisterRoseMovies.com
"Reel
Time"
in
St.
Anthony
Messenger
h8p://StAnthonyMessenger.org
(print/online)
US
Catholic,
“Culture
in
Context”
(print/online)
h8p://uscatholic.org/authors/sister-­‐rose-­‐paca8e-­‐
fsp-­‐27785
Reel
Spirituality,
The
Brehm
Center,
Fuller
Seminary,
Print/online,
brehmcenter.com/ini2a2ves/
reelspirituality/film/ar2cles/show/contributors/sr.-­‐rose-­‐paca8e/
LinkedIn
Rose
Paca8e,
FSP
Facebook:
Rose
Paca8e
TwiPer:
Sister
Rose
Goes
to
the
Movies