Through a Screen Darkly: Looking Closer at Beauty, Truth and Evil in the Movies [Paperback]

Jeffrey Overstreet (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 5, 2007

In the style of a cinematic travel journal, film columnist and critic Jeffrey Overstreet of Christianity Today and lookingcloser.org leads readers down paths less traveled to explore some of the best films you’ve never seen. Examining a feast of movies, from blockbusters to buried treasure, Overstreet peels back the layers of work by popular entertainers and under-appreciated masters. He shares excerpts from conversations with filmmakers like Peter Jackson, Wim Wenders, Kevin Smith, Scott Derrickson, producer Ralph Winter, and stars like Elijah Wood, Ian McKellan, Keanu Reeves and the cast of Serenity, drawing “war-stories” from his encounters with movie stars, moviemakers, moviegoers and other critics in both mainstream and religious circles. He argues that what makes some films timeless rather than merely popular has everything to do with the way these artists—whether they know it or not—have captured reflections of God in their work. Through a Screen Darkly also includes a collection of reviews, humorous anecdotes and on-the-scene film festival reports, as well as recommendations for movie discussion groups and meditations on how different films echo the myriad ways in which Christ captured the attention and imagination of culture.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. If viewing a film is to be a spiritual exercise, one must be open to conversion. Overstreet, cultural commentator and film critic for Christianity Today, leads readers through his own cinematic conversion in this compelling volume. Overstreet's greatest gift is the masterful way he brings a spirit of discernment to the world of film. For example, determining when sex and violence is artfully employed or when it is just plain gratuitous is not always an easy task. Overstreet uses inspiring anecdotes from his life to show how the process of discerning the content and meaning of films takes patience, prayer and humility. He exhibits all of these traits through his movie commentaries and invites the reader to set aside biases about what is "properly" Christian and look deeper toward how cinema as an art form affects one's soul. This, according to Overstreet, is the work of God. At times, the author's stories distract from his main point, but his primary goal is one to be celebrated: "I have a strange compulsion to sit down between Christian culture and secular society, trying to help them understand each other—and ultimately, God—better through a shared experience of art." Two thumbs up! (Feb. 8)
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Review

He writes beautifully in Through a Screen Darkly...routinely finding redemptive insights in unusual places. -- Youthworker Journal, May/June 2007

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Regal (February 5, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0830743154
• ISBN-13: 978-0830743155
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #394,387 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Jeffrey Overstreet is the author of The Auralia Thread, a four-volume fantasy series that includes "Auralia's Colors," "Cyndere's Midnight," "Raven's Ladder," and "The Ale Boy's Feast." He also writes about art and culture at LookingCloser.org, and his "memoir of dangerous moviegoing" is a book called "Through a Screen Darkly." Jeffrey's film reviews are published at ImageJournal.org twice monthly, and at Filmwell.org. In the past, he has written for Paste, Christianity Today, and various other periodicals. He regularly lectures at universities and conferences around the country, on many subjects including Storytelling, Fantasy, Play, and Film Interpretation. He lives in Shoreline, Washington, and works as the contributing editor for Seattle Pacific University's magazine Response.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent look at faith and film, March 1, 2007

By 

J. Sanders (St. Louis, MO, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Through a Screen Darkly: Looking Closer at Beauty, Truth and Evil in the Movies (Paperback)

I really enjoyed this book, and how Jeffrey showed how to expand a Christian view of film in two ways: by looking beyond simple moralizing to take a deep look at how film can convey the spiritual longings and journeys taken by film characters, and by looking beyond Hollywood to explore the finest works from world cinema. I have had the chance to view a few of the films Jeffrey mentions in this book, but this book has helped me want to revisit these films to study them again using the artistic and filmic languages that were unfamiliar to me. I also have gained a list of films I want to add to my Netflix account. Seeing the best of world cinema, and learning how to view these films, nourishes the soul and expands my view of how God moves both in the human heart, and throughout the entire world.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars As wonderful an experience as going to a good movie!, September 26, 2008

By 

Gerry Brague "RevGer" (San Francisco, CA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Through a Screen Darkly: Looking Closer at Beauty, Truth and Evil in the Movies (Paperback)

About 20 years ago, I gave myself a gift while I was in a Protestant seminary: during my last semester, I took a course entitled "Celluloid Theology" which was offered at a nearby Roman Catholic seminary which brought me to new understandings of faith and cinematic arts. Since then, I have dabbled in movies and theology, offering a movie discussion here and there in my ministry setting. Since that time long ago, I have kept in mind the lens of theology as I view movies even if I wasn't actively using the lessons I learned during that time with Father Tom Kane.

This book, though, has brought a whole new perspective to that journey. Jeffrey Overstreet has written a very readable, and often times moving, book about the intersection of Christianity (our culture's most apparent religious expression) and film (our most noticeable artistic expression these days). I especially appreciated the way that he modeled the use of movies in discussing how they reflect faith and sometimes expose us to divine truths.

I realize that the author and I probably come from somewhat different theological perspectives and I have to let go of my only frustration with the book. I feel that he spent too much of his writing explaining away why he appreciates and endorses movies that may be too over the edge for some Christians. I do understand and appreciate the fact that he gets way too much email criticizing him for pointing out the good of a particular movie that has too much violence/sex/foul language/you-name-it for the email writer. But I did grow a little tired of the repeated justifications that began to sound like apologies.

I especially commend the second chapter, "Viewer Discretion Advised," for the best essay I have ever read about the intersection of faith and the arts, and not just cinematic arts. His viewpoint is clearly written and can be applied to how we might look at any art form as a window into a bit of understanding about God.

I am rejuvenated in my interest in movies by this book and highly recommend it.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thoughtful, personal journey through the land of cinema, February 4, 2007

By 

Fritz Liedtke (Portland, Oregon) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Through a Screen Darkly: Looking Closer at Beauty, Truth and Evil in the Movies (Paperback)

I'm the kind of guy who watches all the extras on DVDs. I like to know how things are made, why things were done a particular way, how other creative types think, the history of a project.

I'm also the kind of guy that likes to ponder what things mean. I don't often find this type of discussion in DVD extras. But I do find it in Jeffrey's book Through a Screen Darkly. He deftly weaves a tapestry of meaning based on movies--our national art form. He discusses faith and film thoughtfully, and personally. From his childhood with the Muppets, to his daily work as a film reviewer, Jeffrey talks about things and their meaning in a personal way--not abstract, not theoretical, but through the use of his own coming-of-age-as-a-movie-viewer story. Jeffrey is insightful on many levels--he knows many of the people he writes about, and has conversed with them over time. He watches their films and discusses their deeper meaning. He also has a lot of fun discussing what he cares so passionately about. His is not a dry read, but one filled with light and truth.

I'd encourage you to get a copy; see what you've been missing. Things mean things, and Jeffrey's insight will help you see better, too. Even in the dark.