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Thursday, November 29, 2007

UW Professors' Book Examines Religion in Popular Films

News Release

UW Professors' Book Examines Religion in Popular Films

Nov. 28, 2007 -- Many of America's most popular movies use religious imagery and symbolism to convey cultural viewpoints and to debate social questions of their times, according to the authors of a new college textbook, "Film and Religion: An Introduction."

"We examine how American culture uses religious material for many purposes, quite often to promote political and ideological statements," says Paul Flesher, University of Wyoming associate professor of religious studies who co-wrote the book with Robert Torry, associate professor in UW's Department of English. They wrote the book in response to a nationwide demand for a text to accompany an increasing number of college courses that teach religion and film. The pair began team teaching the course at UW in the early 1990s.

"Our students watch the films in context of cultural issues that affect the society in which the films were made. So we look at the 1950s films in terms of the Cold War issues -- nuclear bombs, foreign policy and military policy," says Torry. "These issues are expressed even in science fiction films such as "The Day the Earth Stood Still" and "When Worlds Collide."

The religious films of the ‘60s and ‘70s were produced after the strict motion picture code was relaxed, says Flesher, who also directs UW's Religious Studies Program. For example, more traditional films on the life of Jesus, such as "The King of Kings" and "The Greatest Story Ever Told" were replaced by films reflecting the era's social rebellion, such as "Godspell, "Jesus Christ Superstar" and "Jesus in Montreal."

The authors say the textbook (Abingdon Press, 2007) incorporates three areas of knowledge essential for understanding film's use of religion: the movies themselves, the religious features that appear in them, and the cultural concerns they address.

Each chapter is organized around an issue addressed by a group of films. For example, one chapter on "God As Alien: Humanity's Helper" examines 1968's "2001: A Space Odyssey" and 1977's "Close Encounters of the Third Kind." "The Exorcist" (1973) and "The Omen" (1976) are highlighted in a chapter about the devil.

The book also includes popular films that take a less explicit look at the relationships between religion and culture. Religious themes and imagery of the films "The Natural" and "Field of Dreams" are examined in a chapter on "The Religion of Baseball."

"We want our students to have fun with these films, but the overall point we make is that religion interacts with culture," Flesher adds.

Posted on Wednesday, November 28, 2007

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