Wow. Talk about not wavering and really telling reporters who you are. Denzel Washington shows his faith and dogged determination
in this interview. I have to admit that my first thought was...wait, Denzel's kid plays pro football for the Rams? Answer:
Yep. Now, that's a gifted family. I mean, it's not Batiansila family.
i have mixed feelings about this due to the types of roles he chooses. obviously all very intense, complex characters... but also very - for lack of a better term - "worldly." don't christians have a responsibility with their art to reflect the imago dei and the missio dei? i say "yes, above all else." unfortunately that leaves us with stephen baldwin and other "christian artists" that think their faith demands a watered-down aesthetic in order to push the message.
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ReplyDeleteThis is a discussion that has actually changed me. When I was a senior in college, I had a leading part in a play that required me to say the word "dammit." I was so torn by this that I turned to the wisest advisor I have and asked him what I should do. His response was to leave the word out. So I did.
ReplyDeleteI regret that choice to this day, some 17 years later. Art will sometimes make demands of you for art's sake. If we as Christians choose not to be involved in certain artistic endeavors because they conflict with our faith, then we shouldn't. I should have just told them I wasn't going to do the part and not dropped the word.
Or I should have just said the word. It would have been no different than if my character kissed a woman (I was married at the time), punched a man, overate, or spoke lustfully about someone or something. It was the character and the craft that were demanding it from me, not sin.
Some artists see their craft as (sometimes) depicting sinful humans in a sinful world. And sometimes they take the opportunities they have to actually choose to show illuminating, truly God-pleasing humans in a sinful world. I think to them, it's a little like being a plumber and fixing sinks in atheists houses and in Christian houses.
This debate will rage on. But truly, there's rationale on either side. Here's an illuminating interview from another Christian trying to work in Hollywood. Interested in your thoughts.
I get it. But by that rationale where do you draw the line? The christian plumber from your example certainly honors God by doing his job well no matter who he's doing it for... but what if he showed up at a job and the homeowner said "Thanks for unclogging my drain, now can you please pretend to have sex with my dog so I can film you for youtube?" Is context the ultimate arbiter?
ReplyDeleteWow. In terms of debate, I think you've gone to a new level of wildly leaping. Comparing Washington's worst, most Christless performances - say "Training Day" to something about a dog and YouTube is a bit much, isn't it? What's the analogy?
ReplyDeleteI chose plumber because some actors look at their work as work. Like a plumber might. So something outside of work wouldn't be a parallel comparison. With a dog and Youtube.
I think context plays some kind of point. Is a Christian who works for Marlboro cigarettes similarly challenged on where his work takes him? What about a Christian who works at a casino?
context is irrelevant. it's the act itself that has any relevance to this discussion. what if you replace "plumber" with "denzel" and "youtube" for "this oscar-worthy screenplay"? now replace "sex with a dog" to "sex with a woman", in both scenarios the same thing is happening: someone is going to work and asked to portray (even if it's "fake") sinful behaviour so others can be entertained.
ReplyDeleteas for your marlboro/casino worker. yes, they certainly have to ask themselves this same question. if we go the "hooters" account tomorrow and they needed a web app, i could not in good conscience work on it. what it comes down to is that there are certain things we know we should not do - and the less we do these things the better, no matter the context.
although the question still remains: if you're acting are you actually doing it?