Like everyone else, Paige & I enjoy watching Television and Movies. But we all need to ask ourselves: Should I watch this?
Below I want to provide you with six questions for you to consider regarding movie watching. These questions were drawn from two articles:
3 Questions to Ask Before Watching A Movie, and
5 Questions to Ask when Watching Movies.
If you want more than just the brief summary below, I recommend you read both of those articles in their entirety – They are helpful.
1. Should I really watch this movie?
This is a good starting question.
Why are you wanting to see this movie?
What are other people saying about it?
Read some reviews such as pluggedin.com, commonsensemedia.org, and the parent’s guides for the movie at imdb.com.
There are some movies that you do not need to see. Some that you know will trip you up. Some that you know have material in them that isn’t healthy for your mind, your language, and your purity.
2. Where are the true and false depictions of reality?
Because movies are made for our entertainment, every movie has some true depictions of reality and some false ones. Let’s make sure that we can identify these. Often the morality that is presented by Hollywood is problematic. And they like to sneak stuff in on us. For example, because the ending of the movie The Notebook was so sweet and touching, we easily forget that the relationship started by a girl cheating on her fiancé. Are we willing for the person who makes a commitment to marry us to go enjoy sex with someone else to find out if that person is their “soulmate”? Of course not.
So we must be careful that Hollywood’s depictions don’t lead us down paths that have us holding to false beliefs about life or romance.
What themes or ideas within the movie are God-honoring, and which ones are unbiblical? What qualities in the characters imitate God and vice-versa?
3. What kind of hero does this movie really need?
Every movie has a hero. But the hero won’t be Jesus. The question is how can we use the hero in the movie to think more clearly about Jesus? In what ways is the hero flawed? In what ways is he like our great Hero?
4. How is this movie trying to teach me something?
There’s no such thing as a movie without a message. So what is the main point of the movie?
Similar to question 2 above, this question is about trying to determine what the main message of the movie is and whether or not you agree with it. To help determine the main message, Listen for key lines & Determine the main character’s goal.
5. How is this movie affecting me spiritually?
Usually the most important aspect of the movie is not the rating, but the message of the movie and how it will affect me spiritually.
Movies can and will affect your walk with Jesus. If, after checking the reviews, you think a movie will likely hurt your walk with Christ, then it’s probably wise to remove it from your “to see” list.
6. How can I use this movie to talk to my friends about Jesus?
Not everyone is a critical thinker when it comes to movies. But almost everyone watches movies. Therefore conversations about movies will take place all around you. So be willing to talk about movies and use them to change the conversations toward spiritual ideas that arise from the movies you see.
“Many non-believers won’t accept an invitation to come to church, but they will talk about a movie they’ve seen recently, so we want to turn that conversation into an eternally significant discussion.”
Part of disciplemaking is helping each other process information using a God-focused worldview instead of a secular worldview. Discuss movies and other media (TV, music, books, even commercials) with your family, children, grandchildren. Use every opportunity available as a disciplemaking moment. Ask your children some engaging questions after watching a movie or TV show together, such as:
.