We all know that the United States is currently a superpower in the world, all fields are very developed, science, military including a variety of educational institutions, plus the representative of goods two Coke is more famous around the world, Hollywood blockbuster cultural output is also conquest of the four sides, all of which highlight the strength of the United States. These are all things that Americans are proud of, but what Americans think is most proud of is not these, but Christian culture.
Having faith proves that many practical problems can be solved, such as disputes between people, making secular life happier, etc., but ideals and reality are always a pair of contradictions, and the universal belief in Christian culture does not necessarily eliminate secular evil, so some people will have doubts and discussions about the beliefs of this religion, and in the process of this discussion, works of art are always at the forefront.
God's to God, Satan's to Satan. The contradiction and entanglement of good and malignancy in the movie "Miracle in the Green" has a full doubt and deep thinking.
American directors are willing to take anything to shoot, so this kind of Christian culture discussion is also an eternal theme in the film, "Miracle in the Green" is about the redemption and redemption of contradictions, and the final redemption is: just like Jesus returned to heaven, the world is still the same, and the greatest good is always hidden behind the scenes.
The totem of religion
According to the statistics of many authoritative institutions such as the Gallup Survey Center, 9 out of every 10 people in the United States claim to believe in God, 8 people think that Christianity is very important to their lives, and 7 people belong to a Christian organization. All speeches by the President of the United States must conclude with the words "May God bless America."
As Obama put it, America is strong (first of all) not by military might and wealth, but by his faith and convictions. Berman, a famous American jurist, also believes that a country cannot have no law, because any society needs order, but only law is not enough, more importantly, there must be faith, religion, "religion governs the spirit, the law governs behavior", without religion, law becomes a form, Christianity provides the United States with moral and ethical standards, spiritual pillars and core values.
God loves everyone, if you believe in this way, this is a paradise, but the United States, like all countries on the earth, has its own problems, just as some people say that they believe in Buddhism and do not kill, they turn around and kill again, faith and reality are always a pair of contradictions, faith has become a totem, it is out of reach, whether faith can truly save sentient beings, and how to get along with the selfish interests of reality and the darkness of human nature is a contradiction, and how should this contradiction achieve salvation?
Director Frank Darabont tries to give a similar answer in this film, showing how this redemption manifests itself in reality, where, while the world is full of paradoxes and helplessness, there is one thing that is always there: hope is everywhere.
This is not a bright movie
The same director, the same adaptation to Stephen. King's original novels, and they are all stories that take place in prison, "Miracle in the Green" has also been compared to "The Shawshank Redemption" many times, and the two films are almost identical in their intentions.
It's just that the latter has gained more attention and attention, occupying the top of the IMDB top 250 and refusing to come down, looking always charming, while "Miracle in the Green" is much less discussed, and its status in the minds of many people is much worse than the latter.
Abandoning the cloak of religion, these two films are actually about hope everywhere, redemption is always waiting somewhere, but "The Shawshank Redemption" is full of inspiration, the sunshine is infinitely good, and "Miracle in the Green" shows a hint of coldness and darkness under the cloak of religion.
The film's personal feelings are also strong in artistic shock, because this redemption seems to have a realistic meaning, and the story of the prince and the fairy tale is always deceptive.
So the bad guys in this movie get bad rewards, such as Pesci, who symbolizes the evil side of human nature, is finally punished by John, killing the real murderer with the hand of Pesci, and Pesci himself is demented and becomes a member of the mental hospital, although justice will eventually come.
However, the fate of good people such as John is to calmly go to the electric chair of execution, his spirit has redeemed many people, but he cannot save his own life, which is a kind of self-sacrifice, but also the irony expressed in the film, and finally John's words are a pun: Don't lock me in the dark, I am afraid of the dark.
Paul, another prison warden full of goodness in his heart, is suffering in the long river of life, his faith is not shaken, but full of doubts, although it is not his fault, but it is he who finally gave the fate to execute, and he sent the reborn "Jesus" back to heaven.
The Passion of Jesus Again
In 1935, in the Cold Mountain Prison in the south of the United States, Paul was the prison director of the transitional prison for executing death row prisoners, because the floor was green, the road to the execution of death row inmates was called the "green journey", the people who came here were either adulterous or evil, they all said that people would maintain the greatest kindness when they were dying, and in the face of these prisoners Paul also did his best to treat them, let them go through the last journey, Paul sent away many people, but he was not ashamed.
If nothing else, Paul could work until he retired, after all, it was just a job, but the arrival of a black man named John Coffey broke his calm and made people see once again how Jesus suffered.
Many years ago, God sent an angel Jesus to save the world, and as a result, the world did not need to be saved, so he tried to execute Jesus, but it has been explained that Jesus was in the ritual of death from the day of his birth, and it was through this sense of divine ritual that the purpose of awakening and redeeming the world was achieved, and since then this holy Crucifix of Jesus has been rooted in the hearts of countless believers.
From the perspective of the later development of Christ, this statement seems to have a certain truth, if Jesus had quietly preached like a regular preacher, perhaps there would be no popular religion in the West today.
John Kofi also considered himself a messenger from God, but he also had to go down this path, because he heard about human suffering every day, and saw all the sins of the world constantly being staged every day, and as a saint he could not withstand this pressure, so he chose a similar way to return to God's embrace.
After performing a series of miracles, such as rescuing a rat trampled to death by Pesci, curing Paul and Melinda's illness, and convincing Paul that the other was a messenger sent by God, Paul was shaken.
In the movie, we can see that at the risk of being punished by the law, we also want to let John go, as long as John nods.
When John asked why, paul's words illustrate the plight of many people of faith: When I stand before God for judgment on the day of the great limit, how should I answer if he asks me why I destroyed his miracles?
John did not want to continue to stay in such a world, and he finally chose to face death.
This is also why there is no further argument in the face of the charge of murder, as he said: I don't want to see the deceit of the world anymore, and I don't want to bear the suffering of the whole world.
This is a modern version of the "crucifixion", just as Jesus was still calm when he knew that he was betrayed, and the film is in some ways a reproduction of the biblical story, thus embodying a religious metaphor, that is, this suffering may reach the faith of awakening mankind, and this is also a concession to the world, God is merciful to all beings, and ultimately chooses to watch rather than continue to save.
This awakening is ironic in the film, because not everyone understands that John is innocent and good, and the executioners in prison know the truth of the facts, but the law will not re-judge this belief.
And a group of regular spectators sitting in front of the electric chair just watching a death show, for them, this is not much different from the usual execution, they are just a group of boring and indifferent spectators, and in the eyes of the murdered girl's family, John is deserved, he is the murderer, but he does not know that the real murderer is someone else.
Similar to the metaphor expressed by Lu Xun in "Medicine", when revolutionaries struggle for ordinary people, they are executed by a group of cold spectators and old plugs who want blood to make medicine:
The old bolt also looked over there, but only saw a bunch of people's backs; The necks were stretched out long, like many ducks, pinched by invisible hands, lifted upwards. After a moment of silence, it seemed to be a little sound, and then it shook again, and with a bang, they all retreated; Scattered all the way to where the old bolt stood, it almost squeezed him down.
So whether this redemption has played any role is still a question, the cross years ago is no different from the electric chair many years later, and in a sense, this redemption does not seem to reach the ultimate solution, and the evil in the world will still exist.
And Paul, who had gained a part of John's life force, thought that he had blasphemed God, so he let himself send away one relative and friend after another like an eternal life, although he told the story to others, and also sent away those who listened to the story.
Some people say that this is the ultimate punishment for the "god killer", but it is also a different blessing for the "god worshipper".
Heaven and earth are unkind, and all things are dogs. This is an old Chinese saying, and it also reflects that in people's minds, the gods are ruthless, and if the heavens are affectionate, they are old, so they must be ruthless.
In this film, a bible story is reviewed, and it is also a metaphor for the existence of evil, so even the messengers sent by God are not willing to stay in such an environment, has God given up this ultimate salvation to some extent?
One man and one mouse are moving towards infinity in the long years: even if a mouse lives so long, how long will I live? There are no exceptions to death, but, God, sometimes this "green journey" seems to be endless.
The film looks very bright, but it expresses a reflection on redemption and redemption, and in the shadow of the light, you can feel a chill in your face.